Climate change advice from the NYT

[Gardenarian]

What You Can Do About Climate Change (http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/12/03/upshot/what-you-can-do-about-climate-change.html?_r=0)

Not too much new here, but it's good to see a national paper trying to do something. The car vs plane, and old car vs new car bits are interesting, and I think it's great that they addressed food waste.

Of course, "Buy less stuff, waste less stuff" is what we're all about :)

I'm waiting for them to advocate an actual energy descent plan.

[Williamsmith]

Who is the New York Times to be advocating anything. Their recent opinion editorial on the front page regarding guns is pathetic. So all these heads of state fly their big jets to France for a big powwow and all they have to do is skype and save the carbon their jets burnt. But then how could they eat at a restaurant that serves one thousand dollar a plate dinners of goose liver that was made diseased by torturing the goose before it was slaughtered. Hypocrites all.

[Rogar]

Who is the New York Times to be advocating anything.

There is not doubt that the NYT has a left lean,about as much as I figure the WSJ has a right lean. Fact remains that they have won multiple Pulitzer prizes, more than any other newspaper, and have Nobel prize winners on their staff. I don't agree with everything they say, but consider discounting everything they say as untrue or extreme bias may be misdirected.

[Williamsmith]

I would not discount everything they say.....but they stepped into a big pile of it with the front page editorial. It is polarizing and inflammatory.....two things we already have plenty of thanks to our current POTUS. Maybe that's their way of showing solidarity to the current administration. I like my news without propaganda.

[Williamsmith]

I prefer The Economist for more middle of the road reporting. They recently did a good job on climate change.

[Gardenarian]

Well, the NYT is our national newspaper of record. They're clearly stating that climate change is real and caused by humans. That's something.

[Williamsmith]

None of those suggestions in that article are going to do a thing to avert climate change. All they are is symbolic sacrifices that assuage the guilty conscience of a few misguided environmentalists.

What we could do to test their theory seems to be ban all local dairy farms and beef factories, make mass transportation the only legal way to get from point A to point B, hire food waste inspectors to monitor your refrigerator in your house and fine you for each ounce of waste, ground all aircraft except for emergency or government use, force any private owners of a car to turn it in for scrap, walk everywhere and take your adopted pet with you, and limit your personal possessions to 100 items.

If we did all this, we would probably halt climate change in its tracks.......we might start drawing stick figures on cave walls again but the planet would be saved.

I trust the Pulitzer Prize board won't be offering honors to the authors of this horse hockey article.

[Rogar]

None of those suggestions in that article are going to do a thing to avert climate change. All they are is symbolic sacrifices that assuage the guilty conscience of a few misguided environmentalists.

There is no doubt a lot of "feel good" to the suggestions. If you do indeed think that climate change is because of people (google "climate change science consensus wiki"), what do you think is the answer or solution? I see it as a combination of research and development on alternate energy, the willingess of the public to accept some lifestyle changes, and wise political leadership. The latter is a little hard to achieve when one of our major political groups is denying the scientific process and any vague reality related to a remedy. Of course, we could all be toast.

[bae]

Well, the NYT is our national newspaper of record.

So, like Pravda?

[jp1]

It is polarizing and inflammatory.....two things we already have plenty of thanks to our current POTUS.

Unlike the last president?

[Williamsmith]

Unlike the last president?

Both are Ivy League nitwits who have not a clue what real Americans hope and pray for each night when they crawl under the covers. Both shredded the Constitution.

[jp1]

Both are Ivy League nitwits who have not a clue what real Americans hope and pray for each night when they crawl under the covers. Both shredded the Constitution.

I agree with you 100%.

[Williamsmith]

I agree with you 100%.

:0!:help::thankyou::sick:

I think that covers it.

[bae]

I agree with you 100%.

http://www.teighe.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/adama2-01-e1375376721735.jpg

[ToomuchStuff]

Wait, shouldn't a newspaper, say something about all the tree's cut down to make paper and newspapers, and how much CO2 won't get absorbed by those dead trees?>8)

Help fight climate change, stop buying our paper.

[jp1]

The trees used to make newsprint wouldn't get planted if there weren't old people still reading actual newspapers. They are farmed, sort of like vegetables except taller.

[ToomuchStuff]

The trees used to make newsprint wouldn't get planted if there weren't old people still reading actual newspapers. They are farmed, sort of like vegetables except taller.

They do now, although they didn't used to. Also a mature tree absorbs more CO2 then a younger tree, so there is still the diminishing returns thing. The roll the eyes smiley, though I thought was more of the sarcastic smiley.

[Rogar]

Both are Ivy League nitwits who have not a clue what real Americans hope and pray for each night when they crawl under the covers. Both shredded the Constitution. By my accounting the last president who was both a decent leader and had strong morals was Eisenhower, and I'm not sure about him.

[flowerseverywhere]

Consciousness needs to shift. I walk or ride my bike 95% of the time. People are always offering me rides. The concept that I can walk the two miles to the library and back, stopping to grab some things at the grocery store or farmers market (luckily every Saturday) seems insane to them. I intend to walk and cycle as long as I can to preserve my health along with the planet. I cannot understand why everyone doesn't get that, especially if you are retired and living where the weather is good.

personally I think we have gone too far, and developing nations are not going to say we'll go without all your conveniences, electronics and cars to save the planet.

[Ultralight]

Consciousness needs to shift.

I don't see this happening, though I agree we need it to happen. :(

I was just talking this over with some friends. Their view is to work to make this shift happen on the grand scale.

For me though, I suggested we focus on our own small community of folks and try to become more resilient, interdependent, and self-reliant. This is not a popular idea though...

[Rogar]

I do a fair amount of bike commuting and sometimes when I'm out getting fresh air and excersize I look around at the poor guys stuck in cars on their cell phone, some of them maybe bordering on some version of road rage and unhealthy weight issues, I think, those poor guys. I do vegetable gardening. It's not a huge production and we have a short growing season, but I know at least some of my food doesn't pass through the mega corporate food chain. It's a little inconvenient, but never tedious and in the end sort of rewarding.

It's indeed not so much a sacrifice, but just a shift in the way we do things. Some alternatives may actually be simpler and better. A shift in consciousness.