Mattis turns up heat on climate change deniers, pushes for more federal action on 'national security

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Former Defense Secretary James Mattis had a message for climate change skeptics on Thursday, warning that it was a "national security issue."

He was responding to MSNBC anchor Andrea Mitchell, who had asked about the U.S. Navy's decision to end an Obama-era task force on climate change. Mattis declined to address that specific program, but said he believed climate change was a "reality" that presented a host of dangers.

His comments followed days of reports on Mattis' view of Trump and his disagreement with the president's decision to withdraw from Syria. Although Mattis described Trump as an "unusual president," he refused to "speak ill" of him during an interview with CBS.

Thursday, without mentioning Trump specifically, Mattis suggested to Mitchell that skeptics should want some kind of "insurance policy" against climate change.

"For those who are adamant there is no climate change -- you look at the receding sea ice and have different explanations -- why wouldn't we take out an insurance policy and do prudent steps to make certain the generation that's coming up is not going to be caught flat-footed by this?" Mattis asked.

He went on to call the issue a matter of "national security," claiming that natural disasters created refugee flows, a need for humanitarian assistance, and opportunities for terrorists to recruit vulnerable populations.

https://www.foxnews.com/media/mattis-climate-skeptics-national-security

Yes I know the link is Fux Noise but even a broken clock is right twice a day.

[elleng]

1. Here's a Climate Solution to Unite, Not Divide Us.

'As natural disasters like floods, wildfires and extreme drought increase in size and frequency, affecting more and more of us here and around the world, the reality of climate change is finally being accepted by the majority of people. It’s no longer viewed as a hoax (except by the most uninformed, or those beholden to the fossil fuel companies), but as a real problem that needs to be solved — and soon!

Furthermore, each climate report that’s released (such as the 2018 National Climate Assessment and the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report) confirms with a greater degree of certainty that human activity is the cause. The question now is how in the world to solve a problem that’s woven into the very fabric of our modern industrial society — and one that has become a political hot potato, hopelessly dividing and polarizing the two parties.

The answer may be a powerful solution that has support across the political spectrum: Put a robust price or fee on carbon pollution and allocate the revenue to households. Pricing carbon may be our ticket out of stalemate, and in fact just before members of Congress left for their August recess, several carbon-pricing bills were introduced in both the House and Senate — some bipartisan. The new bills affirm the growing appetite in Congress to price carbon, and their introduction is likely to bring more Republicans and Democrats into the evolving conversation on climate solutions. . .

So who exactly supports this bill? Well, people like George Shultz, former U.S. Secretary of State; Steven Chu, former U.S. Secretary of Energy; Dr. James Hansen, climate scientist; Wesley Clark, U.S. Army general (ret.); Bradley Whitford, actor; Jessie Diggins, U.S. cross country skier and 2018 Olympic gold medalist; and many more.'>>>

https://signalscv.com/2019/09/cher-gilmore-heres-a-climate-solution-to-unite-not-divide-us/

[hatrack]

4. Ah, yes, the proposal that frees oil & utility companies from all lliability?

The proposal that puts carbon pricing at a farcically low $35/ton?

That one?

[Lulu KC]

2. Is he running against Trump for president?

Because if we had to, I could bear this guy. Just sayin'.

[blm]

3. Kerry's been calling it a National Security issue for nearly 3 decades.

Mattis would be wise to form a coalition of top military personnel, retired and current, to urge immediate action. And get it FULLY FUNDED.