Not only are you a racist for scoffing at Al Gore — at least according to Al Gore — but you’re also being heartlessly cruel to him and others with very real mental health issues. Just ask the Sydney Morning Herald:
Rates of mental illnesses including depression and post-traumatic stress will increase as a result of climate change, a report to be released today says.
The paper, prepared for the Climate Institute, says loss of social cohesion in the wake of severe weather events related to climate change could be linked to increased rates of anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress and substance abuse.
As many as one in five people reported “emotional injury, stress and despair” in the wake of these events.
Fortunately they all work in the media, where such complaints are considered valuable job skills.
The report also looks at mental health in the aftermath of major weather events possibly linked to climate change.
It shows that one in 10 primary school children reported symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder in the wake of cyclone Larry in 2006. More than one in 10 reported symptoms more than three months after the cyclone.
This just in: Hurricanes are scary.
Professor [Ian] Hickie, who is launching the report today, said climate change and particularly severe weather events were likely to be a major factor influencing mental health in the future.
“When we talk about the next 50 years and what are going to be the big drivers at the community level of mental health costs, one we need to factor in are severe weather events, catastrophic weather events,” he said.
That’s for sure. Why, I once knew a girl who got caught in a tornado, and she became convinced it had transported her to a magical land of talking lions and dancing scarecrows and cackling witches with flying monkeys. Eventually she died of a drug overdose. Damn you, global warming!
We all need to be a little more sensitive to the needs of our emotionally fragile friends in the global-warming community. When you encounter a wild-eyed lunatic shrieking about how you “hate science,” don’t point and laugh. Point, then laugh.
For the children.