Will the Big Blow win it for Obama?

There's an old joke [Here it comes. Ed.] About two Jewish clothiers lying in the sun at Miami Beach talking about how they got the money to have a vacation during the busiest season of the year. The first says his trip is paid for out of the proceeds of an insurance claim for a fire. The second says he got insurance money too, but for a flood. The first asks, "How to you start a flood?!"

I was thinking about that as I watched the TV coverage of the "October Surprise" -- that would be Sandy -- and the lamestream pundits' comments (echoed by the Donald) that the hurricane would tip the electoral balance in favour of Obama. That, they say, is because it gave him the chance to "look presidential", show that he was in charge of things and appear strong and decisive. Rather the opposite, then, of the image he projected during what I call the "September Surprise", meaning the Benghazi bumble.

In the aftermath of the Big Blow, two other big blows -- NJ governor Christie and NYC mayor Bloomberg -- announced their support for the Prez. Why? Because, Hizzoner said, he'll be better than Mitt at dealing with "global warming". Walt says, hold on a minute... Or several minutes!

There's something besides the weather and the streets of New York and Newark that needs clearing up. PuhLEEZE, gentle readers... "Global warming" (if there is such a thing) did not cause Hurricane Sandy!

According to Scott Sutherland, writing in Geekquinox, a Yahoo! news blog, global warming may have been a minor contributing factor, but "to corner weather and climate experts every time some weather event happens, and force them to answer the question 'did climate change cause this?' is, at best, naive, and at worst, manipulative."

Here, Sutherland says, is what we know for sure. The Gulf Stream was warmer this year than last. And sea surface temperatures have increased along the coast of the US Northeast, by about half a degree Celsius on average over the longer trend, and by a degree or more on the shorter trend. These higher sea surface temperatures would have provided more energy to Sandy, allowing the storm to maintain its strength further north than normal and possibly contributing to its overall size and extent.

Also, the sea level around New York City has risen by roughly 30 cm in the past 100 years. Sea level rise is linked to climate change, as ocean temperatures rise (causing the water to expand) and more polar ice melts (adding more water to the oceans). This rise in sea level would have contributed to the storm surge from Sandy.

And guess what, folks! No matter what the politicians say, the sea level is going to continue to rise, by about 3 mm per year, no matter who is president! Anyone who thinks that Al O'Bama is going to be able to hold back the waves, like a latter-day King Canute, is crazy!

Now then, about the terrorist attack on Benghazi... The "unfortunate incident" on 9/11 was not a misguided popular demonstration against a small and amateurish video which was perceived to be anti-Muslim. It was a terrorist attack, planned in advance, of which the Obama administration had prior warning.

In all the fuss about who scored the better debating points, the President's evasiveness on this point has not received due attention and examination. Senior Republicans are rightly accusing the President and the White House of covering up their wilful ignorance or at least incompetence in dealing with anti-American terrorism. And that's a fact.

Senator John McCain and other top Republicans have repeatedly accused the White House of evasion for refusing to answer questions about events at the US consulate in Benghazi that led to the deaths of four Americans. That's a fact too.

Here's what Mr. McCain told CBS recently. "This tragedy turned into a debacle and massive cover-up or massive incompetence in Libya is having an impact on the voters because of their view of the commander-in-chief.... It is now the worst cover-up or incompetence I have ever observed in my life. Somebody the other day said to me, 'Well, this is as bad as Watergate.' [But] nobody died in Watergate."

So, the big question this weekend is, will the average voter's ignorance of the facts, and the distortion of the facts by the Democrats and the lamestream media, save Obama's bacon on Tuesday?

Faithful readers of WWW are doubtless waiting for Walt to hazard a guess. (Lifetime pct .990.) I'm afraid you'll have to wait until Monday. Who knows? There could be a "November surprise" in the offing.