3 ms·

Pinatubo already did this. The side effects have already been observed. We survived. This is not a permanent solution, so much as a hotfix (heh) while we dev

Pinatubo already did this. The side effects have already been observed. We survived. This is not a permanent solution, so much as a hotfix (heh) while we develop more sustainable solutions. If I were a wealthy truck-stop billionaire, I'd probably do this without asking anybody. If I were the head of a global NGO, I'd be advocating for this.

noveltyaccount 4y ago
Came here looking for Termination Shock references, was not disappointed :)
- p0pcult 4y ago
  I liked Termination Shock a lot, but I actually preferred "The Ministry For The Future" (the NGO callout), which is more a political thriller and addresses notions of dealing with climate change from many angles, not just geoengineering. (The need to clamp down on financial flows who are still betting on fossil fuels, for example, or the people who will short initiatives to mitigate or reverse climate change.)
  - dont__panic 4y ago
    I recently read both books back-to-back. Interestingly, there was only one approach that actually seemed like a viable long-term solution: climate terrorism, in Ministry mostly executed by the Children of Kali. While I certainly don't condone downing planes and sinking ships, I do feel like well-aimed acts of sabotage -- grounding planes, stranding ships at docks, etc. over a prolonged period of time could actually deter folks from using those methods of transportation. Once the average human being no longer takes unsustainable flights, go crazy disincentivizing the private jet flyers. In both books, reducing insolation is just a short-term band-aid. I think Ministry does a good job of explaining just how many angles you'd have to play (some legal, some illegal; some pie-in-the-sky, some highly practical) to make society more sustainable. The whole thing does tend to make you feel helpless, though -- without broad systemic changes, there's so little anyone can do.

noveltyaccount 4y ago

Came here looking for Termination Shock references, was not disappointed :)

p0pcult 4y ago
I liked Termination Shock a lot, but I actually preferred "The Ministry For The Future" (the NGO callout), which is more a political thriller and addresses notions of dealing with climate change from many angles, not just geoengineering. (The need to clamp down on financial flows who are still betting on fossil fuels, for example, or the people who will short initiatives to mitigate or reverse climate change.)
- dont__panic 4y ago
  I recently read both books back-to-back. Interestingly, there was only one approach that actually seemed like a viable long-term solution: climate terrorism, in Ministry mostly executed by the Children of Kali. While I certainly don't condone downing planes and sinking ships, I do feel like well-aimed acts of sabotage -- grounding planes, stranding ships at docks, etc. over a prolonged period of time could actually deter folks from using those methods of transportation. Once the average human being no longer takes unsustainable flights, go crazy disincentivizing the private jet flyers. In both books, reducing insolation is just a short-term band-aid. I think Ministry does a good job of explaining just how many angles you'd have to play (some legal, some illegal; some pie-in-the-sky, some highly practical) to make society more sustainable. The whole thing does tend to make you feel helpless, though -- without broad systemic changes, there's so little anyone can do.