“Johns Hopkins succumbs to heat wave mania“. (May 3, 2011) “Climate Change Analysis Predicts Increased Fatalities from Heat Waves”, published in Environmental Health Perspectives on May 1st, 2011, is about heat-waves and the impact of global warming on morbidity. Anthony Watts stumbles across their press release and incorrectly decides they’re talking about record high temperatures. Nope.

Anthony, heat-wave morbidity is linked to multiple days of high nighttime temperatures, something that actually has an association with global warming, and humidity, not record highs. You’re not on the same page, buddy. (Are you ever?)

Anthony seems to think that denialist meteorologist Joe D’Aleo’s 2009 analysis, and the stagnant Hall of [false] Record blog (where the 2012 elections will aways be “getting closer”), have the definitive scientific answer. People only die from cold! Also, a weird blurred-together “statewide” record temperatures chart doesn’t seem to support global warming. Anthony loves mashed together out-of-context data if he can use it to advantage, but what dim-wit actually thinks that rising temperatures can’t happen without lock-step new daily temperature records? There’s something about straight lines that captivates denialists.

In the Joe D’Aleo links to we find the assertion that Anthony seems to like: “The claim that warming increases morbidity rates is also a myth.” Oops, Wikipedia says “in the United States, the loss of human life in hot spells in summer exceeds that caused by all other weather events combined, including lightning, rain, floods, hurricanes and tornadoes.”