6 ms·

Might seem a bit misanthropic, but us humans probably are just going to be a blip on Earth's history, being the proverbial frog in the slowly boiling pot. But

Might seem a bit misanthropic, but us humans probably are just going to be a blip on Earth's history, being the proverbial frog in the slowly boiling pot. But I suspect that cockroaches will carry on just fine. So at least there is hope for the future.

runarberg 3y ago
The asteroid that caused the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event was also just a blip on Earth’s history, it did however succeed in making life on earth miserable for a few thousand years, wiping out 75% of the all the species in the process. In your analogy we are not the frog though, we are the pot, and we are the asteroid, since we are the ones causing the catastrophe. Except on geologic timescales, the pot isn’t slowly being boiled, it is being pressured cooked on a thermo-nuclear reactor. Extinction events are seldomly this sudden and extreme as climate change is currently.
- dylan604 3y ago
  >Extinction events are seldomly this sudden and extreme as climate change is currently. How do you figure? An asteroid impacting the planet "making life miserable for a few thousand years, wiping out 75%" in seconds of an impact, or a cataclysmic volcanic eruption that happens in seconds/minutes/hours. All of that near instant destruction compared to the 100-200 years of man made pollution on industrial scales.
  - jacquesm 3y ago
    Geologically speaking that is an instant roughly the equivalent of an asteroid impact. Even if for those living through it looks entirely different the outcome is the same.
    - dylan604 3y ago
      Sure, speaking cosmological terms, it's like humans never happened. But speaking in terms of what is controllable by those humans, we just had a successful test that we might be able to save ourselves from an asteroid if we have significant amount of notice. Can't really do too much about volcanoes though. Man made pollution is definitely something we have control over and we've had half a century of warnings. Let's not lose sight of the actual conversation when it is still within our control even if we've decided to ignore it. Human extinction is the most probable outcome but that doesn't mean we have to accelerate it and then just shrug our shoulders
      - jacquesm 3y ago
        Since COVID-19 I have absolutely zero confidence in mankind pulling the same cart together no matter if it would kill them if they didn't.
- redleggedfrog 3y ago
  "The asteroid that caused the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event was also just a blip on Earth’s history, it did however succeed in making life on earth miserable for a few thousand years, wiping out 75% of the all the species in the process." Sure, but that leaves a heaping helping of the remaining 25% to carry on to eventually repopulate the planet with more glorious life. It's happened before, it'll happen again, and whether we're the reason or the victim doesn't really matter. Life finds a way, with or without humans.
  - jeremyjh 3y ago
    Some of us are attached to our current civilization and would like to preserve it. Others would like to continue enriching themselves.
nomel 3y ago
A cursory look at the history of the planets temperature [1] makes this sentiment seems ridiculous. We're still in below average temperatures. Considering our dummy ancestors were around 50 million years ago, when averages were 30 degrees hotter, I don't see why man, as we are now, wouldn't survive. The poles will be nice tropics, once again [2]. Society as is, is doomed, but man is probably fairly permanent. [1] https://www.climate.gov/sites/default/files/styles/full_width_620_original_image/public/graph-from-scott-wing-620px.png?itok=Jgi659bn https://www.climate.gov/sites/default/files/styles/full_widt... from https://www.climate.gov/news-features/climate-qa/whats-hottest-earths-ever-been https://www.climate.gov/news-features/climate-qa/whats-hotte... [2] https://www.cbsnews.com/news/study-north-pole-once-was-tropical/ https://www.cbsnews.com/news/study-north-pole-once-was-tropi...
- Scarblac 3y ago
  In the past this happened over timescales that allowed nature to adapt. We're now doing it many times faster, and at a time when nature is already greatly diminished due to human resource extraction. We're just desertificating vast regions of the planet, not turning them into "nice tropics".
  - mech987987 3y ago
    https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/carbon-dioxide-fertilization-greening-earth/ https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/carbon-dioxide-fer...
- FrustratedMonky 3y ago
  I see this argument a lot on conservative news, "humans will adapt". Well, yes, humans will adapt, and there probably will be humans carrying on for thousands of more years. But not US, WE, todays societies will be gone. Why is this an argument with 'conservatives'? The stupid 'woke' should stop worrying about climate, because humans will adapt. But why is this a 'conservative' argument, when all of their religions will also be gone. When we are back in the stone ages, there will be humans, but not 'Republican'. Unless, in the dystopian future, the Christian Right does devolve into a Taliban like Ameri-stan where they can go 'Old Testament' on gays. But that does seem like a pretty long game argument. Is it really: "Deny Climate Change so we can destroy civilization back into bronze age so we can just wander the desert worshiping god, like we were supposed to"

runarberg 3y ago

The asteroid that caused the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event was also just a blip on Earth’s history, it did however succeed in making life on earth miserable for a few thousand years, wiping out 75% of the all the species in the process. In your analogy we are not the frog though, we are the pot, and we are the asteroid, since we are the ones causing the catastrophe. Except on geologic timescales, the pot isn’t slowly being boiled, it is being pressured cooked on a thermo-nuclear reactor. Extinction events are seldomly this sudden and extreme as climate change is currently.

dylan604 3y ago
>Extinction events are seldomly this sudden and extreme as climate change is currently. How do you figure? An asteroid impacting the planet "making life miserable for a few thousand years, wiping out 75%" in seconds of an impact, or a cataclysmic volcanic eruption that happens in seconds/minutes/hours. All of that near instant destruction compared to the 100-200 years of man made pollution on industrial scales.
- jacquesm 3y ago
  Geologically speaking that is an instant roughly the equivalent of an asteroid impact. Even if for those living through it looks entirely different the outcome is the same.
  - dylan604 3y ago
    Sure, speaking cosmological terms, it's like humans never happened. But speaking in terms of what is controllable by those humans, we just had a successful test that we might be able to save ourselves from an asteroid if we have significant amount of notice. Can't really do too much about volcanoes though. Man made pollution is definitely something we have control over and we've had half a century of warnings. Let's not lose sight of the actual conversation when it is still within our control even if we've decided to ignore it. Human extinction is the most probable outcome but that doesn't mean we have to accelerate it and then just shrug our shoulders
    - jacquesm 3y ago
      Since COVID-19 I have absolutely zero confidence in mankind pulling the same cart together no matter if it would kill them if they didn't.
redleggedfrog 3y ago
"The asteroid that caused the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event was also just a blip on Earth’s history, it did however succeed in making life on earth miserable for a few thousand years, wiping out 75% of the all the species in the process." Sure, but that leaves a heaping helping of the remaining 25% to carry on to eventually repopulate the planet with more glorious life. It's happened before, it'll happen again, and whether we're the reason or the victim doesn't really matter. Life finds a way, with or without humans.
- jeremyjh 3y ago
  Some of us are attached to our current civilization and would like to preserve it. Others would like to continue enriching themselves.

nomel 3y ago

A cursory look at the history of the planets temperature [1] makes this sentiment seems ridiculous. We're still in below average temperatures. Considering our dummy ancestors were around 50 million years ago, when averages were 30 degrees hotter, I don't see why man, as we are now, wouldn't survive. The poles will be nice tropics, once again [2]. Society as is, is doomed, but man is probably fairly permanent. [1] https://www.climate.gov/sites/default/files/styles/full_width_620_original_image/public/graph-from-scott-wing-620px.png?itok=Jgi659bn https://www.climate.gov/sites/default/files/styles/full_widt... from https://www.climate.gov/news-features/climate-qa/whats-hottest-earths-ever-been https://www.climate.gov/news-features/climate-qa/whats-hotte... [2] https://www.cbsnews.com/news/study-north-pole-once-was-tropical/ https://www.cbsnews.com/news/study-north-pole-once-was-tropi...

Scarblac 3y ago
In the past this happened over timescales that allowed nature to adapt. We're now doing it many times faster, and at a time when nature is already greatly diminished due to human resource extraction. We're just desertificating vast regions of the planet, not turning them into "nice tropics".
- mech987987 3y ago
  https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/carbon-dioxide-fertilization-greening-earth/ https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/carbon-dioxide-fer...
FrustratedMonky 3y ago
I see this argument a lot on conservative news, "humans will adapt". Well, yes, humans will adapt, and there probably will be humans carrying on for thousands of more years. But not US, WE, todays societies will be gone. Why is this an argument with 'conservatives'? The stupid 'woke' should stop worrying about climate, because humans will adapt. But why is this a 'conservative' argument, when all of their religions will also be gone. When we are back in the stone ages, there will be humans, but not 'Republican'. Unless, in the dystopian future, the Christian Right does devolve into a Taliban like Ameri-stan where they can go 'Old Testament' on gays. But that does seem like a pretty long game argument. Is it really: "Deny Climate Change so we can destroy civilization back into bronze age so we can just wander the desert worshiping god, like we were supposed to"