That’s a great article Elliot. I too remember how seasons used to be, but not anymore. The whole world is experiencing unpredictable seasons. I watch the effects of climate change.
It would appear, watching reports of these disasters that those most throughly affected are those with the least resources or options to relocate. Do the poorest suffer the greatest or is this curating of the news in which only the poor are interviewed because they had no place to go?
So sad to see the news and the devastation to the beautiful California landscapes and cities. Unfortunately it is just a harbinger for what is to come.
And more unfortunate for us is another two year stretch of nothingness coming from the GOP house.
You would think that they do not realize they are just a very minor part of the billions of people living on our pale blue dot in space (thank you, Carl Sagan). And could have a major impact toward saving it.
Maybe we need a climate encampment in DC to get their attention?
The Nights Templar was a group of sword-swinging protectors of the Christian faith that escorted pilgrims through dangerous lands as they journeyed to the Holy city of Jerusalem. Control of the land that many considered to be of religious significance began in earnest in 1095 with the beginning of the Crusades. The struggle for the Holy lands lasted for almost 200 years, finally in 1291 with a Muslim victory over the Europeans the Crusades finally ended. Even though that area of the world would be the subject of conflict even to the present day. France had a king that was deeply in debt to the Templars. King Philip IV persuaded Pope Clement 5th that the Templars posed a threat to the social order of the time, in an attempt to welch on his debt the French King conspired to undo the powers held by the Nights, so on Friday the 13th in 1307 a large force backed by King Philip accused the Templars of Heresy and imprisoned many members of the group. They were tortured and forced to denounce their faith, after which they were burned at the stake. However, a large contingency managed to flee in a number of ships to an unknown location. It was rumored the group left with a vast treasure including a number of Religious artifacts they had removed from the Holy Temple prior to it being overrun by Muslim forces. Their destination remains a secret even to this day but there is a movement that thinks they made their way to Oak Island off the coast of Nova Scotia on Canada's Eastern coast. A journey that would have negated the accolades given to a guy named Cristopher. It was a time of blood and betrail backed by the Chruch and a mad French King. Overnight they succeeded in undermining and eliminating one of the richest military forces in medieval history. The treasure has never been found, at least not yet. The bad luck that transpired on Friday the 13th all those years ago might just bring others a fortune if they have enough luck of their own to find it.
The houses in Europe that held power back in the middle ages went through some degree of reshuffling because of the treachery extended to the Nights Templar. Not unlike the unruly and deceitful measures seen in our own House of Repersenivities. It's Friday the 13th again, is there a level of covert warfare being waged in our own house, driven by greed and the lust for power? Has Caesar's army finally crossed the Rubicon? Beware of the Ides of March, said one soothsayer to-------------another. I'm a 49er, odd to think that was the year in which Caesar's army got their feet wet. Remember, McCarthy is an ambitious man.
Sad, but it has always bothered me that water storage during rainy years in CA has been neglected, and so much of the rainfall flows through the sewer systems and directly into the ocean.
I too grew up in California. And while I was not as attuned to the natural world then as I am now, I nevertheless could see that it was not a good idea for people to build houses all over hillsides that used to support native ecosystems.
Nowadays, when I fly into LA, I have to cry. Concrete and blacktop everywhere, with barely any room for Mom Nature to co-exist.
Well, she always gets the last word in, and today she's sending huge rainstorms that CANNOT saturate the soil because the soil is covered with concrete and blacktop, and the water is immediately funneled into storm drains, leading to concrete-lined spillways and concrete-lined rivers that run into the ocean. All that fresh water that could have watered the land, gone to waste...
The sad truth is that California is NOT SATURATED. It is still dry as a bone under that concrete layer. And we are evidently so alienated from the natural cycle for water that we can't even recognize what's wrong.
My prediction: the drought will return this coming summer because the lessons of this rainfall are apparently not being absorbed. NOT SATURATED (with insight) -- we are bone dry still.
This is an elegant description and assessment. Among the many things you say, the one that stands out to me, is the suggestion that leaving more wilderness to absorb the water and whatever else comes our way is an answer….perhaps the best answer. More concrete is surely NOT.
I was noting, once again, how different the weather is now to that which I grew up with and I could not help wondering where we might be now without the foresight, courage, and caring of the citizens and politicians from the state of California. I remember the bumper stickers that implored us not to Californicate Colorado! But where would we be if we hadn’t adopted mileage and emissions mandates; the preservation of our wilderness; and other environmental regulations?
And rather than address climate change, corporations are looking at how they can profit from this. Buying huge swathes of land in Alaska, to capitalize on failing farms in the continental United States.
I guess there are going to be long dry spells broken by extremely heavy rain in California. At least the extremely heavy rain will keep wild fires from breaking out for the time being. I would advise people to evacuate as soon as they are warned about extremely heavy rain that could flood roadways so that driving is impossible. Never try to drive in water that is a few feet high. Rushing water that high can take vehicles away. We need to appreciate the power of rushing water. Remember water always flows from the highest elevation to the lowest elevation. Therefore, if there are orders to evacuate please heed those orders or you may end up dying.
This column is important because in order to harvest water we must plant it. Instead of relying on concrete walls and pipes and dams to quickly channel and store run-off water, it is critical to study old flood plains and potential natural water courses and 1) limit building in these areas, 2) allow for runoff water to spread into areas so that the ground can absorb it. In California the Sierra Mountains in ancient time naturally shed water down into the Central Valleys along natural watercourses. The runoff deposited boulders, gravels and sand in these riverbeds. These materials are generally very permeable and can store a vast amount of water. Over time these riverbeds were filled over. Now hydrologists, ecologists and geologists are searching for these ‘paleo-rivers’ as being a huge potential for underground water storage. Today, runoff water could be diverted into these ‘paleo-riverbeds’ which could supply water during droughts.
This well-written article sadly lacks the obvious—that we have to stop burning fossil fuels and not be duped by the industry’s greenwashing re-carbon, capture and storage; an excuse to continue burning its product.
The Deluge of 1862 built a good levee on sacred ground
Geologic time in the tides
the stress factor is high.
New moon orbit,
King Tide is the highest.
Failure is not an option with
the ocean at your door,
a levee under your feet.
The rain and wind and tide are good
so is a good levee.
Bethi Carver Gibb January 13, 2023 Bethel Island CA.
That’s a great article Elliot. I too remember how seasons used to be, but not anymore. The whole world is experiencing unpredictable seasons. I watch the effects of climate change.
It would appear, watching reports of these disasters that those most throughly affected are those with the least resources or options to relocate. Do the poorest suffer the greatest or is this curating of the news in which only the poor are interviewed because they had no place to go?
So sad to see the news and the devastation to the beautiful California landscapes and cities. Unfortunately it is just a harbinger for what is to come.
And more unfortunate for us is another two year stretch of nothingness coming from the GOP house.
You would think that they do not realize they are just a very minor part of the billions of people living on our pale blue dot in space (thank you, Carl Sagan). And could have a major impact toward saving it.
Maybe we need a climate encampment in DC to get their attention?
A bad night to be a knight.
Donald Hodgins <silencenotbad@gmail.com>
11:21 AM (4 minutes ago)
to
The Nights Templar was a group of sword-swinging protectors of the Christian faith that escorted pilgrims through dangerous lands as they journeyed to the Holy city of Jerusalem. Control of the land that many considered to be of religious significance began in earnest in 1095 with the beginning of the Crusades. The struggle for the Holy lands lasted for almost 200 years, finally in 1291 with a Muslim victory over the Europeans the Crusades finally ended. Even though that area of the world would be the subject of conflict even to the present day. France had a king that was deeply in debt to the Templars. King Philip IV persuaded Pope Clement 5th that the Templars posed a threat to the social order of the time, in an attempt to welch on his debt the French King conspired to undo the powers held by the Nights, so on Friday the 13th in 1307 a large force backed by King Philip accused the Templars of Heresy and imprisoned many members of the group. They were tortured and forced to denounce their faith, after which they were burned at the stake. However, a large contingency managed to flee in a number of ships to an unknown location. It was rumored the group left with a vast treasure including a number of Religious artifacts they had removed from the Holy Temple prior to it being overrun by Muslim forces. Their destination remains a secret even to this day but there is a movement that thinks they made their way to Oak Island off the coast of Nova Scotia on Canada's Eastern coast. A journey that would have negated the accolades given to a guy named Cristopher. It was a time of blood and betrail backed by the Chruch and a mad French King. Overnight they succeeded in undermining and eliminating one of the richest military forces in medieval history. The treasure has never been found, at least not yet. The bad luck that transpired on Friday the 13th all those years ago might just bring others a fortune if they have enough luck of their own to find it.
The houses in Europe that held power back in the middle ages went through some degree of reshuffling because of the treachery extended to the Nights Templar. Not unlike the unruly and deceitful measures seen in our own House of Repersenivities. It's Friday the 13th again, is there a level of covert warfare being waged in our own house, driven by greed and the lust for power? Has Caesar's army finally crossed the Rubicon? Beware of the Ides of March, said one soothsayer to-------------another. I'm a 49er, odd to think that was the year in which Caesar's army got their feet wet. Remember, McCarthy is an ambitious man.
Sad, but it has always bothered me that water storage during rainy years in CA has been neglected, and so much of the rainfall flows through the sewer systems and directly into the ocean.
I too grew up in California. And while I was not as attuned to the natural world then as I am now, I nevertheless could see that it was not a good idea for people to build houses all over hillsides that used to support native ecosystems.
Nowadays, when I fly into LA, I have to cry. Concrete and blacktop everywhere, with barely any room for Mom Nature to co-exist.
Well, she always gets the last word in, and today she's sending huge rainstorms that CANNOT saturate the soil because the soil is covered with concrete and blacktop, and the water is immediately funneled into storm drains, leading to concrete-lined spillways and concrete-lined rivers that run into the ocean. All that fresh water that could have watered the land, gone to waste...
The sad truth is that California is NOT SATURATED. It is still dry as a bone under that concrete layer. And we are evidently so alienated from the natural cycle for water that we can't even recognize what's wrong.
My prediction: the drought will return this coming summer because the lessons of this rainfall are apparently not being absorbed. NOT SATURATED (with insight) -- we are bone dry still.
I spent some time in Cali over the past few months, left for the middle of the country the same day as the big rainstorms...terrible.
I love that state now, a lot more than I did even before. I am sorry to see it in so much trouble.
Great piece.
This is an elegant description and assessment. Among the many things you say, the one that stands out to me, is the suggestion that leaving more wilderness to absorb the water and whatever else comes our way is an answer….perhaps the best answer. More concrete is surely NOT.
I was noting, once again, how different the weather is now to that which I grew up with and I could not help wondering where we might be now without the foresight, courage, and caring of the citizens and politicians from the state of California. I remember the bumper stickers that implored us not to Californicate Colorado! But where would we be if we hadn’t adopted mileage and emissions mandates; the preservation of our wilderness; and other environmental regulations?
I gave up on you awhile back. Your current reply reminds of why.
And rather than address climate change, corporations are looking at how they can profit from this. Buying huge swathes of land in Alaska, to capitalize on failing farms in the continental United States.
I guess there are going to be long dry spells broken by extremely heavy rain in California. At least the extremely heavy rain will keep wild fires from breaking out for the time being. I would advise people to evacuate as soon as they are warned about extremely heavy rain that could flood roadways so that driving is impossible. Never try to drive in water that is a few feet high. Rushing water that high can take vehicles away. We need to appreciate the power of rushing water. Remember water always flows from the highest elevation to the lowest elevation. Therefore, if there are orders to evacuate please heed those orders or you may end up dying.
This column is important because in order to harvest water we must plant it. Instead of relying on concrete walls and pipes and dams to quickly channel and store run-off water, it is critical to study old flood plains and potential natural water courses and 1) limit building in these areas, 2) allow for runoff water to spread into areas so that the ground can absorb it. In California the Sierra Mountains in ancient time naturally shed water down into the Central Valleys along natural watercourses. The runoff deposited boulders, gravels and sand in these riverbeds. These materials are generally very permeable and can store a vast amount of water. Over time these riverbeds were filled over. Now hydrologists, ecologists and geologists are searching for these ‘paleo-rivers’ as being a huge potential for underground water storage. Today, runoff water could be diverted into these ‘paleo-riverbeds’ which could supply water during droughts.
Not to in any way deny dire climate change but California has always experienced extreme drought and excess water. Read Steinbeck.
This well-written article sadly lacks the obvious—that we have to stop burning fossil fuels and not be duped by the industry’s greenwashing re-carbon, capture and storage; an excuse to continue burning its product.