Unlike humans, frogs jump out of a hot pot, and a W for academic freedom

It's getting hot in here.  ͏  ͏  ͏ [expressnews.com]( [View in Browser]( [Tomlinson's Take]( Summer Sale: ONLY 25¢! Dive into local news with Unlimited Digital Access. [Subscribe Today.](   --------------------------------------------------------------- [Boiling Frogs]( Floridians don’t need to fire up the hot tub this summer; they only need to step into the Gulf of Mexico. [Ocean surface temperatures at Manatee Bay have hit 101 degrees](, a new record, the National Park Service reported. Closer to home, El Paso recorded [44 consecutive days of triple-digit temperatures](, and July was the hottest month in 137 years of recordkeeping. The previous record was 23 days in 1994. Texans can blame a heat dome over the southwest for most of the summer, but it’s not just us.[July was the hottest month in the history of global recordkeeping](, and for that, there is only one explanation: human-produced greenhouse gases from fossil fuels. "Without climate change, we wouldn't see this at all, or it would be so rare that it would basically be not happening," [said Friederike Otto](, a climate scientist at Imperial College London, part of a group called [World Weather Attribution](. I began studying the geopolitics of climate change in 1991 at the University of Texas at Austin. Scientists warned then that greenhouse gas emissions were heating the atmosphere and unpredictable things would start happening at a certain point. [Most of their predictions are coming true](, [some sooner than expected](. The fossil fuel industry, meanwhile, is doing [everything possible to ensure world leaders do not begin phasing out carbon dioxide emissions]( any time soon. As [I explained in a recent column, oil and gas executives want us to get used to the heat]( instead of cutting into their profits and the value of their companies’ oil and gas reservoirs. Early in the climate crisis, way too many writers used a French metaphor that says if you put a frog in hot water, it will jump out. But if you place it in lukewarm water and slowly heat it, the frog won’t notice you are cooking it alive. The metaphor is untrue. Frogs[will leap long before they boil](. [Humans are not as bright as frogs](; we suffer from [hedonic adaptation](. We get used to things. Too many people still refuse to accept that humans are heating the atmosphere. Worse yet, [most of us who recognize climate change are unwilling to make the sacrifices necessary to slow it down](. Our bodies can feel the climate changing; we should [use our brains to do something about it right now](. We can no longer hope to reverse global warming in our lifetimes. The best we can do is slow it down and stabilize the temperature to limit the damage. If we do nothing, unlike the frog, we may end up soup.   [Photo of Chris Tomlinson] Chris Tomlinson, Business Columnist   --------------------------------------------------------------- What Else I'm Writing [President Joe Biden delivers remarks on his economic agenda at the Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia, Thursday, July, 20, 2023. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)]( [Strong economy not helping enough Americans]( The headline numbers may help the wealthy, but low-income Americans need to see more help.   [LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 24: A photo illustration of the new Twitter logo on July 24, 2023 in London, England. Elon Musk has revealed today a new logo for Twitter, which constitutes the letter 'X' as part of a rebrand of the company.]( [Elon Musk's dream of X may be his Waterloo]( Elon Musk’s dream to turn Twitter into X underestimates the financial and regulatory challenges ahead.   --------------------------------------------------------------- What I'm Reading Must Read: [Exclusive: Texas troopers separating families at border in apparent policy shift]( Once cruelty becomes acceptable, people become more cruel. (Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News) Should Read: [Texas environmental regulators are using an unwritten rule to squash pollution challenges]( (Inside Climate News via Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News) Interesting Read: [Three Texas Freedom Colonies Illuminate Life After Emancipation]( Shankleville, County Line, and Tamina hold on to their heritage. (Texas Highways) Technical Read: [Can ChatGPT Forecast Stock Price Movements?]( ChatGPT outperforms traditional sentiment analysis methods. (University of Florida) Fun Read: [The Myths and Melodies of Forgotten Bluesman Texas Alexander]( “One whose work, more than that of any other blues singer, was[rooted in the vocal traditions of the plantation and the penitentiary](.” (Texas Monthly)   --------------------------------------------------------------- Question of the Week Has the global 2023 heat wave led you to change the way you live? Reply directly to this email and tell me your thoughts.   --------------------------------------------------------------- Mailbag Last Week’s Question: What role should politicians play in our public universities? “Politicians do not belong in the running of Universities and Colleges. Just look at what DeSantis did to a small liberal arts college because he felt it was too woke (What does that even mean?). Dan Patrick et al. are trying the same things deciding what can be taught and who can teach it. … So many of these politicians have backgrounds in anything but education. Let educators do their job, and you try to do yours.” – Ann Winer, San Antonio “Welcome to 1984. Thoughtcrime will be punished. Beware of the Thought Police.” – Thomas Doneker, Houston “I am deeply shocked and dismayed by this situation, particularly by John Sharp's actions. … If he is incapable of explaining and defending the concept of academic freedom to self-important politicians, he is unfit for his job. Power corrupts, apparently, particularly, I suppose, when the money, perks, and adulation become so important that the self is lost. I certainly feel the same disgust with UT Austin, where I earned my master's and Ph.D.” – Alice Ann Isaac, Union, Wash. “I think the role of politicians should be, in most situations, to include public universities, an interested, good listener and fact checker, fact finder, assessor of whatever issue or need, FIRST. Following this, they should be wise visionaries and decision-makers. I served under several military leaders who functioned most efficiently, effectively and productively in such a manner. They listened to the people who did or were going to do the work. Unfortunately, none ever ran for public office.” – Greg Meyer, San Antonio   --------------------------------------------------------------- The Takeaway Good news from the University of Texas at Austin, where the dean of liberal arts is standing up for historian Walter Buenger. [The Texas Scorecard, a mouthpiece for two rightwing, billionaire oilmen, complains that Ann Huff Stevens has extended Buenger’s contract]( as chief historian at the Texas State Historical Association, [despite a GOP state senator’s protest.]( As I’ve reported before, neo-Confederates are trying to prevent facts from replacing the white supremacist myths that have dominated Texas history for generations. [The TSHA is a strange hybrid of professional and amateur historians]( with loose ties to UT. TSHA publishes vital references such as the Handbook of Texas and the Southwestern Historical Quarterly academic journal. Another billionaire oilman, [J.P. Bryan, is suing to seize control of TSHA]( after criticizing the work of professional historians, including Buenger. The case will decide whether TSHA can continue its work and whether school children will learn the true history of our state. A judge has now [ordered mediation](, but I suspect the fight will begin anew in September. If you are a Houston Chronicle subscriber interested in history like me, or you just like looking at old photos, [sign up for the twice-a-month Bayou City newsletter.]( It’s one of the exclusive benefits that come with your subscription. You can subscribe to the Chronicle right now for just [25 cents for two months here](. If you’re interested in San Antonio history, check out [Paula Allen’s column]( in the Express-News. She even takes reader requests. [Subscribe here](.   --------------------------------------------------------------- Share With Your Friends Do you know someone who would like Tomlinson's Take? For the Houston edition, [send them here to sign up](; for the San Antonio edition, [send them here](.   --------------------------------------------------------------- More Newsletters Hill Country Headlines News and features from Fredericksburg, Boerne and beyond. 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