The Media, a Heatwave, and the Coming of Hell

There is a heatwave in southern Europe. Who would have thought, in the middle of summer, that the countries of choice for sun-loving holidaymakers are enjoying warm weather? Greece is hot; Spain and Italy, too. On the beautiful island of Sicily, where average summer temperatures exceed 38°C, the mercury has barely risen by a few millimetres. Judging by media reporting, though, you might think of this short-lived heatwave as the Apocalypse. The headlines Europe burns, Hellish, Italy swelters, give the impression that something unprecedented in human history is about to destroy southern Europe.

We really need to tone down the apocalyptic rhetoric. I think some people need to take a moment. Their histrionic reactions likely come from being over-exposed to the sun, which has caused a kind of exaggerated hysteria. Yes, it's hot. Parts of Greece, Italy, Spain, Bulgaria, and Turkey have reached up to 40C and in Sardinia, it even rose to 46C. According to an article in Forbes, 2022 was the 'hottest summer on record' for Europe with temperatures as high as 33C in France, the highest in the past century. Should I believe it? Given the doom and gloom which Global Climate Activism is spreading, I am sceptical. According to the Meteorological Office, in August 1946, a temperature of 47C was recorded in Seville. High temperatures are part of European culture; that's why the Spaniards take a siesta during the day.

The Mediterranean is a place where the sun shines. Sure, such temperatures might raise eyebrows in the Arctic, but given that Arctic sea ice seems to be recovering, it's unlikely. Alas, weather maps have turned a hellish dark red. Mankind is being punished for its selfish and hubristic behaviour, and the elites want you to know it! Failure to atone for the sins of air pollution will bring about Judgement Day—the imminent heat death of the planet. Climate change activists and environmentalists seem less concerned with smart, practical solutions to pollution and more concerned with demonising the rest of us as a plague upon the earth. These people seem to genuinely believe that hot weather is an indictment against humanity. 

To further emphasise the sense of damnation, the heat wave was nicknamed 'Cerberus'. This references Dante Alighieri's 14th-century epic poem The Inferno, the first part of the Divine Comedy. Through 33 cantos presented in the first person, it documents Dante's journey through the nine circles of Hell with the aid of Virgil, the Roman poet. Symbolically, the poem conveys an individual's spiritual path to God, and the Inferno in particular highlights the acceptance and rejection of sin. Cerberus, an enormous, three-headed dog, is present at the third circle of Hell to ruthlessly tear apart sinners who attempt to flee from damnation. This creature is central to the ugly concept of eternal suffering as highlighted in the poem.

Naturally, the next heatwave will be named Charon (pronounced [Kah-ron], not Karen), after the ferryman who carries the souls of the dead to Hades in Dante's epic poem. It conjures the image of a punishing inferno as if the heatwave is a fiery cleansing of those who have sinned. The name is as powerful as Charon himself, who used a sledgehammer to part the living from the dead.

This isn't the first time hot weather has evoked hellish metaphors. Last year, when temperatures in Britain stayed just over 40C for several days, the Guardian admonished the heathen hordes, claiming, like a relentless street preacher, that we're "guilty as hell." 

Is the weather no longer just the weather? Why is it that events such as slight temperature rises, floods, and hurricanes are seen as signs that humans have offended God?  We must repent or face the vengeance of Gaia, God, Cerberus, or Satan. What next—eternal damnation for driving a petrol car?

Contrary to what these doomsday prophets predict, heat is not our biggest problem. The cold takes far more lives than extreme heat. Between 2000 and 2019, England and Wales saw an average of 800 more heat-related deaths and 60,500 more cold-related deaths each year. Nearly 2,500 people died from the heat and 113,000 from the cold in Canada and the United States. An interesting statistic considering Death Valley in the US state of California recently recorded one of the hottest temperatures in history. Globally, the cold kills 1.7 million people each year, while the heat kills around 300,000.

Those who are sensitive to heat should be prepared. It's very easy. You don't need an NHS guide telling you how to keep cool. Apply plenty of sunscreen, wear white clothing to reflect the heat, and cover your head with a wide-brimmed hat. If in doubt, do like the Spaniards and avoid the sun during the hottest time of the day. As a species, we have known this for thousands of years. The Romans built 'earth houses' to protect themselves from the heat. And in the 1930s, Noel Coward wrote of “mad dogs and Englishmen” going out in the midday sun. Just be sensible. Drink plenty of water to stay hydrated. Perhaps more public water fountains would solve my particular environmental problem of plastic pollution in our oceans. 

Above all, if you suffer from the heat, I recommend sitting in the shade. Then you will be less angry. Unfortunately, our media seems bent on making life Hell for all of us.