It’s Summer Again, So Media Tees-Up Another Round of ‘Heat Dome’ Mania
In response to the Western Europe summer heat wave, France bans drinking alcohol in public.
Western Europeans barely have time to locate their sunglasses this year before the annual media ritual kicks off: cue the ominous “heat dome” graphics, breathless headlines, and declarations that civilization is one sunny afternoon away from collapse.
Holy color saturation Batman.
Someone take the red and pink crayons away. https://t.co/ST1S1AKgl3
— Chris Martz (@ChrisMartzWX) June 24, 2026
Never mind that summer heat has been a feature of the season since forever. Perfectly ordinary seasonal temperature swings are being repackaged with apocalyptic flair to keep the climate panic narrative on a steady simmer.
Much of western Europe baked under a “heat dome” Wednesday as temperatures soared toward 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in places, and weather agencies warned that the extreme conditions could endanger lives across countries, many of which have limited air conditioning.
France recorded its hottest-ever day for the second day running. The Meteo France weather agency said the country’s national thermal indicator — an average of temperatures measured at 30 weather stations — hit a new record of 30 C (86 F), the latest in a series of never-before-registered highs. The mercury surpassed 40 C (104 F) in some locations, including in Paris.
The French weather agency put three-quarters of the country under a red alert for extreme heat starting at midday Thursday until the same time Friday. The warning encompassed tens of millions of people. In the usually temperate Brittany region of northwest France, a heat-related equipment failure knocked out power to tens of thousands of households that had to endure without electric fans.
Fortunately, some qualified meteorologists and climate experts are on this case this year. The temperature realities are not quite as dire as the elite media would have you believe.
This is incorrect.
Verargues recorded a high temperature of 46.0°C (114.8°F) on June 28, 2019.
Retract this misinformation and correct the record. https://t.co/cK8prezLba
— Chris Martz (@ChrisMartzWX) June 24, 2026
Temperatures have been far more toasty in previous years, when the levels of carbon dioxide were lower.
Several of Europe's all-time national heat records were set long before modern CO₂ concentrations reached current levels, including Poland (1921), Romania (1951), Bulgaria (1916), Ireland (1887), Sweden (1947), Norway (1970), and Greece (1977). At the same time, a large cluster… https://t.co/I43AlMDAII
— Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki (@MatthewWielicki) June 24, 2026
Furthermore, Western Europe does not represent the entire planet.
Climate hoax breakdown: It may be 'even' warmer in Europe today vs. yesterday but it is 'even' cooler globally today vs. yesterday. https://t.co/9W1wRJckPdhttps://t.co/fqRVG3Stv7 pic.twitter.com/lsppuH5eF8
— Steve Milloy (@JunkScience) June 24, 2026
In fact, according to meteorologist Chris Matrz, the current heat dome is the result of a naturally occurring phenomenon.
Well, it has to do with the “omega block” in the jet stream. Omega blocks get their name because they resemble the Greek uppercase letter omega, Ω.
You can see that in the synoptic setup. The map below on the left shows the 500 mb geopotential height anomaly at 18z. The contour lines resemble the Ω shape due to an enormous high-pressure ridge in the mid-troposphere that is sandwiched between two low-pressure systems to its east and west.
Hot Saharan air has been advected—that is, horizontally transported—northward into western Europe due to anticyclonic (clockwise) airflow, and as that air mass moves north, it is compressed adiabatically beneath the ridge where air is sinking.
Why is it hot in Europe this week?
Well, it has to do with the “omega block” in the jet stream. Omega blocks get their name because they resemble the Greek uppercase letter omega, Ω.
You can see that in the synoptic setup. The map below on the left shows the 500 mb… pic.twitter.com/D2KHo9cOv3
— Chris Martz (@ChrisMartzWX) June 25, 2026
As thermometers climb, so too does the hysteria, with every warm breeze treated less like weather and more like a chance for ginning up fear and pushing for the development of more harmful “climate crisis” policy.
Interestingly, one of those new “climate crisis” policies is being trotted out in France. French officials have temporarily restricted alcohol consumption in public spaces in many areas affected by the heat wave.
A growing swath of France, spreading on Monday to more than half its regions, was under a “red alert” for heat, with areas forecast to suffer highs past 104 F and nights not dropping below 68 F.
Broadcasts on the Paris transport network urged commuters to hydrate. Medical specialists warned of the potentially deadly combination of drinking alcohol in extreme heat. Authorities cracked down on alcohol consumption in public.
Multiple drownings were reported as people sought relief in rivers, despite warnings about currents and other dangers.
The pattern, then, is as predictable as the summer solstice itself: temperatures rise, the media machine whirs to life, and perfectly normal seasonal heat gets dressed up in the language of civilizational catastrophe.
Yet the data tells a more measured story: prior eras saw comparable or greater heat with lower atmospheric CO₂. Western Europe is not a proxy for global climate, and the meteorologists willing to say so are increasingly making themselves heard.
What is genuinely alarming is not the thermometer, but the policy reflex it triggers: restrictions on public alcohol consumption in France, a cascade of red alerts encompassing tens of millions of people, and an implicit argument that ordinary citizens must surrender yet another small liberty in the name of a crisis whose parameters are forever shifting.
If the goal were truly public safety, the conversation would center on practical adaptations, such as access to air conditioning and urban heat mitigation, rather than on prohibition and panic.
Summer is hot. It has always been hot. The question worth asking is not whether the heat dome graphic will return next June, but who benefits when it does.
Meanwhile, alarmists should check out this video as a reminder of why Earth has seasons:
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Comments
It’s France,
No one cares.
Froggies should only drink alcohol in the privacy of their own homes, lest the planet melt.
We are still paying the price for ignoring Al Gorey’s warning that New York would be under water by 2013.
It’s got nothing to do with the planet. Alcohol during extreme heat is a bad idea, but at the time it seems like a good idea, so they’re trying to minimize it a little without intruding into people’s privacy.
Since when has a European government been reluctant to intrude into peoples’ privacy?
Subotai Bahadur
If only he was right.
Subotai Bahadur
“In response to the Western Europe summer heat wave, France bans drinking alcohol in public.”
Because if we learned one thing from Covid, it’s that we can order you to do the stupidest things on the flimsiest of pretexts, and you’ll do it.
And they will try to pretend that it’s climate change and not Muslims that require this new prohibition.
Yes, the burlap sack over your head will keep you cool.
“French officials have temporarily restricted alcohol consumption in public spaces…”
Why do I suspect that the real beneficiary of this decree isn’t overheated Frenchmen but rather their disgusting Muslim invaders?
Did authorities ban Muslims from praying in the sweltering heat?
I think not.
Huh? Why would they want to ban praying? In what way does extreme heat make praying dangerous? The heat’s the same no matter whether you’re praying or watching TV or trying to sleep. Alcohol on the other hand really is contraindicated in extreme heat; it increases the risk of dehydration, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke.
Because with their backs and behinds pointing straight up into the sun, they are absorbing a lot of heat energy and might have heat stroke.
There are dozens of substances that increase risk of heat exhaustion or stroke in hot temperatures, from SSRIs to benzos to laxatives and antihistamines, Ban them all! Obesity is a major risk factor–make the fat stay at home! Any physical exertion is a risk factor–ban jogging and of course outdoor work! Standing up for long periods, especially for the elderly is a risk–ban standing!
Or, and this is a radical idea, let adults make their own decisions, and put in some fricking air conditioners.
Alcohol is different because it seems like a good idea when it’s hot, but it isn’t. And banning it in public is easy to do (after all, in much of the USA it’s already illegal all the time, not just in the heat), and will tend to cut down on it without intruding into people’s privacy. It’s not as if one shouldn’t have any alcohol in the heat, just not as much as one would without any intervention.
My point, though, is that this has absolutely nothing to do with Islam, and it takes a very paranoid and twisted mind to come up with the idea that it does. It’s just the nanny state trying to do a little good.
Muslim women in black abaya squatting in the street to pray to your obscene god seems like a good idea at the time, blocking streets and performing a dominance ritual are always good ideas, but heat prostration can kill.
Inshallah.
They literally don’t have air conditioning in their hospitals
I like this bit: The increased frequency of these events in Europe is likely to be partially due to:
The euros would find high temperatures a lot more tolerable if they’d check out this cool new invention called ‘air conditioning’. They literally do not have it.
Boy, is it hot in France. How hot is it???
It’s so hot Brigitte Macron is going through menopause for the first time.
It’s hot!
In the summer!
Again!
The horror
Hi Leslie,
On a completely different topic: Could you ask Barry Jacobsen what happened to Book 2 of the Hieronymus Papers? (MIA from Amazon) Better yet, where can I get an ebook copy?
I believe the second book is out and available on Amazon. You can ask Barry yourself, via X. https://x.com/Barry4the44th