bill mckibben argues - as always - that the hurricane is caused by global warming. i just want to note that irene is the first hurricane to hit the u.s. in three years. now let's say we get five severe hurricanes in rapid succession. if that leads you inevitably to the conclusion that climate change is a catastrophe, then the previous couple of years lead inevitably to the conclusion that it's not. if absolutely anything - including nothing at all - confirms or even is compatible with your belief that global warming is a catastrophe, i'm going to argue that it's a matter of faith, not evidence.
any sort of intellectual hygiene demands that if more severe and frequent hurricanes or tornadoes or floods etc constitute evidence of climate change, then less severe or frequent events like that constitute evidence against it. every time there's a weather problem, the post gets mckibben to blame it on warming. i demand that every time there is no such event they get him to say that shows that it's not so bad after all.
honestly it really is religious: we are being punished for our sins, and the world is coming to an end. however, i argue that religious faith is a perfecty defensible epistemic attitude, so i say let's celebrate the irrationality as enriching the human experience.