Crash Course: The first climate change candidate: Inside Al Gore's oddly prescient 1988 presidential run

Al Gore focused his 1988 presidential campaign and climate change — and the world shrugged him off Your daily update from [Salon](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvM3pwZGc1bWpldS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo). The first climate change candidate: Inside Al Gore's oddly prescient 1988 presidential run The United States quietly hit a political tipping point some time in the 2010s, although few noticed at the time. That was the decade in which a majority of Americans polled said that [climate change](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvNXlpMzVpeXIzeC8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) was really happening. Today, as many as [72 percent](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0REaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvenhjazFvODhoYi8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmRXA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) of Americans agree that climate change is real, according to the Yale Climate Opinion Map. For decades, climate scientists have known this is the case: there is no comparable debate happening in their field over whether climate change is "real"; they have known it is real for a long time. For the rest of us, however, it seems that the confluence of bad [natural disasters](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvOGlvdDYycjlmai8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo), [extreme weather](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvOXBwNDF4dWtidS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) events, and [droughts](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvM2Zhbm5oNDhyNS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) and [floods](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvYWY5ano5bzNtNS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) have slowly changed our minds. Nowadays, it is normal for politicians on both sides of the aisle to speak of fighting climate change. In other words, it is a major (and normal) political issue to talk about. So it is perhaps hard to remember that wasn't always the case. As recently as 30 years ago, making climate change the centerpiece of your political campaign — much less a major issue — was not necessarily a politically prudent move. Case in point: the first presidential campaign of Al Gore. [Read the rest from Matthew Rozsa.](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMveXJza2tmbmxtcy8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) (Cynthia Johnson/Getty Images) "True Grit" is a Christmas movie for me My dad had just been diagnosed with [stage IV melanoma](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvdmthZXVyYWdoZC8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) when my husband, 14-year-old daughter and I flew from our home in Philadelphia to the house in Florida where my parents lived as snowbirds each winter. By the time we arrived, my dad was down 20 pounds, his trademark spark of humor gone from his eyes. It was hard to believe this was the same 76-year-old who, only weeks earlier, had been playing tennis twice a week. Dad spent much of our visit resting on the couch. I assumed we would skip my Jewish family's annual tradition of a Christmas matinee, but [the remake of "True Grit](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvd2JqbGN3YTFiaS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo)" had just been released and my father wanted to see it in a theater. I called my siblings, and we made plans to meet. [Read the rest from Abby Alten Schwartz.](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvZno2ZWc0eHh2Mi8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) (Photo illustration by Salon/Getty Images) - [Holiday foods can be toxic to pets](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvMWh3aDMxbWhsci8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) – a veterinarian explains which ones and why - Can [floating cities](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvbnFqbThsYWR1Yi8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) save us from rising sea levels? - How deep is our love for ["Saturday Night Fever,"](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvd2hjNnlsNHUwbC8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) which changed how John Travolta and disco were seen - ["Saturday Night Live"](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvc3RzMG1jcGNzZy8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) jabs at Trump's NFT cards in the cold open for Cecily Strong's last episode - From [“White Christmas”](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvMzRkOG5tb21pMC8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) to GoFundMe: The plucky American fantasy of only needing to put on a show - At labor rally in D.C., [rail workers and progressive allies](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvaTJlbWNtOW1hbS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) vow to push Biden on sick days - [JFK expert calls out CIA](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvNmt3MHlqeTNoNi8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) for continuing to withhold documents - [Kari Lake](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvYWFpcjBicWFvYS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) is going off the deep end over election being "stolen" from her - Our love affair with [fake meat](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMveWpla2Y5MXZ5ai8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) couldn't last - A rundown of the most [absurdist candy cane flavors](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvMzRocGlsbWNqai8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) If you found yourself here without subscribing, sign up for [Crash Course](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvdnpwNW5wZXAzbS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo), so you don't miss anything! Fascist politics, the return of antisemitism and the "disconnected present" Hard truths are often hidden in grim realities. Time and again, far-reaching events appear in societies suggesting a profound political and moral reordering of the social fabric. Yet while these events are often warning signs — flashes of impending danger — they are largely ignored by political and financial elites as well as by the corporate media, all of whom have an inclination to isolate such events and deal with them unconnected from each other. Treated in isolation, they are quickly devoured and disappear into a neoliberal-driven image society dominated by a culture of short attention spans. In a capitalist order that has turned dark and increasingly unable to deliver on its promises, social and systemic problems appear disconnected, individualized and reduced to personal narratives, and quickly disappear in a neoliberal disimagination machine that relentlessly tries to normalize an existing misery-soaked state of affairs. [Read the rest from Henry A. Giroux.](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvaDJiN2Jodmx2ai8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) (Getty/Oliver Contreras) - "Student tracking Elon Musk’s jet defends his program, considers legal threat a bluff," [ABC News](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0REaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvY2RkamY5YWNuZC8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmRXA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) - "Russia to deploy musicians to front to boost morale," [BBC](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0REaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvZ2VhenRlZmIxby8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmRXA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) - "JK Rowling Mocks Trans Gamer For ‘Hogwarts Legacy’ Comments," [Forbes](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0REaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvNjZoZWtnZHNiMi8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmRXA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) - "Lionel Messi Claims His Crown as Argentina Rejoices," [The New York Times](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0REaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvczVpaHRoNDBheS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmRXA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) A hotter, wetter Arctic spells trouble for everyone When you think of the Arctic, wildfires, rain, and typhoons probably don't spring to mind. But all of these events came for the Far North this year, and scientists say more freak weather events are in store. The last seven years in the Arctic were the hottest on record, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's [annual "report card"](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0REaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvaXQ3ZGNiOTNzaS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmRXA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) released this week, the work of nearly 150 scientists. The Arctic, warming [four times faster](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0REaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvdjB6eGR4eGllcS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmRXA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) than the planet overall, is rapidly destabilizing — with troubling consequences for the people who live there as well as global weather patterns. Warmer weather is already messing with the Arctic's seasons. Snow cover is melting earlier on in the spring, allowing wildfires to get an early start and to tear through new areas. By June, fires had already burned [1 million acres](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0REaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvOWtlZ3F4aHhnbS8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmRXA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo), a record for that time of year. [Read the rest from Kate Yoder.](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RoaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvZHZjN3FhZDZ3bC8_bGhfYWlkPTM1NDM5NTImbGhfY2lkPXB6NjhhYjZzbmQmbGhfZW09dHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODUlNDBnbWFpbC5jb21XA3NwY0IKY5BQUqBj4F9EglIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODVAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAo) (Getty/sarkophoto) [Unsubscribe from this list](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0RCaHR0cHM6Ly9yZWFkLmxldHRlcmhlYWQuZW1haWwvY3Jhc2gtY291cnNlL3Vuc3Vic2NyaWJlP2lkPUAzNTQzOTUyVwNzcGNCCmOQUFKgY-BfRIJSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg1QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAKA~~) Copyright © 2022 Crash Course, All rights reserved. 1000 N. West Street, Suite 1200, Wilmington, DE 19801 [Made with Letterhead [Letterhead logo]](~/AASU4wA~/RgRlgtdPP0QiaHR0cHM6Ly9saW5rLndoZXJlYnkudXMvbmVwbm83czh5c1cDc3BjQgpjkFBSoGPgX0SCUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW44NUBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAACg~)