4 ms·

The World Has Gone Mad and the System Is Broken

18 points by buboard 7y ago

blacksqr 7y ago
Perspective is a funny thing. This article by a billionaire lists as examples of the world going mad low interest rates and the possibility of inability to meet future pension obligations. No mention at all of the prospect of global civilizational collapse due to climate change with no one doing anything substantial about it, millions living in squalor as refugees, genocidal war or government officials openly admitting to criminal behavior with no repercussions. I could go on, but why disturb Mr. Dalio's meditations on the possibility of teachers rising up and demanding their benefits?
- AnimalMuppet 7y ago
  Even given your perspective, it might still be interesting that Mr. Dalio, from his perspective, sees things as being unsustainable. Addressing climate change is not going to be easier if there is an economic collapse.
  - frabbit 7y ago
    * Addressing climate change is not going to be easier if there is an economic collapse.* Growth is tied to emissions of GHG. Economic collapse will decrease growth. A correllary will be large numbers of early deaths (as seen in the ex-USSR) which will further reduce consumption and GHG emissions. And, soon we will all be on Elon Musk and Richard Branson's space arks on our way to terraforming Mars. It's all good bro! Don't listen to the pessimists, clap your hands and learn some Lisp.
    - AnimalMuppet 7y ago
      Economic collapse is going to be tied to massive environmental devastation. Those "large number of early deaths"? They're not going to go quietly. They're going to over-exploit any remotely exploitable resource first. (I also have a hard time reconciling "large number of early deaths" and "It's all good bro!". One of these is not like the other...)
      - frabbit 7y ago
        But blockchain?
- joeblow9999 7y ago
  "no mention at all of the prospect of global civilizational collapse due to climate change" thats because no one not even the most vociferous climate demagogues make this claim. not even the most pessimistic IPCC projections predict 'global civilizational collapse' you can be concerned about global warming without buying into religious eschatology. and it turns off otherwise skeptical but possibly sympathetic allies when you do.
  - blacksqr 7y ago
    https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/65633-climate-change-dooms-humans-by-2050.html https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/65633-c... https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2018/12/03/climate-change-could-lead-collapse-civilization-said-david-attenborough/2195775002/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2018/12/03/climate... https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3574335/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3574335/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/apocalypse-soon-has-civilization-passed-the-environmental-point-of-no-return/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/apocalypse-soon-h...

18 points by buboard 7y ago

Perspective is a funny thing. This article by a billionaire lists as examples of the world going mad low interest rates and the possibility of inability to meet future pension obligations. No mention at all of the prospect of global civilizational collapse due to climate change with no one doing anything substantial about it, millions living in squalor as refugees, genocidal war or government officials openly admitting to criminal behavior with no repercussions. I could go on, but why disturb Mr. Dalio's meditations on the possibility of teachers rising up and demanding their benefits?

AnimalMuppet 7y ago
Even given your perspective, it might still be interesting that Mr. Dalio, from his perspective, sees things as being unsustainable. Addressing climate change is not going to be easier if there is an economic collapse.
- frabbit 7y ago
  * Addressing climate change is not going to be easier if there is an economic collapse.* Growth is tied to emissions of GHG. Economic collapse will decrease growth. A correllary will be large numbers of early deaths (as seen in the ex-USSR) which will further reduce consumption and GHG emissions. And, soon we will all be on Elon Musk and Richard Branson's space arks on our way to terraforming Mars. It's all good bro! Don't listen to the pessimists, clap your hands and learn some Lisp.
  - AnimalMuppet 7y ago
    Economic collapse is going to be tied to massive environmental devastation. Those "large number of early deaths"? They're not going to go quietly. They're going to over-exploit any remotely exploitable resource first. (I also have a hard time reconciling "large number of early deaths" and "It's all good bro!". One of these is not like the other...)
    - frabbit 7y ago
      But blockchain?
joeblow9999 7y ago
"no mention at all of the prospect of global civilizational collapse due to climate change" thats because no one not even the most vociferous climate demagogues make this claim. not even the most pessimistic IPCC projections predict 'global civilizational collapse' you can be concerned about global warming without buying into religious eschatology. and it turns off otherwise skeptical but possibly sympathetic allies when you do.
- blacksqr 7y ago
  https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/65633-climate-change-dooms-humans-by-2050.html https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/65633-c... https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2018/12/03/climate-change-could-lead-collapse-civilization-said-david-attenborough/2195775002/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2018/12/03/climate... https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3574335/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3574335/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/apocalypse-soon-has-civilization-passed-the-environmental-point-of-no-return/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/apocalypse-soon-h...