Watch Sunspots; Carefully

A theory, not widely supported but possible, suggests that very few or no sunspots on the face of the Sun presages global cooling. It seems to me that there is more and more “chatter“ showing up, on this subject. (Sunspots are black spots on the Sun’s surface. They can be as large in diameter as the Earth, which spots could be easily seen by eye, through dark glasses, or much smaller and visible only through telescopes. These spots are slightly cooler areas of the Sun’s surface and are magnetic storms which  erupt from the sun’s interior. The incidence of sunspots varies from few to frequent, over an 11-year cycle.)       
A cold period, labeled a Little Ice Age occurred from 1655 to 1715. There was one year, called “The year without a summer“, and the Thames froze solid at London. In this period, there was an average drop of 2-degree C, year-round. This period coincided with the Maunder Minimum of sunspots, and some scientists speculated that the low (not zero, but low) incidence of sunspots meant that the Sun was cooler. That has been debated ever since, in science circles.
This past August the UK Armagh Observatory which has been observing solar activity for over 200 years stated  “Cycle 23, has not finished…looks long …Cycle 24 looks like it will be weak.”  “This suggests that over next two decades temperatures may fall about 2 degrees C.“ Another institute reported that no sunspots were observed during this August, and claimed that there was no month like this in 100 years. The September sun was also free of any sunspots; except maybe a few, very small ones. In November though, sunspot 1008, probably the start of Cycle 24, is visible, and growing.
Sunspots are an interesting phenomenon of the natural world. Anyone wanting to keep track over coming years, could do so by personal observation. Use care of course, to avoid eye damage by only looking at the sun for seconds, and using a smoky glass or very good sunglasses. Better though, SpaceWeather.com monitors sunspots daily, along with other sky news such as coming meteor showers, and possible aurora displays.
PS: There is one possible straw in the wind in my area. Per NY Daily News story, “Coney on the Skids“; despite high gas prices, Coney Island beach crowds were only 4.5 million in 2008, vs. 8.6 in 2007. This may be a stretch, but are beachgoers subconsciously reacting to slightly cooler summer weather?