>>With ice floes the size of Rhode island breaking off; with
the ice that gives the polar bears a conduit to food melting...

The above hits the spot.  The melting polar caps is key in this 
discussion.  The polar caps reflect a good chunk of solar radiation 
back into space.  With the ice gone the earth is expected to absorb a 
lot of this heat leading to quicker warming up.  The ice in Greenland 
is melting at some double the rate predicted 5-10 years ago.  [The 
melting ice is uncovering new islands. :)]  Clearly, we don't have 
good algorithms to predict the speed of warming.

The permafrost in Siberia is receding.  It's a verifiable fact.  If 
it continues or accelarates it will release vast amounts of trapped 
methane into the atmosphere which is expected to warm up the 
atmosphere. 

There are paradoxical developments possible, too.  With the north 
pole area warming, the critical ocean water temperature difference 
that drives the North Atlantic conveyor may disappear.  The Gulf 
stream, that warms Europe, is the result of this massive water 
movement.  If, and it may be a big if, the NA conveyor and the Gulf 
stream stop, northern Europe (British Isles, Scandinavia) may 
experience a rapid cooling possibly leading to an ice age.  You won't 
be able to grow palm trees in Ireland anymore.   

So we may see deserts advance around the equator and an ice age in 
the north.  But, at least for a while, beekeeping will continue since 
honey bees are so adaptable to different climates.  We humans with 
our overpopulation are not as likely to fare as well.

Waldemar
Long Island, NY (expected to be mostly under water if most of the ice 
melts and ocean levels rise 100-200 ft)

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