

In this polar vortex, talk won’t warm ‘hearths and hearts’

Other views: What people are saying about the Arctic cold and climate change


Rob HennekeFox News: “Talk about renewable energy won’t warm hearths and hearts during this storm, because the sun isn’t shining all the time and the wind capacity simply isn’t there. ... What’s keeping New Yorkers warm this week? Fossil fuels. ... Policies that try to chase them from our energy portfolios prematurely are doomed to fail — and to leave American families, particularly the poorest among us, out in the bitter cold.”

Eric KlinenbergUSA TODAY: "For most Americans, cold snaps and blizzards are a minor inconvenience. Light a fire, crank the heat, binge watch a TV show, and before long the thaw arrives. Unfortunately, not everyone has this option. The weather is not the only cold thing in cities like Chicago, Minneapolis, Milwaukee and St. Louis. Harsh, bitter poverty has left thousands of people homeless, and many in homes are old, frail and alone. We don’t do enough to protect the vulnerable during ordinary times. For them, extreme weather can quickly turn lethal. ... Surprisingly, one of the best ways that cities can protect vulnerable people is by investing in social infrastructure such as branch libraries, which provide shelter, warmth and security in ordinary times and in lethal weather." 

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.,  MLK Now event in New York City: "Millennials and Gen Z and all these folks that come after us are looking up, and we're like, 'The world is going to end in 12 years if we don't address climate change, and your biggest issue is how are we gonna pay for it?' (This is) our World War II.”

A man wears mirroring goggles as he walks in Chicago on Jan. 31, 2019.

OUR VIEW:Arctic cold doesn't refute global warming

Paul Danish,  Boulder (Colorado) Weekly: "If the U.S. is going to fight climate change like World War II, it has to recognize that countries like China and India are also in the fight — like the Axis was in the fight during World War II, that is. They’re building coal-fired power plants like there was no tomorrow, or at least no 2030. If the U.S. wants to win the war on global warming like it won World War II, it will have to challenge them on this — maybe starting with economic sanctions. ... If the war on global warming turned into a shooting war with China — uh, maybe Congresswoman Osario-Cortez should give some thought to finding another metaphor.”

Nancy Kaffer,  Detroit Free Press: "The past week has been like a Michigan winter greatest hits: Heavy snow, wintry mix, random rain, slushy roads, snowy roads, icy roads and a polar vortex. We're currently sitting tight at (checks phone) minus 5 degrees, and large swaths of metro Detroit have ground to a halt. School's been closed all week. They are running out of snow days. State offices are closed. The U.S. Postal Service is not making deliveries. ... We're practically living in the end times. All of which makes you wonder what's going on in Windsor. Where it is also minus 5 degrees. Across the river, schools are open, businesses are open, the Windsor Star's home page features but one modest weather story and, one presumes, the Canada Post is chugging along like clockwork. And, it seems, this is just how they do." 

Rekha Basu,  Des Moines Register: “There’s a saying about why a frog in a pot of warm water doesn’t try to jump out when the temperature is gradually increased to boiling. If immersed in boiling water from the start, the story goes, the same frog would try to escape. It’s a metaphor for our capacity to adapt to and even normalize abnormal and painful circumstances as they escalate. ... It was said to be colder in Iowa on Wednesday than in Alaska and some of Antarctica. Crises like this Arctic freeze kick you into survival mode. You adapt by focusing on getting warm instead of asking why.”