Subscribe to RSS 2.0Climate change requires no action
I haven't posted about climate change for a while. The last time I did, nearly all of the many comments were about how we don't need to do anything. That seemed strange to me given the level of scientific consensus to the contrary. And what was also interesting was that everyone had a different reason for why no action was required. And recently I've been reading about even more reasons to do nothing. If you have a favourite do-nothing justification that's not on this list, maybe you'd post a comment.
No action required because:
1. The climate is not really changing.
2. The climate is changing, but it's 'natural' not man-made. It's out of our hands.
3. Man-made climate change is real, but not serious
4. Man-made climate change is real and serious but too expensive to tackle right now
5. Man-made climate change is real and serious, but science will come up with a painless fix soon.
6. Man-made climate change is real, serious and we're all doomed. Why fight it?
Comments: 10
7) It's a liberal conspiracy. And that Al Gore isn't even a scientist. And even though I'm not a scientist, my absolute, definite belief is that anyone who thinks the climate is damaged is an idiot. And what about that time the Thames froze over?
Posted by: Em on April 28, 2009 10:06 AM
Snippit of conversation overheard yesterday - "I don't know if you remember, but we had an ice age before, and we're still here."
Posted by: Paul on April 28, 2009 04:29 PM
Did you see the reports in this weekend's press that a huge proportion of the carbon emissions are from the cooking methods used in India?
Posted by: sarah fox on April 28, 2009 05:08 PM
The climate change hype is a Millennarian, Luddite, anti-progress, pseudo-scientific primitive nature worship. Thinking you can change the climate for the worse or for the better is hubris. Actually, all that is probably the same as Reason No. 2 on your list.
Posted by: Andrew Sanger on April 28, 2009 05:13 PM
There's always the old chestnut - what's the point when China opens a new power station a day? Or, a favourite of people who want to appear liberal but aren't - it's a conspiracy to prevent developing countries from catching up to our standard of living.
Posted by: Claire M on April 28, 2009 08:43 PM
How depressing ;) I can't say whether or not it's true, but if it were I imagine people would expend a lot of energy trying to prove it wasn't/deny it. Much easier than being worried.
I'm off to make some compost - I know I make a difference in my little plot...
Posted by: fiona robyn on April 29, 2009 01:11 PM
7) Climate change is inevitable because nothing stays the same. We have to adapt or die. If we try to prevent it we are just pissing in the wind - or hurricane, take your pick.
8) We are not masters of the universe, just a simple organism on a world where the mantra survival of the fittest has worked for hundreds of millions of years, and we've only been here for a blink of an eye so what makes us think we're so special.
9) Man atempting to do anything to stop it, is liable to result in our extinction, because we don't know the consequences of our actions. Leave it to the earth to sort out, as she knows best - even if that means clearing herself of the pestilence currently called 'humans'.
Posted by: NaomiM on April 29, 2009 01:14 PM
NaomiM, will you marry me?
Posted by: KatharineC on April 30, 2009 05:58 PM
10) It would save on the heating bills, and what with the price of gas these days, that can only be A Good Thing.
Posted by: Jenn on April 30, 2009 06:57 PM
Ah, a fellow pragmatist, eh, Katharine? It would be a match made in a metaphysical place of your choosing, or Greenland - whichever's warmer.
:)
Posted by: NaomiM on May 1, 2009 05:08 PM