Climate change is happening. So what? I'm not denying that. I'm saying we should burn more fossil fuels anyway. — Kasperanza
It's climate CHANGE not climate destruction. — Kasperanza
Change is neither good nor bad. — Kasperanza
we're both aware of the basic reasons behind why many reasonable and scientifically well supported policies aren't enacted by governments around the world — Echarmion
Mitigation and adaptation. The former requires worldwide commitments. The latter can be dealt with by individual nations. Which do you think has the better chance of succeeding? — jgill
Depends on the level of analysis. But on the whole, aspects of human nature -- in the case, greed -- that have been magnified by a system that prioritizes private power -- namely, capitalism. — Xtrix
People who are opposed to fossil fuels, are against a cheap, reliable, and powerful source of energy. — Kasperanza
You think it's unlikely that anything gets done. So essentially we're doomed, in your eyes. Interesting perspective. — Xtrix
Does the science really say that all climate change is bad? — Kasperanza
Indeed, and yet above we were talking about 'popular and sought after' policies, not 'reasonable and scientifically well supported' ones. That the two are not the same is the crux of the problem. — Isaac
Protests need to properly threaten the group they are protesting against, otherwise they're nothing more than virtue signalling. Governments have some quite well-developed means of gauging the mood in their key demographics - sophisticated multi-metric tools. Do you think they're going to throw those away because they see a few hundred hipsters having a street party? — Isaac
The "It's not practical to make the necessary changes" excuse is a fairly limp one. That there are limits to what can be done by individual choice is incontestable, but equally incontestable is the fact that most people are absolutely nowhere near those limits — Isaac
we quite deliberately designed the system that way. — Isaac
The question should be "Why, when faced with such an obvious prospect of harm to the next generation, do people still consider their replacement Disney-themed electric toothpaste dispenser to be more important?" — Isaac
Why pit one against the other? Last I checked economy is dependent upon resources. When resources vanish, economy plummets. Our economy is now global. Individual nations won't be able to adapt acclimate economically when our resources become unsustainable due to lack of mitigation. To address this in only economic terms. — javra
Yes, it does. Though it's not so much the direction of the change as the rate of change that is the problem. — Echarmion
I mean how fast is too fast? Why not just burn more fossil fuels? Oh, things are too hot? Blast the air conditioning. Things are too cold? Turn up the heat. I don't really see why it matters what the climate does. As long as we have technology and fossil fuels, let the climate do what it wants. — Kasperanza
Well this is why I asked if all climate change is all bad. I imagine that colder climates that didn't allow crops, would allow crops. When some opportunities go away, new ones come up. — Kasperanza
I didn't really talk about what's popular. I only said that individual consumer level actions are unlikely to be adopted by enough people on their own initiative to make a difference. You could take that to mean such measures aren't popular enough. — Echarmion
I think you're discounting the psychological effects that very visible movements have. The first goal would of course be to get enough critical mass going that the protests shift the general mood of the electorate. — Echarmion
discomfort — Book273
lazy. — Book273
I say we burn more fossil fuels, since that's the only thing that powers air conditioning, water irrigation, and generally allows us to create the proper climate. Let the earth change; it's ridiculous to assume that we can stop it. I'm not going to let this new religion of the left convince me that the planet as a whole matters at the expense of my immediate environment. That I must save the planet with petty, trivial actions like recycling and turning off the lights. — Kasperanza
Is it already too late? — Xtrix
If so, will we reach tipping points no matter what policies we enact?
If it's not too late, what exactly can we do to contribute to mitigating it?
Is there ANYONE out there who still doesn't consider this the issue of our times?
That is a country.China. — Banno
I say we stop using fossil fuels altogether - and drill for magma heat energy, near to magma chambers and subduction zones in the earth's crust. We line the bore holes with pipes - and pump water through to produce superheated steam, to drive turbines - to produce limitless quantities of clean electrical power.
I believe this form of energy is more than sufficient to meet the world's current energy demand, and the surplus could be used to capture carbon, desalinate and irrigate, and recycle - so that it would not be necessary for you to 'pay more and have less' to save the world, or feel guilty every time you turn on a light! — counterpunch
Oh, things are too hot? Blast the air conditioning. Things are too cold? Turn up the heat. I don't really see why it matters what the climate does. — Kasperanza
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