Erm, who's landlocked and miles from water?

There is a small bald man sitting inside that swan, peddling like mad you can just see the top of his head above its folded wing.

Can't you see all them callous asylum seekers leering out of that top flat window hatching a plan to trap then BBQ one of her majestys beautiful swans?

Evil bastads, I tell thee!!!

My pleasure entirely.



However, such extreme events are becoming more regular – and this winter's tidal surges were so severe as to destroy or damage many defences.



The point remainsimproving it. We have had successive governments, irrespective of the work of their own scientists, routinely cutting spending or ignoring the need to improve defences, infrastructure etc, on the grounds of political expediency and nothing else.



Yes, I think they have. We've always had occasional freak weather, but what is happening now is that is becoming more regular – and not just more regular, but in more places at one time or over a short period of time.

We have, in effect, lost any sense of the seasons

I'd treat Monbiot with some care

As I said above, the frequency with which such events are occurring is increasing. And looking at many of the houses we see in pictures of flooded areas, these are not developments that have all been built in the last 20 years.

I think he's saying that it's okay to have land below sea level [iif[/i you're landlocked. But then neither are we, which is what destroys his point.

There was an excellent documentary last night, which concluded that it was simply not viable to protect 100% of our coastline. Bleedin' obvious I would have thought, but it did also point out that throughout history, Mother Nature has the ability to surprise. This winter's storms being a prime example.

I personally, am not convinced that using a very short 10 year window is proof positive as to a permanent change in our climate. And if people are going to get a tad upset about a spot of rising damp, then they can start by asking questions about the sensibility of this rlpolicyrl Or they could install some preventative measures themselves. I'd start by pointing the finger at that chubby lad from Hull......not Codhead, Prescott!

And as money is no object, I look forward to the £180/200 million flood prevention scheme which was knocked back a few years ago, being implemented here in Leeds with all speed. There were many objections to the 2 metre high plastic walling from commercial interests, and those who had invested in riverside flats.Yes, I know that Planning permission has been granted for a much smaller, circa £50 million spend on the outskirts, and that at some time in the future a start will eventually be made on it. In the meantime, there are no flood defences for Leeds and a projected £500 million clean up bill if it does all go tits up.

If you mean Panorama, that was not "an excellent documentary". It was a short, superficial glance at the recent events with a few individual cases thrown in for effect.

I remember when Panorama WAS excellent.

There was a projected map of the UK in 2100 on the internet recently, assuming rising sea levels due to global warming. Basically, alot smaller than now! Essentially Lancs and Yorks (save the Peninines) under the sea. Another reason why the RFL needs to encourage more expansion clubs.

There's a cricket club perched on a hill as you go over on the M62, and I always used to smile at its location. Maybe they were just being prudent! Not too sure that 2100 will be a problem for any on here, but in any case, I have a narrowboat, so a bit of water can be seen as a plus!

Yet we had a 6-8 month winter last year. Nice and mild this time around for most of the UK – yet the wettest one on record and nobody seems sure when it's likely to end.

That's two successive and extreme winters.

We have had heavy flooding now in at least three of the last six years, IIRC. Not in one place, once, but across the UK, on a number of occasions and sometimes more than once in the same place.

Yes, but such events have happened thousands of times over the millenia. If you look at longer term fluctations we in the Northern Hemishpere have had numerous ice-ages and very warm inter-glacial periods. Our current climate is, arguably, unnnaturally mild as I would guess are the short-term fluctuations in weather patterns.

These so-called freak weather patterns have always occurred and humans have always reacted in the same way i.e. panicking that they were omens of an impending apocalypse caused by immoral human behaviour. In the past it was God's wrath caused by our lack of faith in religion and today it is global warming caused by our lack of faith in environmentalism.

Despite the work of Galilleo showing that the earth revolves around the sun, people continue to believe that the earth revolves around us. Everything that happens on this planet is down to us. People need to just accept that there are forces more powerful than us that are out of our control.

When you say people believe the Earth revolves around us, who are "us" - you and who? Where do you stand?

Don't those two paragraphs directly contradict each other ?

"Its not us, its just nature"
"We are causing the nature"