[Intro]
Lie, baby, lie
Cry, baby, cry
[Verse 1]
First you deny
Then you lie
Putting all at risk
To die
(tsk, tsk, tsk)
[Bridge]
Mother messes with Texas
Comes back for a kick in ass
[Chorus]
We’re under strain
Need a government bailout
Extreme rain, extreme pain
Something to cry about
[Verse 2]
On your knees
Begging please!
Ignorance
Is not bliss
[Bridge]
Mother messes with Texas
Comes back for a kick in ass
[Chorus]
We’re under strain
Need a government bailout
Extreme rain, extreme pain
Something to cry about
[Instrumental, Guitar Solo, Drum Fills]
[Bridge]
Mess in Texas
Self-imposed I suppose
Science denial
Education’s on trial
Political suicide
Fat cat’s reside
Slogan’s ill
Drill, drill, drill
[Instrumental, Saxophone Solo, Bass]
[Verse 3]
Texas, the welfare state
Dumb ass, climate irate
Fossil fuel fools
The devil’s tools
[Bridge]
Mother messes with Texas
Comes back for a kick in ass
[Chorus]
We’re under strain
Need a government bailout
Extreme rain, extreme pain
Something to cry about
[Outro]
On your knees
Begging please!
Ignorance
Is not bliss
A SCIENCE AND ECONOMICS NOTE
Newsweek reportsRepublican Texas Governor Greg Abbott has asked President Joe Biden to issue a Presidential Disaster Declaration for areas of Texas affected by recent severe weather and flooding. The state has experienced a series of intense weather events over the past few weeks, including thunderstorms that have caused flooding and tornadoes. In his request, Abbott stated, “Due to severe weather and flooding that continues to cause devastating damage in several of our communities, I am requesting a Presidential Disaster Declaration. The extensive damage caused by these severe storms, historic river flooding, and tornadoes requires comprehensive, robust action by all levels of government to help Texans rebuild and recover.” Abbott included a link to a press release from his office, which contained his full letter to President Biden.
In the letter, Abbott emphasized the severity of the situation: “I have determined that the incident is of such severity and magnitude that an effective response is beyond the capabilities of the state and affected local governments, and that supplementary federal assistance is necessary to save lives and to protect property, public health, and safety, or to lessen or avert the threat of a disaster.” Abbott also requested access to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Program statewide and the U.S. Small Business Administration Disaster Loan Program for physical and economic loss in all requested counties.
On April 24, the National Weather Service issued an “extreme fire behavior warning” for the El Paso region of Texas, just across the Mexican border. On May 1, heavy rainfall caused flooding along the Trinity River, affecting Harris County after dangerous flash floods hit the area around Galveston in East Texas.
Abbott noted, “The request to declare a major disaster for the state of Texas comes after an initial review of damage sustained due to catastrophic flash flooding, historic river flooding, extremely large hail, damaging wind gusts, and destructive tornadoes. Local jurisdictions have reported more than $58 million in public infrastructure damage estimates thus far, including disaster response costs and debris management.”
About the Age of Loss and Damage
Climate change is primarily driven by the escalation of thermal energy affecting biogeophysical and socio-economic systems. While biogeophysical factors can be studied using mathematics, physics, and historical records, socio-economic systems pose greater challenges due to the unintended consequences of human behavior and inexplicable consumer choices.
Human-induced climate change is an exponential component of an unordered system (chaos theory), meaning global warming is accelerating at a rapid and complex rate. Unfortunately, even scientists are struggling to fully understand or predict the rapid acceleration of climate change. The impacts of the Domino Effect, or “tipping cascades,” are being underestimated. Tipping points are critical milestones that directly impact the rate of acceleration in climate change by multiplying the number and intensity of feedback loops. These cascading impacts affect both biogeophysical and social systems. Until recently, scientists have drastically underestimated the role of social-ecological systems. The University of Exeter reports, “There is a notable lack of topic clusters dedicated to how humans will be impacted by climate-related tipping cascades.”
Previous climate models have inadequately incorporated “social-ecological systems” as human involvement was not a significant factor in past climate changes. Regrettably, the United States ranks among the least prepared countries globally, with a high percentage of climate deniers. The Republican party dismisses it as a manufactured crisis and plans to increase fossil fuel production, exacerbating the situation. Political extremists asserting that the climate crisis is manufactured use an ironic term, given that human manufacturing activities are the primary driver of climate change. Both political parties have agreed to allocate unlimited emergency funding for climate disasters instead of proactively preventing them. Last year, the US witnessed a record number of over a billion-dollar climate disasters, totaling 28 separate weather and climate-related events. Due to this arrogance and ignorance, “worst-case scenarios” are now “best-case scenarios” for the acceleration of climate change. These factors have altered our climate model, shifting the projected maximum temperature rise from 4 degrees Celsius over the next millennium to a probable increase of 9 degrees Celsius this century.