Baghdad soars to 125 blistering degrees, its highest temperature on record

[procon]

5. I've lived in California's Mojave Desert for 40+ years

and the climate has changed drastically over time. It gets hot earlier in the year and stays around longer these days. There was the occasional 110 degree day, but that was offset by a predictable afternoon breeze that cooled things off.

Now we start the day at 6am with temps already in the high 80s or 90s because it never cooled down at night. From there we're hitting the high teens with some areas getting into record breaking temps in the 120+ range. The afternoon breeze doesn't always show up so everything just bakes in the unrelenting heat.

Plants that grew fairly well here are drying, not for lack of water but the heat. The farms are mostly gone. And no one is treating this as a life threatening event.