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The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try

propublica.org

11–20 of 84 posts

Re: The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try

#12
post #2

I can imagine a lot of things, but what the science is saying and what this article is saying don't seem to line up. It reminds me of this tweet from Senator Ed Markey: https://twitter.com/SenMarkey/status/1101234939058683904?s=2... > Climate change is literally destroying the planet. According to the Trump admin's National Climate Assessment, with no action, climate change will result in 10% GDP loss by 2090. That 1…

You are missing that economics is not science, and economists are, collectively, very carefully avoiding even considering the bulk of wholly predictable effects just because they have no way to incorporate them into their models.

Re: The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try

#13
post #2

I can imagine a lot of things, but what the science is saying and what this article is saying don't seem to line up. It reminds me of this tweet from Senator Ed Markey: https://twitter.com/SenMarkey/status/1101234939058683904?s=2... > Climate change is literally destroying the planet. According to the Trump admin's National Climate Assessment, with no action, climate change will result in 10% GDP loss by 2090. That 1…

You're witness to mass hysteria driven by a whole lot of profit motive, career posturing, and social signaling, with a touch of "some kinda/pretty bad stuff is gonna happen."

When I was younger—before the internet was in every home—I read articles about how the "information superhighway" was going to bring the whole world closer together. To my mind, that was analogous to a major city gone amok: unprecedented competition with everyone vying for attention.

One guy paints his sign on his window. The next guy lights up his sign. The next backlights a plexiglass sign. The next uses neon. The next blinks his neon. And so on.

It took some time, but we're about at the point of maximum stimulus on the internet. And so to compete, the messaging follows a similar pattern. And eventually some people believe what they read. And others believe what they write.

Those that believe what they write become desensitized. Those that believe what they read become indoctrinated. And you're left with this emergent characteristic of a chaotic system stuck in feedback loops.

What you read as overstated, others will read as gospel and damn you for underplaying the emergency. And they will try to shout louder than the next, because everyone is a storefront for something; profit, or power, or ego, or social status.

So what's an apocalypse?

Not global climate change.

The apocalypse is what you witness as you try to decipher and pick apart the insanity that has become not only the internet, but soon the whole of humanity.

The climate change cathedral had it right all along: we are the apocalypse. But they got wrong the cause.

The cause is not climate change. Or fascism. Or racism. Or even hatred.

The cause of our apocalypse is us, by virtue of our connected hyper-competition. The apocalypse is the "human superhighway."

Re: The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try

#14
Of course he lives in California, grows his own organic kale, his wife likes the anti-capitalist aspect of it and quotes Marx, and they both worry about fascism.

> You need to commit, perhaps even create drama, and make real changes in your life.

Right, create drama like saying billions of deaths, civilization collapse and nuclear war is imminent?

> Zane, the younger one, started doing his own regular, Greta Thunberg-style climate strikes in front of city hall. Braird, the older, meanwhile, was entering his teens, differentiating and waxing nihilistic. When asked what he wanted to do with his future, Braird said, “What future?” When asked what he thought about climate change, he sunk a dagger into his father’s heart like only a child can. Braird said, “I don’t really think about it.”

This part is just sad, terrifying his own kids to death.

Re: The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try

#15
It's going to take out the fringes of many coastal cities. The US probably loses much of New Orleans and Miami. Some of the hotter spots on the planet will become unlivable. Those things have already happened. India and parts of Africa have the worst problems. As do some Asian cities with heavily populated river delta areas.

On the other hand, the northern tier of US states become more habitable. We get an ice-free Northwest Passage.

Re: The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try

#16
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What you're missing in my opinion is how profitable drumming up existential fears about climate change in the population has been over the decades.

How profitable? This guy in the article? Al Gore getting a speaking gig? Aramco does $300B revenue annually, and they are less than 10% of the market. Only an idiot would go into climate change advocacy for the money.

Perhaps you underestimate the total number of idiots on this planet.

Re: The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try

#17
post #7

A big part of the problem is these anodyne expressions "climate change" and "global warming". They say, "so what?" We should only ever be saying "Global Climate Disruption". I am estimating a 50% chance of global civilization collapse by 2030. It starts with crop failure in tropical and subtropical countries. Fishery collapse, as coral reefs are wiped out by bleaching and acidification, slashes access to protein. Fam…

Surely you mean "guessing"? What are you basing your estimate on? An estimate is based on metrics. You can't use that word "estimate" without at least citing what you base it on. If you were to reach 2030 and things are alright climate wise, would you decide you are wrong, or pick another deadline? What is your criteria for deciding whether or not you should change your mind?

Those are entirely the wrong questions to be asking.

Re: The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try

#18
post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Surely you mean "guessing"? What are you basing your estimate on? An estimate is based on metrics. You can't use that word "estimate" without at least citing what you base it on. If you were to reach 2030 and things are alright climate wise, would you decide you are wrong, or pick another deadline? What is your criteria for deciding whether or not you should change your mind?

Those are entirely the wrong questions to be asking.

I usually don't get frisky on this site because I prefer productive discussion, but the snotty hubris you've just demonstrated is nauseating. You're telling me that I shouldn't ask certain questions?

Tell me then. Tell me, what should I be concerned about. What sort of discussion should I he engaged in? What should my opinions be? How can I be as right as you?

Re: The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try

#19
post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Surely you mean "guessing"? What are you basing your estimate on? An estimate is based on metrics. You can't use that word "estimate" without at least citing what you base it on. If you were to reach 2030 and things are alright climate wise, would you decide you are wrong, or pick another deadline? What is your criteria for deciding whether or not you should change your mind?

Those are entirely the wrong questions to be asking.

1. Why?

2. What are the right questions?

Anyone can be a doomsayer.

Re: The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine. Here’s What Happens If You Try

#20
post #7

A big part of the problem is these anodyne expressions "climate change" and "global warming". They say, "so what?" We should only ever be saying "Global Climate Disruption". I am estimating a 50% chance of global civilization collapse by 2030. It starts with crop failure in tropical and subtropical countries. Fishery collapse, as coral reefs are wiped out by bleaching and acidification, slashes access to protein. Fam…

> Global collapse by 2030

Al Gore... is that you? https://cei.org/blog/wrong-again-50-years-of-failed-eco-poca...

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