The expanding bull’s-eye effect means we’re likely to see much more costly disasters happen over time, even if the climate doesn’t change at all. This does not mean that global warming has no distinct impact. But it does mean that when the media trumpets that the latest hurricane, tornado, or flood is the costliest yet, they tend to imply that the rising damage is due to climate change. In reality, much (and often all) we’re seeing is that more people with more stuff live in harm’s way.
