Quote of the Day (Jeff Goodell, on Climate Change as National-Security Threat)

“Nearly every naval and Air Force base on the East Coast is vulnerable to sea-level rise and storm surges, including Eglin Air Force Base, the largest Air Force base in the United States, which is on the low-lying Florida Panhandle, and Patrick Air Force Base on Florida's Atlantic Coast. In the West, the problem is often drought and flash flooding. Fort Irwin, a seven-square-mile Army base in Southern California, on the edge of the Mojave Desert, has troubles with both. California's epic drought has put the base's long-term water supply into question. Fort Irwin is one of the only bases in the U.S. with the space and the isolation to allow full-scale mock tank warfare. At the same time, the base has been pounded by extreme rain events. In August 2013, when a year's worth of rain fell in 80 minutes, flooding caused $64 million in damages on the base.” —Jeff Goodell, “The Pentagon and Climate Change,” Rolling Stone, Feb. 26, 2015

So now the right wing of the GOP, upon hearing Pope Francis’ views on the moral urgency of climate change, dismisses it as the musings of a man not entitled to view the hard world of public affairs. But how do they dismiss the profound unease and actions taken by the longtime object of their ardor and government largesse, the Pentagon, as it struggles with this direct threat to national security?

Answer: They make believe it'll go away as they hide away in the sand. The same sand they hope doesn't erode.