This morning’s rain was terrible. The Tokaido Line and other services had stopped, and in Shizuoka, cars were submerged and a person aged 69 died. Meanwhile, there have been many cases of the encephalopathy reportedly seen with shirohira mushrooms, and this too is apparently thought to be due to climate change. After all, mushrooms of sizes and shapes different from those seen before seem to have occurred in large numbers this year.

Meanwhile, some schools have already closed classes because of influenza. Ordinarily this happens after December begins, but this year it is really early. Is this also the work of abnormal weather?

Abnormal weather? Perhaps it is simply the “normal climate” brought about by warming…