The Daily Climate: How To Talk With Your Family About Global Warming...Or Not

Holidays, families, and politics are a combustible mix. Even if you and your loved ones are on the same political page -- and never mind if you're not -- discussing the issues of the day over the potato latkes, Christmas ham, or Solstice Gluhwein can be stressful.

Have Cousin David or Aunt Margaret pegged you as someone who'll get sucked into an argument about global warming, or bring everyone down with talk of endangered polar bears? Here's some advice for how to manage the situation.

(Note: I am not an etiquette specialist or psychological professional. So use these suggestions at your own risk, and customize to the particular requirements of your situation.)

1. Don't argue with deniers.

If someone in your circle of loved ones refuses to accept the reality of global warming, it's going to be tempting to try and turn them around.

Don't.

Sure, the facts are overwhelmingly on your side. But this is a family gathering, where preserving the peace is the greater good. Even those loved ones who care about stopping climate change will not appreciate being forced to sit through a tense or angry exchange of views -- it might even turn them off to getting more engaged in creating change "in real life."

So if Cousin Dave tries to bait you into arguing with something like, "Well, what about that snow in New Orleans, huh? I call that global cooling", one option is to deflect the question. A recent New York Times Social Qs column on holiday etiquette offers a variation on this theme:

What’s the best way of telling well-intended family members to stop asking about my marital status or children? I know they want a family for me, but I’d like the holidays to be peaceful and happy, without their prying jabs. I love my single life!

Anonymous, Tempe, Ariz.

The holidays are not a sprint, my friend. No, this is a long, hard season. And just as the best military strategists have a number of battle plans at the ready, so, too, will you require a number of tactics for fending off your nearest and dearest.

Deflection is always good. “Still single?” your Aunt Ruthie may ask, with an attenuated frown and accompanying head tilt. To which you’ll reply: “Is that a push-up bra you’re wearing?”

And then there's cutting off arguments at the pass. Here is actual advice I once received from an actual mental health professional, on the eve of a difficult dinner with family: "When you get there, have a drink. Then, when everyone's present, pour another drink, and raise your glass to toast to 'a pleasant and enjoyable evening together.' And if anyone asks you what your plans are for the next day, tell them you're busy."

(Remember: Use this advice at your own risk, adapt as needed, and don't drink and drive.)

2. Be upbeat.

There has been a lot of disturbing and downright alarming news about global warming this year. It's important to know that information, but it's also inspirational for everyone around you -- and you too -- to focus on the equally important good news.

If the conversation turns towards global warming, here are some good news stories to read up on and mention:

• Sales of LED holiday lights have doubled this year. They use a small fraction of the electricity of traditional incandescents.
• Ford's electric car, the Fusion, gets 52 miles to the gallon! And of the Big Three automakers, Ford seems to be best poised to survive and possibly prosper.
• The 10 states participating in a recent auction of greenhouse gas credits brought in $106.5 million, in what may well be a forerunner of a successful national cap-and-trade carbon market.
• European leaders agreed on package of laws to cut emissions earlier in the month, and Australia -- after long lagging on global warming -- has pledged to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 5%-15% by 2020 via the world's broadest cap and trade plan.
• President-elect Obama has selected a very promising team of energy and environmental leaders, positioning the US to become a leader in both policy and action to curb global warming.Obviously this may be a sensitive topic if your loved one supported John McCain. Find common ground in the knowledge that no matter who won the election, the nation's global warming policy was destined to improve, and that John McCain has been an outspoken supporter of global warming action.

Good luck!

Image: Sasha the tiger playing in NYC's recent snowfall, at the Bronx Zoo. Source, and more pix of animals in the snow: Gothamist.