The planet's future: Climate change 'will cause civilisation to collapse'

The planet's future: Climate change 'will cause civilisation to collapse'

www.in dependent.co.uk

An effort on the scale of the Apollo mission that sent men to the Moon is needed if humanity is to have a fighting chance of surviving the ravages of climate change. The stakes are high, as, without sustainable growth, "billions of people will be condemned to poverty and much of civilisation will collapse".

This is the stark warning from the biggest single report to look at the future of the planet – obtained by The Independent on Sunday ahead of its official publication next month. Backed by a diverse range of leading organisations such as Unesco, the World Bank, the US army and the Rockefeller Foundation, the 2009 State of the Future report runs to 6,700 pages and draws on contributions from 2,700 experts around the globe. Its findings are described by Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the UN, as providing "invaluable insights into the future for the United Nations, its member states, and civil society".

(visit the link for the full news article)



[edit on 15-7-2009 by grover]

Civilization collapsing wouldn't be that big of a loss if you ask me. Its happened before and there is no reason to think it won't happen again...consumerism is a tacky excuse for a culture anyway.

If climate change doesn't get us...population outstripping food production will (brought down many a civilization in the past) and if that doesn't do it depleting our resources will...

And failing that wallowing in our own wastes aka pollution will do the trick...

Its just a question of when and how...

BUT the next big question is what comes after?

www.in dependent.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)

but wait, the right promised me that climate change was not true. The religious zealots swore it was made up. They said it was a product of the left-wing media that is owned by rich conservatives. You mean after all the lies about the afghan-iraqi war I wasn't supposed to trust them?

Isn't it obvious that the only way we can stop climate change from "drowning our children" and "collapsing civilization" is to pay the UN more money for no particular reason?

Makes complete sense to me anyway.. I wonder why noone else has thought of it?

Oh wait..

No. Wrong. Barring a cataclysmic event, it won't cause us or anything else to collapse...not if we pull our heads out and stop arguing and dividing about it and start adapting.

A good first step would be to simply acknowledge it, assume there will NOT be a world-ending event (as we ALWAYS have) and start planning, inventing, designing and taking steps.

WE are in control of our destiny.

if the businesses that pollute the planet where to become nonpolluting and nondestructive to the planet, then perhaps things could get better

stop polluting and killing the wildlife on our planet for money

sounds easy right, so why don't we get to it?

The problem is as it has always been the obstructionists in religion, politics and business...as long as they have the loudest voice and control access to the strings of power...nothing will be done until it is too late...then they will be the ones who will claim that they had been warning people all along.

Just like in the looming social security medicare crisis...nothing will be done because it's more convienent to do nothing than do something and risk losing reelection.

Its no great loss...civilizations have a limited life anyway...if depleted resources don't bring them down they will fall because their founding myths have ceased to inspire and people no longer believe in them.

Originally posted by warrenb
sounds easy right, so why don't we get to it?

Simple..

Capitalism...

The cause of and solution to all of our problems...

No one economic system is the answer to our problems...in fact economic systems are irrelevant...

The problem lies in the heart and mind.

Until we start looking at ourselves as citizens not of one nation but the planet...

Not until we stop putting short term interests first...

Not until we stop putting our own interests, comfort and profits first, others be damned...

Then nothing will change.

The end is Nye! Repent your evil carbon producing ways and give yourself to Gia! Yee may pay penitence to off set thee carbon sin and ask forgiveness from our great liberal leaders. The messiah loves you all and will lead us to salvation from above.

Originally posted by grover
If climate change doesn't get us...population outstripping food production will ... if that doesn't do it depleting our resources will...wallowing in our own wastes aka pollution will do the trick...

Yep .. or an asteroid hitting us .. or a pandemic ... or aliens invading .. or _________. (fill in the blank). We are all going to die at some point in time. Civilizations come and go and have been for a lot longer than recorded history.

The thing is that 'climate change' isn't man made and therefore we really don't have much say in it. The pollution levels .. yep, we can work on fixing that we are wallowing in our own muck. But we can't change sun spots and we cant' change natural earth temperature cycles.

Global warming and "man made global warming" are two very different things. If you take a look at the science and the liberal projections of what the current legislation, inclusive of cap and trade would do, the impact is totally marginal.

Why then would you implement a massive government scheme to tax productivity when the gains in doing so are marginal? You do it to "feel good" about yourself. You mostly do it to generate significant government revenue.

If you want to reduce carbon emissions, all you have to do is retrofit the coal generating facilities in China, India and Eastern Europe with air scrubbing technology that has been available for 20+ years. You could do that for a fraction of the cost and keep your hands off of the US tax payer.

Oh, I forgot. This is not truly about reducing carbon. This is about taxing productivity and some effort to drive the wealth of nations to the lowest common denominator.

The left is simply using this issue to pursue their global socialist world view. If they were simply interested in reduction, there are far better ways and more effective ones in which to do that. The problem is that those solutions don't impact the American lifecycle and that, rather than the environment is their main objective.

reply to post by grover


Here is an idea!

Why dont they pay us all to recycle, compost, service our vehicles, use less paper, use less energy, fart less, breath less, use energy efficient appliances, use less deodorant, flush the toilet less, use energy efficient light bulbs, install solar powered panels on our homes, install windmills on our bloody cars, use less water and build dams of the side of our homes to generate more clean energy alternatives?

After all, citizens have had to pay masses in taxes, bills, fuel to contribute to the society they put in place enforced by laws and with the amount of funds they have gotten from decades of us all slaving then surely they have enough left to pay us back to help society instead of taking yet more money from us all?



Oops, sorry for me thinking rational there for a second, I better stop thinking like that mind you, its too extremist. We cant possibly ask for anything back from society.

[edit on 15-7-2009 by XXXN3O]

reply to post by Dermo


That’s right, we must kill our children and ourselves if the rich are to survive, and you know what? I think its better that they kill us as we "useless eaters" are to stupid too do anything right or to see what is happening anyway.


It is amazing how people can be too lazy to save their country but have". all the energy in the world to march towards their deaths as long as it’s "cool" and "green"

Maybe the truth movement should make rap videos with half naked girls and games of men knocking each other out, maybe then the people will care?

I can see this playing out and what will happen is that only when the food runs out and power gets cut, Americans wake up but it will be too late by then so many will resort to killing and stealing.

All I can say is when the crap starts any "refugees" that try and show up on my property uninvited will be met with gunfire; they should have paid attention instead of laughing at us.

My family will not go hungry, instead of a flatscreen and season tickets we bought food, medcine and other important things.

Yes it sounds mean but the masses of ignorant people prop up the very systems that are killing us so I really dont care it this point about the masses or what happens to them.

They are not my friends and their apathy is what got us here.





[edit on 7/15/2009 by samhouston1886]

All of the right wing loon claims that global warming is not man made and by extension we don't or can't do anything about it begs the question and obscures the issue...

What if they are wrong...what if we are causing or contributing to it...isn't it in our best interests to take whatever measures that we can to minimize the damage?

As in most everything the right is wrong.

Originally posted by Dermo

Originally posted by warrenb
sounds easy right, so why don't we get to it?

Simple..

Capitalism...

The cause of and solution to all of our problems...

I had heard that according to capitalism, it was alcohol that was the cause?

Wasnt it global warming?

Either way its your bill not capitalisms.



[edit on 15-7-2009 by XXXN3O]

Unesco, the World Bank, the US army and the Rockefeller Foundation

Yeah, like I'm going to heed what any of them say.

Al Gore has made millions off his Global Warming scam that the majority of morons and hippies have lapped up, it's amazing how a politician can suddenly become a climatologist and inform us of the complex science and history involved. The fact Al Gore was a politician should tell you folk something.

Not to mean the lies of the peak oil scam that the likes of OPEC and EXON are tricking us with by saying the oil reserves are running out when the truth is they are replenishing themselves.

It's all about money folk, and they want all of it and will make up lies and discredit anyone who goes against them in order to make people believe them and give up their hard earned cash!

It's not up to the little people to make that choice. It never should be!

The responsibility lies with the corporations and their willingness to change... I highly doubt it though, which means that everyone else will have to pay the price.

I don't believe that we are the cause of this so-called "global warming" but regardless it is good for one thing! It'll certainly help with the evolution of technology and once and for all get rid of the prehistoric combustion engine. I see it as a way of forcing the big corporations to evolve technology wise, regardless of the fact that global warming is a big pile of lies.

A report that is "Backed by a diverse range of leading organisations such as Unesco, the World Bank, the US army and the Rockefeller Foundation"!!

With those 'organisations' involved it must be true...

reply to post by grover


What happens if this whole 'Climate Change' crap is untrue? It will have drained probably 50% of the resources for any other business to thrive. It will cripple the transport business and our food and other commodities will be wasted like it is in India and Africa. They could easily feed themselves if they could or would build refrigeration plants and railroads instead of trying to ship their food to other countries for monetary gain. World Food states that as much as a third of food stuffs rot in these countries and is lost. The problems caused by the fix for this non-existent crisis will bring the US as well as the EU to its knees. The EU is already balking at there own regulations because of the cost and the loss of employment and tax base! The proof is NOT concluded on this in any manner. It's mostly conjecture and no majority of those studying it can be seen as correct!

Zindo




[edit on 7/15/2009 by ZindoDoone]