Squatch’s Open Thread 15/11/2015

Thank goodness for Lona's cat naps.  I availed myself of one this afternoon having not slept particularly well last night, and it seemed to help with my sore body.  I have church tomorrow morning and then I will return home to the comfort of warm, soft and purring felines.  Can life get any better!

Puzzle — Today’s took me 3:24 (average 5:13). To do it, click here. How did you do? 

Short Takes

Alternet — When we think of climate refugees, we tend to think of cyclones, floods and storms forcing people from their homes. But emerging research indicates that we are missing a bigger picture — and that the overall population of concern may be much larger than we currently think.

According to a recent study, rising temperatures are a significant driver of permanent migration among poor farmers in Indonesia. The study found that temperature increases were far more likely to induce migration than rapid-onset hazards such as floods, due to their long-term and cumulative effects on household income. Based on the results, the researchers estimated that an additional 2°C rise in temperatures could force up to five percent of Indonesia’s population (12.4 million people) to migrate by the end of the century — that’s an amount just under the size of Zimbabwe’s entire population.

Click through for this important article and sign the petition Tell U.N. Climate Chief to Sign and Implement a Meaningful Climate Treaty in Paris at the end.  You do not have to be part of FB to sign.  Think climate change won't affect you?  Think again!  It already is affecting you.

Mother Jones — "Absolutely," replied Sanders. He added that "of course international terrorism is a major issue that we have go to address today," but argued that "climate change is directly related to the growth of terrorism." Sanders warned that global warming could cause international conflicts "over limited amounts of water, limited amounts of land to…grow crops." 

Click through for the rest of this short piece.

The Nation — For the first time since he came into the room he smiles—in surprise—and finally tells us what really motivated him, without any prompting. He knows there is an American in the room, and can perhaps guess, from his demeanor and his questions, that this American is ex-military, and directs his “question,” in the form of an enraged statement, straight at him. “The Americans came,” he said. “They took away Saddam, but they also took away our security. I didn’t like Saddam, we were starving then, but at least we didn’t have war. When you came here, the civil war started.”

How often have we heard that the US is responsible for the growth of ISIS?  How often do we hear denunciations of Muslims, all Muslims, because they want a worldwide caliphate?  According to the author, the motivation for fighting with ISIS is not related to religion, but rather to economics.  Click through for the rest of the article.

My Universe —