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it's not the ocean that's warming up the glacier, causing it to melt. The melting is due to the rising air temperatures.

No one in this discussion seems to be grasping the fact that the Earth's oceans and atmosphere are inexorably linked. As goes one, so goes the other. The oceans are a buffer in the climate cycle, and even a small change in overall ocean temperature indicates something is wrong with our climate.

Well, yes, we (or at least I) understand that, but that particular thread of the discussion was about a local effect, rather than the entire ecosphere cycle. Mark's statement (whether intended, or not, and he can correct me as necessary) had the implication that the warming ocean is directly causing the glaciers to melt. It's an indirect link -- the warming ocean contributes to the warming atmosphere, and it's the warming air causing the melting glaciers. Furthermore, one could argue that it's the warming atmosphere that triggered the ocean's warming, too, starting the feedback loop that we're currently in.

The melting glaciers are merely(*) a symptom of the problem that is most significantly manifested as a result of the warming air portion of the feedback loop, rather than the warming ocean part of that same loop.

(*) Okay... not "merely" -- the melting of the glaciers does have some contribution to the warming/cooling, but the real concern over their melt has more to do with a catastrophic rise in ocean levels, rather than contributing to increased heating.

All IMHO, of course.