Those with their heads in the snow, er, sand have begun the chorus of doubt about whether Planet Earth is actually warming.

Amarillo got its usual 6 inches of snow overnight. It’s cold out there, which always is related to the presence of snow on the ground. That big blizzard pounded the NE corner of the United States the other day under about a yard of snow in some places. Local observers here, and there, have declared – as they usually do – that the global warming fears are all a left-wing, enviro-nut, big brother conspiracy to destroy the industries that have created the greatest nation the world has ever seen.

Of course, these denials ignore considerable data that affirm what many of us fear, which is that Earth is warming up. Most recently, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration  reported that in 2012, the planet warmed up a full degree year over year from the previous high temperature. That’s significant chiefly because record-setting temperatures usually occur only in fractions of degrees, according to NOAA; that it would warm up by a full degree is unprecedented.

The consequences of this warming? The seas will rise, coastal cities could be swamped, polar ice caps will melt – endangering wildlife that depend on the ice.

I have seen a proverbial blizzard (pun intended) of data that support the global-warming findings.

The remaining dispute centers on what’s causing it. Lefties blame carbon emissions sent into the atmosphere from fossil-fuel-burning industries; righties say the planet’s warming is all part of the planet’s epochal cycle.

Let that debate continue. What shouldn’t be disputed is whether the planet is getting warmer. It is.