Think global warming is wrecking the world? You haven’t heard the half of it. Climate change is bad news for everything from Bulgarian brothels to baseball bats to beer — or so some people and news outlets would have you believe.

“Brothel owners in Bulgaria are blaming global warming for staff shortages. They claim their best girls are working in ski resorts because a lack of snow has forced tourists to seek other pleasures.”

•Metro, a British newspaper, March 2007

“(T)he future of the ash tree is in doubt because of a killer beetle and a warming climate, and with it, the complicated relationship of the baseball player to his bat.”

•New York Times article about ash trees, whose wood is used to make baseball bats, July 2007

“Climate change could be about to claim a new victim — the fashion industry. Designers and industry experts fear that the traditional seasonal collections which have formed the backbone of the business may become meaningless due to (the) increasing unpredictability of the weather.”

•The Daily Telegraph, October 2007

“Beer will be (in) short supply, more expensive and may taste different as climate change affects barley production, a scientist says.”

•News.com.au http://news.com.au/, an Australian Web site, April 2008

“More Americans are likely to suffer from kidney stones in the coming years as a result of global warming, according to researchers at the University of Texas.”

•Agence France-Presse, July 2008

“Global warming has added an extra layer of anxiety to what people are already feeling.”

... contd.