View Full Version : how to solve global warming
Last night I watched the second half of the Nova show about the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs. At the end they tossed off a statistic that made me realize that the solution to global warming is as simple as having a 7 mile long asteroid hit the earth. Yes, that would create a different set of problems, like tsunamis all over the world and molten glass raining down everywhere setting most of the stuff on the planet's surface on fire, which would for sure be a bummer. But that asteroid also threw enough crap up into the atmosphere that scientists believe it took about 10 years for everything to clear and during that time the average temperature on earth fell a staggering 48 degrees Fahrenheit.
Or since overpopulation is the cause you could just kill yourself. Keep taking boosters every few months until your T cells are exhausted. That should do the trick.
Or since overpopulation is the cause you could just kill yourself. Keep taking boosters every few months until your T cells are exhausted. That should do the trick.
It's kind of sad that you're just phoning it in now. Try harder. Or as Melania would say "be best."
So, you're saying that we need the 6th extinction, caused by an outside event, as a reset button, rather than people just cleaning up their messes.
While population plays a role, I'm a believer that over population is not a major cause of global warming. First of all, the population is starting to flatten, especially in the more affluent countries and where countries practice birth control. That's a bit of a red herring when there are other forces at play.
Then other red herring is the idea that "global warming" is the bogeyman rather than the causes of global warming. The ladder is against the wrong wall. It's like saying let's make sure we have enough water to put out the fire burning down your house instead of saying stop setting fire to your furniture.
If we get to the true root cause of global warming it has to do with lack of respect for the living systems that support us. The notion that humans can rape and pillage with impunity for all their self-serving ends. The twist in the wording in Genesis that turned man from a steward of the earth to a dominator. The resulting growth of economic, political and cultural systems that support that mindset.
But, jp, it will probably take an asteroid to address all this..
For JP it will take an asteroid because he doesn't have any religious beliefs.
For those of us who do it might be a return to animacy, as discussed in Braiding Sweetgrass and Finding the Mother Tree.
catherine
5-20-22, 10:40am
For those of us who do it might be a return to animacy, as discussed in Braiding Sweetgrass and Finding the Mother Tree.
We can always hope.
ApatheticNoMore
5-20-22, 12:42pm
jp was just kind of playing around with the asteroid thing. It would take a revolution or something probably.
While population plays a role, I'm a believer that over population is not a major cause of global warming.
if the population was half what it was now problems would be easier to manage. I mean it's preferable from a human wellbeing perspective IMO, to have a smaller population that can have a decent standard of living than a huge population living in dire poverty that is demanded by that. Really how is that desirable? But I don't think it's that easily solved, I mean everyone having no or less kids is great, but it takes a long time for population to decline that way, and we've got more immediate problems with climate change that can ever be solved that way.
And of course with global warming the root is burning greenhouse gasses.
First of all, the population is starting to flatten, especially in the more affluent countries and where countries practice birth control.
that's very good though.
For the record I’d rather not have an asteroid come kill most of what’s alive on earth today. And obviously I doubt that one is going to arrive anytime soon since it’s been 60 something million years sine the last one came to shake things up. But frankly I doubt that humanity is going to make the changes necessary to stop human caused climate change before billions of people are drastically negatively impacted. The likelihood of that happening is probably about the same as the likelihood of a 7 mile asteroid smacking the planet a second time. In the meantime we’ll have people driving their dinosaur fueled cars an hour each way daily while avoiding slightly longer once in a lifetime vacation trips thinking they are not part of the problem. And as time goes by those of us with the resources will spend a lot of money on things like ever taller sea walls to prevent the inevitable while those with less resources drown/sweat to death.
At least a seven mile long asteroid would split the suffering equally amongst all of humanity more or less.
For the record I’d rather not have an asteroid come kill most of what’s alive on earth today. And obviously I doubt that one is going to arrive anytime soon since it’s been 60 something million years sine the last one came to shake things up. But frankly I doubt that humanity is going to make the changes necessary to stop human caused climate change before billions of people are drastically negatively impacted. The likelihood of that happening is probably about the same as the likelihood of a 7 mile asteroid smacking the planet a second time. In the meantime we’ll have people driving their dinosaur fueled cars an hour each way daily while avoiding slightly longer once in a lifetime vacation trips thinking they are not part of the problem. And as time goes by those of us with the resources will spend a lot of money on things like ever taller sea walls to prevent the inevitable while those with less resources drown/sweat to death.
At least a seven mile long asteroid would split the suffering equally amongst all of humanity more or less.
Maybe you should stop flying places for teambuilding exercises etc and instead work on teambuilding with climate change activists where you live. All politics is local. Keyboard warriors are pretty useless.
I have been attending meetings in my city with some success in advancing my agenda. What have you done for yours other than posture and pontificate?
Maybe you should stop flying places for teambuilding exercises etc and instead work on teambuilding with climate change activists where you live. All politics is local. Keyboard warriors are pretty useless.
I have been attending meetings in my city with some success in advancing my agenda. What have you done for yours other than posture and pontificate?
Again you fail in the attention to detail game. Since you forgot, I didn’t end up flying anywhere for team building exercises because SO had a trivial illness that has killed a million Americans in the last 2 years. You should probably schedule a doctor’s appointment to discuss memory concerns.
Again you fail in the attention to detail game. Since you forgot, I didn’t end up flying anywhere for team building exercises because SO had a trivial illness that has killed a million Americans in the last 2 years. You should probably schedule a doctor’s appointment to discuss memory concerns.
But you probably have before and will again. You were all set to. Not to mention your jetset vacations. You probably use more carbon than me. My car is very fuel efficient and I have few electronic gadgets.
But you probably have before and will again. You were all set to. Not to mention your jetset vacations. You probably use more carbon than me. My car is very fuel efficient and I have few electronic gadgets.
And you just hit the nail on the head for why I dont t think we will make enough progress on global warming. Sure, I can talk a good game but at the end of the day I still have bills to pay so I need a job and I will take planes as needed to do it.
I dont t.
Wow. I really pushed your buttons because you are stuttering.
You may need a job but it doesn't have to be that job. Or maybe you don't need a job you just like working. Maybe if you moved to a lower cost of living area like Alabama or Arkansas or Costa Rica or Poland you could retire now, but you like a certain elite lifestyle built on carbon.
Billions of people live in single income households. It's doable. Maybe you could negotiate this with your significant other.
[JP: Can't think outside my carbon box. Cant t t t. Must be a keyboard warrior and attack yppej. Cant t t t look in the mirror and change myself.]
For the record I’d rather not have an asteroid come kill most of what’s alive on earth today. And obviously I doubt that one is going to arrive anytime soon since it’s been 60 something million years sine the last one came to shake things up. But frankly I doubt that humanity is going to make the changes necessary to stop human caused climate change before billions of people are drastically negatively impacted. The likelihood of that happening is probably about the same as the likelihood of a 7 mile asteroid smacking the planet a second time. In the meantime we’ll have people driving their dinosaur fueled cars an hour each way daily while avoiding slightly longer once in a lifetime vacation trips thinking they are not part of the problem. And as time goes by those of us with the resources will spend a lot of money on things like ever taller sea walls to prevent the inevitable while those with less resources drown/sweat to death.
At least a seven mile long asteroid would split the suffering equally amongst all of humanity more or less.
My son and I were talking about this just yesterday--that no one will do anything until we become the punch line of Don't Look Now. But the changes necessary go beyond cars and vacations.. we need regenerative agriculture, tough enforcement of protections of earth, air and water, and a whole different way of looking at the economy. For starters.
ApatheticNoMore
5-22-22, 1:09pm
In the meantime we’ll have people driving their dinosaur fueled cars an hour each way daily while avoiding slightly longer once in a lifetime vacation trips thinking they are not part of the problem.
vacations aren't necessary, vacations aren't necessary, vacation aren't necessary. Although if one only took one vacation in a lifetime, it's pretty low impact. Driving to work to earn a living probably is necessary. I mean maybe one could find some way to live off others and not do that, or what become homeless? But those options are rare indeed or honestly with becoming homeless pretty undesirable.
By the way the hour each way commute I've done it. Do you know how many miles that is? TWENTY each way. Twenty miles takes an hour in rush hour(s) traffic, in fact I've done like 17 mile commutes that take over an hour. Bet someone thinks an hour commute is traveling vast distances. LOL, back in reality, traffic exists, being stuck in traffic exists and are a often unavoidable daily reality. A 10 mile commute can take 40 minutes on a regular basis.
I continue to be amazed that working from home isn't the standard for everyone whose job can be done remotely. Commuting is bad for the planet and bad for people.
When I was house hunting I took the point of a compass and drew a 10 mile radius around my work place on a map (remember paper maps). That was my maximum bike commuting distance. It's too bad cities are not better designed so that more people can do that or something similar with public transportation. Or that people don't consider this more when house hunting.
You may need a job but it doesn't have to be that job. Or maybe you don't need a job you just like working. Maybe if you moved to a lower cost of living area like Alabama or Arkansas or Costa Rica or Poland you could retire now, but you like a certain elite lifestyle built on carbon.
If I quit my job the reduction in carbon footprint would be nonexistent. My employer would simply hire someone else to do the same job and my work carbon footprint would just transfer to them.
If I quit my job the reduction in carbon footprint would be nonexistent. My employer would simply hire someone else to do the same job and my work carbon footprint would just transfer to them.
Nice excuse. If everyone who could did this it would make a difference. Think of the impact of the current great resignation. Some businesses are now open fewer days because they cannot find staff. That helps.
Nice excuse. If everyone who could did this it would make a difference. Think of the impact of the current great resignation. Some businesses are now open fewer days because they cannot find staff. That helps.
Or if everyone who could take a job closer to home did this, freeing up their current job for someone that doesn’t live an hour away. That seems much more realistic but people are too selfish to do such.
freeing up their current job for someone that doesn’t live an hour away.
Not realistic. My site has trouble finding qualified people. Customers have said to me, "Where did they find you?"
If I quit my job the reduction in carbon footprint would be nonexistent. My employer would simply hire someone else to do the same job and my work carbon footprint would just transfer to them.
That's sort of like trading in a big SUV to get a hybrid or EV, when you know someone will buy the SUV and drive it any way.
ApatheticNoMore
5-22-22, 4:51pm
When I was house hunting I took the point of a compass and drew a 10 mile radius around my work place on a map (remember paper maps). That was my maximum bike commuting distance. It's too bad cities are not better designed so that more people can do that or something similar with public transportation. Or that people don't consider this more when house hunting.
consider the average time at a job. My *maximum* time at a job was 8 years. My average is under 4 years (sure I count a contract job, it was one of the ones I did an hour commute for). So you are really arguing for renting. Which is ok of course. But people tend to stay at rentals longer than you'd think too. Why? Because if you have been there any period of time you are paying below market rent, even more so if there's rent control, but quite often EVEN when there isn't much rent control. Plus one is always rolling the dice on a new rental.
ApatheticNoMore
5-22-22, 4:58pm
Flying because a job makes you is different than flying on vacation. Noone has to go on vacation. Working is not optional (although some of the flying that businesses do could probably just as well be done on zoom).
But I've never had a job I had to fly for, and when I was once sent out for something in San Francisco I took the train.
When I was house hunting I took the point of a compass and drew a 10 mile radius around my work place on a map (remember paper maps). That was my maximum bike commuting distance. It's too bad cities are not better designed so that more people can do that or something similar with public transportation. Or that people don't consider this more when house hunting.
Not everyone has the knees or derring-do to bike to work. I certainly don't. I spent years sitting on public transit, expanding my travel time to just about double what it would have been by car--years I'll never get back. Basically 12-hour days.
Were I job hunting now, I wouldn't take a cubicle job unless absolutely desperate.
Flying because a job makes you is different than flying on vacation. Noone has to go on vacation. Working is not optional.
But I've never had a job I had to fly for, and when I was once sent out for something in San Francisco I took the train.
There is also a difference between required business travel (customer mandates in person meeting) and optional (I'm going to party with my coworkers out of town, or go to optional conferences, because the company will pick up the tab). Some folks like to max out their professional development money every year on this type of thing vs say using tuition reimbursement to improve their skill set, because that's work not fun.
ApatheticNoMore
5-22-22, 5:12pm
I spent years sitting on public transit, expanding my travel time to just about double what it would have been by car--years I'll never get back. Basically 12-hour days.
that's admirable and a realistic option (I do not consider buying a house based on betting on long term job security a particularly realistic option). But yes public transit takes twice the time - so 1/2 hour each way commutes become an hour or more, 1 hour each way become 2 each way.
consider the average time at a job. My *maximum* time at a job was 8 years. My average is under 4 years (sure I count a contract job, it was one of the ones I did an hour commute for). So you are really arguing for renting. Which is ok of course. But people tend to stay at rentals longer than you'd think too. Why? Because if you have been there any period of time you are paying below market rent, even more so if there's rent control, but quite often EVEN when there isn't much rent control. Plus one is always rolling the dice on a new rental.
I guess my generation was spoiled by longevity on a job with a pension and good insurance. Most of my similar age associations have stayed in the same job for years and years once they settled into a long term career. I can't imagine spending a large portion of my day commuting and for that matter can't picture a job where I sat at a computer and phone all day, at home or any other place, either. I rented a lot. I have been fortunate.
Many employers these days are pushing for people to come back to the office. My employer is sort of one of those but acknowledges that more than half the staff, like me, don't live near an office and are full time work from home. And were before covid. Their answer to that is to enthusiastically embrace "away days" where the entire staff of a team get together for a few days. So much so that the travel budget for away days is from a general corporate account separate from our team's regular travel budget. Sure, I can miss one because I was a covid contact. Can I skip them all and still be considered a "team player"? Absolutely not. That would be as unrealistic as expecting my employer to simply let my position go unfilled if I quit. The region I'm responsible for will bring in $15 million in insurance premiums this year. It's laughable to think that my leaving would change their desire to have that income. All that my leaving would do is force my boss to start making a bunch of trips from his home in Dallas to the west coast to make sure that my departure didn't derail that goal.
that's admirable and a realistic option (I do not consider buying a house based on betting on long term job security a particularly realistic option). But yes public transit takes twice the time - so 1/2 hour each way commutes become an hour or more, 1 hour each way become 2 each way.
I didn't mean to be admirable; it all depended on hours, availability of parking, and other considerations. I would hate to be accused of virtue signaling. :laff:
I'm just glad I taught my daughter to sail.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/waterworld_-_h_-_1995.jpg?w=1024
I’d prefer death to living in Kevin Costner’s worst bomb.
iris lilies
6-13-22, 11:36am
I’d prefer death to living in Kevin Costner’s worst bomb.
We both liked Waterworld though. I Remember we watched it on our new TV which at the time was pretty big for us.
This doesn’t mean that we want to LIVE in Waterworld.
ToomuchStuff
6-13-22, 4:50pm
Let's turn the moon, into a global A/C.:idea::~)
Hopefully Adam Curtis belongs to the forum and has some ideas to share here.
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2025 vBulletin Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.