Roasting chestnuts round an open fire

The torrential rain over the past few days has - as usual - re-ignited the climate change debate. The media, of course, has asked the usual, if somewhat cretinous, questions about whether this heavy rain is yet another sign of climate change (at least the department in charge of moronic commentary at the Beeb has stopped calling it 'global warming') and the general message (although by no means unanimous) is that we're all going to die.  Which of course we are.  The real questions are when and from what?

It might help, of course, if those charged with working out exactly what's happening with the climate could get their stories together, and actually get some facts instead of conjecture. Today, for instance,  we hear that no fewer than twelve conservation groups have given the green light to wood burning.

Wot? But for years we've been told that burning anything is BFTE (bad for the environment).  Ah, but it seems that they've been debating over their slide rules and now - in their collective wisdom - decided that burning logs on your fire actually releases less CO2 than allowing the trees to die naturally. Wonder if the same thing applies to human bodies....

The beeb, naturally anxious to be seen at the forefront of garbage investigation, have also mounted a new show - Changing Lives: Going Green - in which a family of four, from Brynford, Holywell, faced a complete culture shock when they agreed to leave their home comforts behind and head for an extreme green, eco friendly community in mid Wales. Unsurprisingly, as they faced 10 nights in a tent deprived of their nightly fare of texting, PS3, Sky, Corrie and all the other technological delights that contrive to drive us to distraction, they weren't eager to repeat the experience and the father observed, sagely "(Climate change is)  not going to happen any time soon and I’m going to be long gone before then. I can’t make that much of a difference on my own." And the Beebs' ostensible commitment to STE (saving the...) is hardly likely to gain too many advocates, considering the environmental impact of TV cameras, lodgings, lighting, trailers and what have you.

But he makes a fair point, actually; the 'experts' (climatologists, Geophysicists, Geologists et al.) remain resolutely divided on the causes of and remedial action for climate change.  And with India and China competing economically, we might find more fresh air on the Moon in a few years.

All of which has to make you wonder. Perhaps we could cut CO2 emissions drastically by eliminating climate pundits,  That would certainly be a great place to start.