Just came across a very calm and rational discussion of the meaning of the cold, snowy weather we and some others experienced in December and early January. (Remember cold weather? We hit 58 today at The Sun...) It comes from "Earth Gauge," an initiative by the National Environmental Education Foundation and the American Meteorological Society, and it's worth a read.

Here's a taste: 

"Patterns of periodic warming and cooling over the North Atlantic in the past – linked to periodic strengthening and weakening of the circulation that brings warm waters into the Atlantic basin from the south – suggest that the Atlantic may cool slightly over the next decade. As this happens, average surface temperatures in North America and Europe may stop their rising temperature trends or even cool slightly.

"Looking at long-term data (50+ years), which includes periods of both warm and cool North Atlantic temperatures as well as warm and cool periods of other major natural oscillations that help drive our weather, suggests that the extreme cold experienced over the past few weeks is becoming less common for the United States as a whole."