It has been uncharacteristically cold here in Central Florida. The low temperature a couple of nights ago dipped below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. And I see on the Weather Channel that we’re the lucky ones down here. In places like Buffalo, (photo above) they’re freezing, and the snowdrifts are burying their cars.

It’s no time to be talking about global warming.

Or is it?

According to an article by Andrea Thompson of Climate Central:

This early foray into winter weather is just a small blip in the overall global picture, which is of a warming world that is still on track to see 2014 set the mark for hottest year on record.

Ms. Thompson reports that while central and eastern North America have been shivering recently, California is seeing its warmest year on record. And, she says:

The globe is bathed in warm spots, with the small cold spot centered over the Great Lakes area being just one of a handful of blue spots on the world map.

August, September and October of 2014 have all been the warmest such months on record, as shown by data from NASA, the Japan Meteorological Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,  which released its October global numbers Thursday.

Ms Thompson notes that this worldwide pattern of increasingly warmer temperatures has been evident over the past century, particularly since the early 1980s. And she blames  “an accumulation of greenhouse gases.”

Man made greenhouse gases. From fossil fuels like coal and oil.

As the north winds blow and you slog through the snow, you will be hearing, no doubt, from the climate deniers who helped to elect a Republican Congress last month. But, as Ms. Thompson admonishes:

Don’t let the polar vortex fool you. This year is the hottest on record — and things are only getting worse

What makes me despair is that I know the new Congress, elected in large part by coal and oil interests, cannot be expected to make things better. Indeed, I fully expect they will do everything in their power to dismantle existing environmental controls.

Click for Ms. Thompson’s article.