Mankind couldn`t destroy the Planet, mankind could destroy itself. You can`t get millions of people to "save the nature". Mankind is and ever was a cancer-virus to this planet. Lay back and enjoy the show. Another species in the future can probably do it better.

My Third Side perspective on global warming.

Let's assume (just for fun) that in fact that human activity is indeed causing deleterious effects on the climate, and that these effects are severe and longterm.

So what?

Really, so what?

My asking this question - "So what?" - is meant to elicit the next obvious question, "What should I do about it?".

Not - "What should "we" do about it?"

Dear reader, you are (I will assume) a Satanist.

You are not a group. You do not think in terms of group actions.

You don't fall into that trap.

Having gotten that, it's time to crunch the numbers.

By that I mean, never forget your realistic ability to influence the course of events socially, technologically, and politically, on a global scale, given that you are one individual out of six billion.

Hint: it's zero, or very nearly so.

Is there anything you can do that will alter the course of events, global climate wise, regardless of whether or not the Enviros are completely right, or completely full of shit?

No.

The War Between The Enviros and Whoever They Think The Enemy Is will go on to it's conclusion unaltered by your actions.

The climate of the planet will be whatever it will be unaltered by your actions.

Just an example: just one megavolcano in Indonesia "deciding" to belch sulfur compounds into the air for an "additional" 1/1000th of a second longer than it "would have", will cancel all the greenhouse gas reducing efforts you and all your descendants will ever make.

And a counter-example: just one profit-motivated technological breakthrough in some corporate lab somewhere will outweigh all the greenhouse gas reducing efforts you and all your descendants will ever make by a factor of millions.

There are a vast number of natural factors that can and will influence global climate, either towards warming OR cooling, that will continue to be active, regardless of the silly herd pro and anti this or that of the moment.

Your "job" as a Satanist is to protect yourself and your loved ones.

Climate change occurs slowly, relative to your life span.

My best understanding of the phenomenon, (regardless of human or natural genesis), is that, if warming is the direction, historical weather patterns for a particular area will tend to become more severe.

If an area is subject to tornados, expect more of them.

If an area is subject to droughts, expect worse droughts.

If an area is subject to flooding, expect worse floods.

If an area is subject to cold winters, expect colder winters.

This is a function of more energy being inputted into a quasi-closed system - whatever local events normally occur will simply have more energy available.

It will not and cannot manifest as everyplace simply getting warmer uniformly. If you squeeze a water balloon in one place, tension will increase in one area and decrease in another. This metaphor itself is too simplistic to be of any use, except to counteract the supersloppy thinking of "if it's getting warmer, then why is "X" place on the globe getting colder?"

That's just dumb thinking indicative of zero study of planetary climatology.

Bottom line is that it is a waste of time to:

1. Worry about it.
2. Fight it.
3. Fight those who are fighting it.
4. Argue about who is right or wrong about it.
5. Construct elaborate conspiracy theories about either corporations, governments, or environmental groups.

The six billion people in the world, with their varied and conflicting agendas, will continue to seek their own interests, and that will result in whatever it's going to result in, and you and I have absolutely zero ability to affect the ultimate outcome.

What is in your power to affect is your choices of where you and your family live physically, and the particular sphere of economic activity you engage in.

And, what is in your power to affect is to stay on top of sciences current best guesses as to decades long patterns of climate change where you live or are planning to live (remember, we no longer care whether or not it's humans causing it or the Keebler Elves!), and integrate that information ino your personal plans.

Exactly!

Brilliant...

CO2 is far from the only:

1. Actor in climate change
2. Climate change relevant component of volcanic emissions.

Additionally, there's nothing to prevent future emissions from supervolcanoes to alter the orders of magnitude you've quoted re just CO2.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supervolcano

See, if we stick to science and avoid polemics (a strategy of which I approve), it quickly gets so complex we'd both have to be scientists with supercomputers for this dialogue to be meaningful anyway.



PS The CO2 feedback loop caused by the thawing of the peat in the Siberian tundra permafrost makes all this moot anyway.

CO2 emissions are only part of it. Did you see all the other effects these volcanic eruptions cause?

Not to mention the fact that, while man-made sources may produce more in a year than every volcano on earth, how many more years have volcanoes existed than man and his ability to even generate these emissions? I believe the volcanoes win this battle.

If the earth is going to change, the earth will do the changing far more effectively than we. We are simply a virus with sunglasses.

Now I do not have to write another word here.

I like your answer as well as Daark's (above).

You are looking at the politics and he is looking at the personal.

Interesting how both result in the same view, isn't it?

You Sir, are a brilliant man.

Your reply here is just another example of why I hold you in high regard.

VERY well said; I firmly concur with your perspective on this.


HS!

My apologies for not having read all [up to now] 57 replies to this topic if this one already was included somewhere. I am not going to 'confess' to you nor anyone else into which degree environmental issues affect my behavior to gain a "good guy badge" - I just say that I take responsibility for my own actions and behavior, and have been doing so from the early years of environmental warning reports on, early seventies, coming of age & awareness. You sure know about your ecological footstep - how big is yours? Could you diminish it still? DO IT!
Do you drive a car or travel by plane? Do you eat meat? What kinda meat? Do you eat fish? Have you plastic materials in your house? Do you have offspring?
I know "active" vegetarians who make me wanna kill and eat raw meat and "environmentalists" who make me wanna sink oil ships at the beaches of Europe. It's the way people like you, sorry to say, try to staple the burden of the entire world population upon each and every single shoulder - hammer it in! - that gets me really angry.
Being alive & consuming means affecting the environment. If you really want to get rid of your guild you should turn to the Church of Euthanasia and follow their instructions: "Save the planet, kill yourself". They can help you do it environment-friendly & strictly vegetarian. If you donate your body to the Body Farm or leave it out in the open for the vultures, you will most certainly have done the best you can to save the planet as far as YOUR influence reaches.
To each his own.

Edit: PS - I think it was Daark who mentioned that warnings before were about the new ice age to come and how we would all freeze to death. Mink industry feasted but now we have global warming. Gilette will not fail on profits yet. I live in an area that is supposedly to be surrounded by water in the near future. Recycle? Bio-energy? The Earth will survive and maybe humankind will as well, as it has been remarkably resistant to just about any circumstance available. That does not mean I'm not concerned about the planet as a whole. Au contraire. But it's my very own footstep I care about and nothing else is of my own influence nor responsibility. And if water comes, I will defend my property to the end - if I have not moved to some less populated area by then.

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By the way, I also hope I didn't come off as too argumentative -- I really have no problem with the majority position that's formed here...

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You will never offend me with your logic. You are a very smart individual.

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...the "hey, volcanoes are worse than we are" tactic gets on my nerves, because at least on the timescale we're concerned with... no, they really aren't.

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On the timescale I'm concerned with, neither scare me.

How commendable, your home, auto and everything else you do in your life to be ecologically friendly.

Now if you can convince every hypocrite on the left to do the same, starting with the leadership of the Democrat party..... May I suggest you begin with Ted Kennedy? He blocked wind power turbines from being erected in his swanky Massachoochoo neighborhood because "They would ruin the view". His words.

Yes, the right has down played this. And bully for them. The environmental movement is nothing more than the repository of the old communist guard from the 60's, those who espouse the idea of total government control of our lives.

So oil and coal have limited lifespans. So what doesn't? Is the Sun going to be around forever? Sure, I am all for developing new fuels, etc. But only when it is driven by science that in a free market, not by emotionalism and politics.