Posted on 2 September 2023 by John Hartz

Story of the Week

Falsehoods Follow Close Behind This Summer’s Natural Disasters

Misattributed videos, recycled lies and warped fears are fueling unfounded claims about the recent record-breaking heat, floods and wildfires. 

As natural disasters and extreme environmental conditions became more commonplace around the world this summer, scientists pointed repeatedly to a shared driver: climate change.

Conspiracy theorists pointed to anything but.

Some claimed falsely that the record-smashing heat waves blistering parts of North America, Europe and Asia were normal, and that they had been sensationalized as part of a globalist hoax. Others made up tales that cloud-seeding airplanes or a nearby dam, rather than torrential rains, had caused the unusually intense flooding in northern Italy (and in places like Vermont and Rwanda).

The devastating wildfire on Maui this month produced especially ludicrous claims. Social media that racked up millions of views blamed the blaze on a “directed energy weapon” (the evidence: years-old footage not recorded in Hawaii). And as Florida braced this week for Hurricane Idalia, some people claimed incorrectly online that such storms are not affected by fossil fuel emissions.

The unfounded claims that now regularly follow natural disasters and dangerous weather, contradicting a preponderance of scientific evidence, can often seem frivolous and fantastical. They persist, however — attracting large audiences and frustrating climate experts, who say the world has little time to evade a global warming catastrophe. 

Click here to access the entire article as originally posted on The New York Times website.

Falsehoods Follow Close Behind This Summer’s Natural Disasters Misattributed videos, recycled lies and warped fears are fueling unfounded claims about the recent record-breaking heat, floods and wildfires. by Tiffany Hsu, Media, New York Times, Aug 30, 2023

Articles posted on Facebook

Sunday, Aug 27, 2023

• On the climate crisis, it’s time to lean into pessimism, Opinion by Brian Kateman, Los Angeles Times, Aug 24, 2023
• Presidential debate shows how GOP candidates are struggling to address concerns about climate change by Steve Peoples, Science, AP News, Aug 24, 2023
• Some experts see AI as a tool against climate change. Others say its own carbon footprint could be a problem. by Aliza Chasan, World, CBS News, Aug 26, 2023
• Tropical Storm Idalia could threaten the Gulf Coast and Florida this week by Mary Gilbert, Caitlin Kaiser & Brandon Mille, Weather, CNN, Aug 27, 2023

Monday, Aug 28, 2023

• The Investment Climate by Advait Arun, PolyCrises, Phenomenal World, Aug 26, 2023
• Explained: The 1.5 C climate benchmark After a summer of weather extremes, where does the world stand in its goal to stem rising temps? by Jennifer Chu, MIT News, Aug 27, 2023
• The Montana climate kids’ lawsuit has energized activists, including this one Tia Hatton and other plaintiffs await a climate trial that pits them against the federal government, in a case that started before the landmark Montana ruling by Kate Selig, Climate, Washington Post, Aug 27, 2023
• UN seeks to help children battling climate change in court by Emma Farge, Climate, Reuters, Aug 28, 2023

Tuesday, Aug 29, 2023

• Nature fund launched but financing questions remain The new fund aims to be the primary tool to implement the Kunming-Montreal deal and deliver $200 billion a year to nature protection initiatives by Matteo Civillini, Climate Home News, Aug 25, 2023
• You’re doing it wrong: Recycling and other myths about tackling climate change by Kate Selig & Emily Guskin, Climate Solutions, Washington Post, Aug 28, 2023
• At a glance - How much is sea level rising? by John Mason & Baerbel Winkler, Aug 29, 2023
• How Vivek Ramaswamy makes money from climate denial At Wednesday's debate, Ramaswamy said he was the "only candidate who's not bought and paid for." That couldn't be further from the truth. by Emily Atkins, Heated, Aug 28, 2023

Wednesday, Aug 30, 2023

• Exxon says world set to fail 2°C global warming cap by 2050 by Sabrina Valle, Business, Reuters, Aug 28, 2023
• ‘Off-the-charts records’: has humanity finally broken the climate? Extreme weather is ‘smacking us in the face’ with worse to come, but a ‘tiny window’ of hope remains, say leading climate scientists by Damian Carrington, Nina Lakhani, Oliver Milman, Adam Morton, Ajit Niranjan & Jonathan Watts, Environment, The Guardian, Aug 28, 2023
• ‘Brought .to you by big oil’: US billboards call out companies for record heatwaves Fossil Free Media, a non-profit media org by anization, installed the ads in cities rocked by heatwaves including Phoenix and Austin by Dharna Noor, US News, The Guardian, Aug 29, 2023
• What Arctic ice tells us about climate change I went with scientists to a remote part of the Greenland ice sheet. Here’s what I learned, and why it matters for the rest of the world. by Sarah Kaplan, Climate, Washington Post, Aug 29, 2023

Thursday, Aug 31, 2023

• Bill Gates: This is the major contributor to climate change that people are ‘probably least aware of’—It’s ‘a challenge’ by Tom Huddleston Jr, make it, CNBC, Aug 29, 2023
• Falsehoods Follow Close Behind This Summer’s Natural Disasters Misattributed videos, recycled lies and warped fears are fueling unfounded claims about the recent record-breaking heat, floods and wildfires. by Tiffany Hsu, Media, New York Times, Aug 30, 2023
• There’s been a shift in how we think about climate change  A climate psychologist explains how we’ve moved beyond hope, anger, and complacency toward something more promising. by Rebecca Leber, Climate, Vox, Aug 31, 2023 
• The ‘Hurricane Tax’ Hitting Florida Alongside Idalia by Alejandro de la Garza, Climate, Time Magazine, Aug 30, 2023

Friday Sep 1, 2023

• US denies rigging loss and damage fund’s board in rich nations’ favour The US wants extra seats for major donors to the fund on top of developed country representation, sparking accusations of “double counting” by Joe Lo, Climate Home News, Aug 31, 2023
• New Air-Conditioning Technology Could Be the Future of Cool Standard AC units cool buildings but contribute to global warming. New technology aims to change that by Lauren Leffer, Technology, Scientific American, Aug 29, 2023
• From Knowledge to Power - an interview with John Perona: scientist, author, and blogger by Bärbel Winkler, Skeptical Science, Sep 1, 2023
• Almost all European ski resorts under threat from global warming A study published in 'Nature Climate Change' assesses the risk to snow coverage in over 2,200 resorts, based on temperature rise scenarios. by Martine Valo, Environment, LeMonde, Sep 1, 2023

Saturday Sep 2, 2023

• Why it may be time to stop using the polar bear as a symbol of the climate crisis The warming planet is causing steep declines among some of the world’s 26,000 wild polar bears, but it is not universal and the picture is complicated, say experts by Patrick Greenfield, Environment, The Guardian, Aug 30, 2023
• Our forests have reached a tipping point by Barry Saxifrage, Analysis, Race Against Climate Change, Canada's National Observer, Aug 21, 2023
• Category 4 Typhoon Saola batters Hongx gKongPlus, a swarm of six Atlantic systems to discuss: Gert, Franklin, Idalia, Jose, TD 12, and a new African wave. Plus, a swarm of six Atlantic systems to discuss: Gert, Franklin, Idalia, Jose, TD 12, and a new African wave. by Jeff Masters & Bob Henson, Eye on the Storm, Yale Climate Connections, 
• Warming Could Push India Toward a Groundwater Crisis by Raymond Zhong, Climate, New York Times, Sep 1, 2023