Midwest Thinks Global Warming Not So Bad After All

Remember all the dire warnings about global warming. Well, if the current climate in the colder parts of the country is what we can expect, I think most residents of the Midwest and East Coast will gladly take it:

CHICAGO (AP) -- Crocuses are pushing out of the ground in New Jersey. Ice fishing tournaments in Minnesota are being canceled for lack of ice. And golfers are hitting the links in Chicago in January.

Much of the Midwest and the East Coast are going through a remarkably warm winter, with temperatures running 10 and 20 degrees higher than normal in many places.

"I'm not complaining. I can take this," said Rudolph Williams, a doorman in New York City who normally wears a hat this time of year but stood outside in 50-degree weather with his shaved head uncovered. "The Earth is recalibrating itself: Last year, we had a cold winter, and it's balancing itself out now. In January, it feels like the middle of April."

New York City saw a November and December without snow for the first time since 1877. And New Jersey had its warmest December since records started being kept 111 years ago.

And of course, if the weather is warmer, there won't be as much coal and oil burned to heat homes which will result fewer greenhouse gases going into the atmosphere. That could slow global warming and return icy conditions to much of the country...and that will certainly tick off the golfers. They may just decided to run their cars all night to make sure there's enough global warming to keep the golf courses open.