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Alas, you are correct. Even if we were to somehow stop all carbon emissions right now, we are still in for at least 2 C of global warming - very likely more. A 2 degree warmer world will be a world where many will suffer from famine and natural disasters made worse by the actions (more like INaction) of man.
If you want to get really depressed, follow the discussions of climate scientists. To say that they are not overly optimistic is to put it mildly. Right now the consensus is that we may have as little as only a 5% chance of avoiding run-away global warming. Mostly, climatologists have engaged in a great deal of what Jim Hanson calls "scientific reticence." I find it ironic when deniers try to claim that scientists are just trying to grab money by means of their published research.
Those scientists who are willing to discuss the issues candidly are often those who have retired like Dr. Hanson or have in some other way distanced themselves from academic and governmental positions where politics trumps science. If you happen to be a climatologist or an ecologist, these are times of grief. We have already lost so much and are directly in line to lose so much more - the 6th mass extinction event is already well under way.
One scientist that I follow has stated that we have maybe a dozen years or less remaining. I think that this prediction is out there, but then I go back and review the latest data sets and come away feeling that Dr. "Twelve Years" is being overly optimistic.
I'm worried about our children and grandchildren myself - they are the main reason I continue on with the seemingly hopeless endeavor of discussing science in - of all things - a politics forum. Climatologists feel a "duty to warn," and I honor them for this. Theirs is a task of frustration and dismay. But we cannot give up on our children's futures.
I actually hope that there is a hell because the executives of Exxon and BP and all the other global petroleum corporations so richly deserve to go there. They have understood the problem since the 70's and have done an outstanding cover-up job. I don't see how they sleep at night - probably they just count their gold - and the worst part is that our society agrees that profit has the highest moral value.
It's no wonder that deniers claim that scientists are merely out for the big bucks. The denier clan seems to hold nothing else of worth. Maybe our current society SHOULD go under.
This is such a spot on post. I have not come across many who hold your level of knowledge on these predictions. It's astounding that the World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity: A Second Notice went unnoticed in the media and instead we see nothing but crap denier "news".
No one even discusses this second notice, nor pays attention to the 6th Mass Extinction alarming data, no one even knows how many coral reefs are bleached or why this even matters.
Unfortunately I will be around when the chit hits the fan and it's not going to be pretty here on earth. Deniers I hope you will be here to experience it as well. If not your children and grandchildren will be here to experience the ignorance you perpetuated and cling to in your denial.
It's still "Global Warming." Counter intuitive as it may seem, events like the polar vortex are actually caused by global warming - which changes the climate on the entire planet. 2018 was the 4th warmest year in recorded human history. The occasional artic blast melts like a snowball in the face of it.
Global warming refers only to the Earth’s rising surface temperature, while climate change includes warming and the “side effects” of warming—like melting glaciers, heavier rainstorms, or more frequent drought. Said another way, global warming is one symptom of the much larger problem of human-caused climate change.
Alas, you are correct. Even if we were to somehow stop all carbon emissions right now, we are still in for at least 2 C of global warming - very likely more. A 2 degree warmer world will be a world where many will suffer from famine and natural disasters made worse by the actions (more like INaction) of man.
If you want to get really depressed, follow the discussions of climate scientists. To say that they are not overly optimistic is to put it mildly. Right now the consensus is that we may have as little as only a 5% chance of avoiding run-away global warming. Mostly, climatologists have engaged in a great deal of what Jim Hanson calls "scientific reticence." I find it ironic when deniers try to claim that scientists are just trying to grab money by means of their published research.
Those scientists who are willing to discuss the issues candidly are often those who have retired like Dr. Hanson or have in some other way distanced themselves from academic and governmental positions where politics trumps science. If you happen to be a climatologist or an ecologist, these are times of grief. We have already lost so much and are directly in line to lose so much more - the 6th mass extinction event is already well under way.
One scientist that I follow has stated that we have maybe a dozen years or less remaining. I think that this prediction is out there, but then I go back and review the latest data sets and come away feeling that Dr. "Twelve Years" is being overly optimistic.
I'm worried about our children and grandchildren myself - they are the main reason I continue on with the seemingly hopeless endeavor of discussing science in - of all things - a politics forum. Climatologists feel a "duty to warn," and I honor them for this. Theirs is a task of frustration and dismay. But we cannot give up on our children's futures.
I actually hope that there is a hell because the executives of Exxon and BP and all the other global petroleum corporations so richly deserve to go there. They have understood the problem since the 70's and have done an outstanding cover-up job. I don't see how they sleep at night - probably they just count their gold - and the worst part is that our society agrees that profit has the highest moral value.
It's no wonder that deniers claim that scientists are merely out for the big bucks. The denier clan seems to hold nothing else of worth. Maybe our current society SHOULD go under.
You make an argument that one of my more intelligent nephews made: it is already too late.
I am still puzzled by those that claim this is all some 'liberal conspiracy', when the 'greenhouse effect' was first articulated by a scientist in 1824, and confirmed by others during the succeeding decades. The thought that our atmosphere traps certain gases was confirmed long before Al Gore, or even his great grandfather.
A year or so ago, when I was discussing how our atmosphere is a closed system, one poster charged at me claiming it was all nonsense: the Earth's atmosphere is not closed, for you can easily look up and see the stars.
Of course, such people have no idea what our 'atmosphere' is, or have any idea about the Earth's rotation, gravity, etc. They have never heard of how spacecrafts must re-enter our atmosphere at a proper angle to avoid burning up (due to the speed and other factors).
Whom to believe? Those politicians, like Senator Ted Cruz (born in Canada) that receive a lot of money from the oil industry, or those scientist out in the field, making precise measurements and comparing them to measurements taken over the decades?
It's still "Global Warming." Counter intuitive as it may seem, events like the polar vortex are actually caused by global warming - which changes the climate on the entire planet. 2018 was the 4th warmest year in recorded human history. The occasional artic blast melts like a snowball in the face of it.
I've followed this for years. I support the vast majority of actions (not all) to clean up the world. I understand how the numbers were derived and they were not derived in an apples to apples manner.
Gosh, I saw this mentioned on the BBC website and was going to post. You beat me to it! Good!
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