Climate-Change - Why it's even worse than we feared.

Hi Phil,

Good to hear from you :)

Of course, there are still things that can be done (and I'm sure some will be done) but increasingly so for adaptation and preparation rather than avoidance. And the current (and very likely continued) inaction will make future action that much harder and more costly. I also don't think that truly decisive action will be taken in time to avoid worse to happen. For that I'm afraid its already years, if not decades, too late.

Recently for example it was discovered that the combined permafrost of Alaska and Siberia contains about 1.6 trillion (!) tons of greenhouse gases, three times more than previously estimated. And both the permafrost and the coastal methane clathrates have started to thaw.... In other words, it seems that if the current generation doesn't get their act together action-wise things will become very dicey indeed!

Yes, Van Jones does great and inspiring work (he recently was on KPFA, btw.) But very likely his ideas and those of other inspiring and progressive thinkers won't hit the mainstream until things have gotten so bad people will have to act to simply survive and stay alive (or very nearly so).

I'm absolutely convinced that some of humanity is going to survive and some of the survivors are going to be the part and founders of more enlightened societies (under very different circumstances and conditions than what today's activists are seeing, though).

Sorry about my less than optimistic views. But what I see in my neighborhood on a daily basis and what I hear in the news leaves me with no other conclusion. More to the point, there are tons and tons and tons of relatively easy and inexpensive things that we all can do to lower our collective eco-footprint, live more sustainably and support and further social and economic justice, all of which would make our lives that much better and have a huge impact if only more folks would agree to doing them.

So, why on God's Earth are people not doing them, let alone encouraging their neighbors to do likewise??? It's after all about living vs. mere survival a mere few decades away!

I'm trying my darndest to lower my personal eco-footprint and pass on "actionable tips and info". At best I get polite indifference, at worst I experience outright hostility. Not a lot of fun...

On that happy note.....

Take care,

John
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John,

I'm afraid you're right in that the 2 degree warmup is unavoidable. Our generation failed to avert the coming disaster, and now our kids and grandkids will pay the price. The skeptics have one for now, but it's only a matter of time before they are proven wrong.

But the next generation still has a chance to do something about it and hopefully avoid making things any worse than they already are. For a bit of optimism, read "The Green Collar Economy" by Van Jones. If we can get enough people behind this movement, maybe we'll still see some real change within our lifetimes.

Phil