Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage' • Hacker News Board

Re: Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage'

#21

Post by H4CK3RM4N » Mon, Apr 10, 2017, 4:45 AM UTC

flukus wrote: post #15

H4CK3RM4N wrote: post #4

Sadly I can't remember the last time we had any real action to protect the reef, and our current government is all too willing to put businesses above the environment.

Most of the damage is part of climate change in general, so real action to protect the reef involves the world drastically cutting carbon emissions. Meanwhile, we can't even prevent things like this happening right next to the reef: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-04-10/abbot-point-coal-termi...

I was trying to subtly hint at how absolutely fucking unacceptable it is that something like the Abbot Point coal terminal was approved. How hard is it?

Re: Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage'

#22

Post by fersho311 » Mon, Apr 10, 2017, 4:47 AM UTC

hoodoof wrote: post #2

x

Hahaha thank you for this satire. Haven't laughed this hard

Re: Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage'

#23

Post by snuxoll » Mon, Apr 10, 2017, 4:50 AM UTC

H4CK3RM4N wrote: post #4

Sadly I can't remember the last time we had any real action to protect the reef, and our current government is all too willing to put businesses above the environment.

I wonder if there is any possibility of restoring the reef after we've gotten carbon in the atmosphere back down to livable levels for it. I'm sure it's basically impossible, but if we're approaching the point of no return maybe we can invest in preserving as much of the reef as we can in aquariums to make an attempt down the road.

The whole situation is depressing :(

Re: Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage'

#24

Post by Luminarys » Mon, Apr 10, 2017, 4:51 AM UTC

Although I've never seen the Great Barrier Reef, I was recently in Belize and snorkeled around its Barrier Reef. It was painfully obvious that the reefs were extensively bleached(though still quite beautiful). It's quite shocking to think that 30 years ago the reefs looked completely different from now and in another 30 years may not even be around. I hope that in the future we won't be reduced to having to point to pictures in a book if people want to witness the beauty of nature but this seems increasingly inevitable. What a shame.

Re: Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage'

#25

Post by Red_Tarsius » Mon, Apr 10, 2017, 4:55 AM UTC

This is what keeps me up at night. If we don't find an efficient way to extract CO2 and methane from the atmosphere, I fear that mankind might go extinct.

Re: Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage'

#26

Post by simonrobb » Mon, Apr 10, 2017, 4:56 AM UTC

Stratoscope wrote: post #19

cyberferret wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I really hate the environment. It doesn't really exist If only they could tow the reef outside of the environment... (Hat tip to John Clarke - RIP)

For those who haven't seen it, cyberferret is referring to this interview with an Australian government official about an environmental disaster: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcU4t6zRAKg Edit: Spoiler alert below... ;-)

John Clarke is a satirist, who played the role of whichever government official was topical at the time for decades. Not an actual government official.

Re: Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage'

#27

Post by [deleted] » Mon, Apr 10, 2017, 5:03 AM UTC

simonrobb wrote: post #26

Stratoscope wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For those who haven't seen it, cyberferret is referring to this interview with an Australian government official about an environmental disaster: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcU4t6zRAKg Edit: Spoiler alert below... ;-)

John Clarke is a satirist, who played the role of whichever government official was topical at the time for decades. Not an actual government official.

[deleted]

Re: Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage'

#28

Post by erikpukinskis » Mon, Apr 10, 2017, 5:05 AM UTC

Red_Tarsius wrote: post #25

This is what keeps me up at night. If we don't find an efficient way to extract CO2 and methane from the atmosphere, I fear that mankind might go extinct.

Mankind is absurdly resilient. We are like rats or cockroaches but a hundred times more adaptable. Billions of people could die. We might lose 99% of species. But human extinction is out of the question.

We could live in bubbles of air under the ocean huddled around nuclear reactors if we needed to. Roaches couldn't do that (without our help).

Re: Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage'

#29

Post by ohashi » Mon, Apr 10, 2017, 5:06 AM UTC

I saw a bleaching event in Thailand last year, it really is depressing to see. This year, the same sites have seemingly recovered and I'm really happy about that. But seeing the pictures of completely bleached white corals in the article and knowing that's probably the future for a lot of these reefs breaks my heart. Coral reefs are magical places and we're destroying them for future generations, maybe even the current one.

Re: Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage'

#30

Post by interfixus » Mon, Apr 10, 2017, 5:07 AM UTC

dang wrote: post #12

hoodoof wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

x

Would you please not post inflammatory political rhetoric to HN? We're trying for thoughtful discussion here. Obviously it's hard to have thoughtful discussion about urgent issues, but comments like what you're posting only make things worse.

Hahaha thank you for this satire. Haven't laughed this hard

Somebody apparently enjoyed the posting. The rest of us shall never know why, for it is gone now.