Climate Change and Irene

In case you're in the mood for a more scientific approach to this hurricane (the rain's been very stop-and-start in New York so far, mainly focusing on the stop. Then again, the hurricane's not supposed to really start getting to us until tonight, so I'm enjoying the quiet), check out this Scientific American article debating the influence of climate change on this year's tropical storms.

Personally, I think that climate change + 24 hour media cycle = every weather event breaks every record in history from now on. The news loves to freak people out about something and make them feel special even when it's 75 degrees and sunny, but also climate change causes severe weather and record-breaking events, which in turn feeds the news beast.