As the theory goes, cold temperatures on the east coast is exactly what to expect with global warming. I know it sounds paradoxical, let me explain: Global warming is indeed happening as evidenced by simultaneous melting glaciers all over the world; they are receding everywhere. There is a phenomenon called the Thermohaline circulation or global oceanic conveyor, the heart of which is directly below Greenland, where powerful Arctic winds blow across the surface of the ocean and evaporate water which then causes the remaining salt water to become more dense and sink, thus causing the entire oceanic underwater current which keeps the Atlantic relatively warm and climates of Europe and the east coast of the U.S. warm and temperate.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermohaline_circulationAs a result of the huge amount of fresh melt water coming off of the Arctic and Greenland, it is diluting the "heart" of the system which, if it shuts off, will stop the oceanic circulation throughout the world which keeps the world warm. The result of this is a rapid slowing of this action which will eventually lead to its shutting down altogether. Take a globe and look at the same latitude as Europe and you'll see the Siberian arctic tundra. That's what'll happen to Europe and the east coast and eventually the rest of the world if the global oceanic conveyor stops functioning: they all become like Siberia and this ushers in the next ice age. In fact, the great lakes exist from melted ice from the last ice age!
I view the brutal winter in the east coast and midwest to be confirmation that global warming is absolutely real and this is quite possibly happening and could herald another ice age directly ahead.