THE WEATHER MAKERS – A REVIEW

By Ella Tyler

If Australian scientist Tim Flannery’s book, “The Weather Makers: How Man Is Changing the Climate and What It Means for Life on Earth”, were made into a movie, it would be as engaging as “March of the Penguins”, have more special effects than the “The Day After Tomorrow”, and be more educational than “Who Killed the Electric Car.”

And it could even include an animation as poignant as Al Gore’s polar bear swimming in a vast, empty ocean – Costa Rica’s last golden toad emerging from underground to wait vainly for the arrival of a female to mate with. These toads may be the first species to become extinct from global warming. They breed only during the a few days in April and May and two years of drought caused by El Nino dried up all their breeding ponds.

Don’t be deterred by the intimidating names on the list of positive comments on the book’s inner covers and skip the formidable annotations in the table of contents. Dive in.

In addition to reviewing the evidence of global warming and explaining exactly what causes global warming so clearly that a non-scientist “gets it”, Flannery documents the damage already caused by global warming. I tend to think that damage from global warming is all in the future, but Flannery convinced me that enough damage has already occurred. He closes the book by telling readers how they can reduce their emissions by the 70% required to stabilize the earth’s climate. “There is no need to wait for the government to act. You can do it yourself”, he says.

Flannery is speaking on Monday, March 19 at 7:30 pm at the Wortham Center. The Progressive Forum sponsors the event. Purchase tickets at the Forum’s website or call (832) 251-0706.