5 ms·

Methane that will be released from Siberia is equal to hundreds of years of modern industrial activity, and can be released in a span of years. Warming is unsto

Methane that will be released from Siberia is equal to hundreds of years of modern industrial activity, and can be released in a span of years. Warming is unstoppable, second order effects are already happening. Thinking that we can do anything about it is naive.

coldtea 7y ago
And at the same time people imagine "colonizing" Mars and interstellar travel and other such nonsense (which requires not only similar levels of effort and global cooperation as solving the climate crisis to achieve, but also has tons of unsurmountable problems and solutions expect to be discovered and mature just because we want them - and all of that at the same time the climate is collapsing, which will force less, not more, cooperation, and less, not more turn to "every state for itself"). Mad Max is much more realistic.
elbasti 7y ago
> Warming is unstoppable, second order effects are already happening. Thinking that we can do anything about it is naive. This is probably true. However, it is possible—if highly unlikely—that something could be done. This would involve effectively halting CO2 emissions in the next 10 years and massive investment in carbon sequestration research. Is this likely to succeed? No, not really. But why on earth would we be spending our time trying anything else? (Well, I guess we could be spending that time preparing for the coming changes. Which we should also do.)
- coldtea 7y ago
  >Is this likely to succeed? No, not really. But why on earth would we be spending our time trying anything else? It's not even likely to start to happen. Nobody is really moving that way, or has secured the political will and funds to do so.
- cstejerean 7y ago
  Anything that involves halting CO2 emissions is not something that “could be done” anytime soon except in theory. Coordinating at that scale across the globe will simply never happen, and the sooner we admit it the sooner we can move on to figure out how to deal with it not happening. CO2 emissions will reduce to the extent that alternatives become cheaper, better and more convenient. And while that’s moving forward it won’t happen fast enough to prevent the problem from getting worse in the mean time. So let’s stop kidding ourselves and prepare for what’s coming, both in terms of dealing with the consequences and finding ways to counteract the effects of ongoing fossil fuel usage.
  - elbasti 7y ago
    I don't disagree with this comment, except insofar as I think there's room for both. Even a partial success on the mitigation side buys us more time on the adaptation side. On a personal note, what steps do you think an individual can do to prepare for what's coming as an individual/family?
    - cstejerean 7y ago
      I agree, the more we can reduce emissions the smaller the resulting problem we need to solve. On a personal level I would look at where you live and how that area is likely to change over the next 20-30 years if the current trends continue. And then either consider moving somewhere else or see what you need to do to deal with more extreme versions of floods, draughts, fires, tornadoes, hurricanes, etc.
    - neffy 7y ago
      Move inland.
ageofwant 7y ago
Yes. And while we humans deserve every bit of suffering and pain on our way, it really gets me that we will take so many innocent non-human lives and homes with us on that inevitable journey.
- superpermutat0r 7y ago
  Collective guilt, there was no mechanism in religions of the world for it. Individual responsibility seems too low of an abstraction for that, no matter how good it worked to enable modern society.

coldtea 7y ago

And at the same time people imagine "colonizing" Mars and interstellar travel and other such nonsense (which requires not only similar levels of effort and global cooperation as solving the climate crisis to achieve, but also has tons of unsurmountable problems and solutions expect to be discovered and mature just because we want them - and all of that at the same time the climate is collapsing, which will force less, not more, cooperation, and less, not more turn to "every state for itself"). Mad Max is much more realistic.

elbasti 7y ago

> Warming is unstoppable, second order effects are already happening. Thinking that we can do anything about it is naive. This is probably true. However, it is possible—if highly unlikely—that something could be done. This would involve effectively halting CO2 emissions in the next 10 years and massive investment in carbon sequestration research. Is this likely to succeed? No, not really. But why on earth would we be spending our time trying anything else? (Well, I guess we could be spending that time preparing for the coming changes. Which we should also do.)

coldtea 7y ago
>Is this likely to succeed? No, not really. But why on earth would we be spending our time trying anything else? It's not even likely to start to happen. Nobody is really moving that way, or has secured the political will and funds to do so.
cstejerean 7y ago
Anything that involves halting CO2 emissions is not something that “could be done” anytime soon except in theory. Coordinating at that scale across the globe will simply never happen, and the sooner we admit it the sooner we can move on to figure out how to deal with it not happening. CO2 emissions will reduce to the extent that alternatives become cheaper, better and more convenient. And while that’s moving forward it won’t happen fast enough to prevent the problem from getting worse in the mean time. So let’s stop kidding ourselves and prepare for what’s coming, both in terms of dealing with the consequences and finding ways to counteract the effects of ongoing fossil fuel usage.
- elbasti 7y ago
  I don't disagree with this comment, except insofar as I think there's room for both. Even a partial success on the mitigation side buys us more time on the adaptation side. On a personal note, what steps do you think an individual can do to prepare for what's coming as an individual/family?
  - cstejerean 7y ago
    I agree, the more we can reduce emissions the smaller the resulting problem we need to solve. On a personal level I would look at where you live and how that area is likely to change over the next 20-30 years if the current trends continue. And then either consider moving somewhere else or see what you need to do to deal with more extreme versions of floods, draughts, fires, tornadoes, hurricanes, etc.
  - neffy 7y ago
    Move inland.

ageofwant 7y ago

Yes. And while we humans deserve every bit of suffering and pain on our way, it really gets me that we will take so many innocent non-human lives and homes with us on that inevitable journey.

superpermutat0r 7y ago
Collective guilt, there was no mechanism in religions of the world for it. Individual responsibility seems too low of an abstraction for that, no matter how good it worked to enable modern society.