UN: Climate Change Is Happening...

So what should we do?

I am often baffled, aghast, livid, demoralized and a bunch of other emotions, when I think about how people respond to the claims of climate change.

It's not merely that it is "bad news" that interests me, but how people interpret it. So much is implied in how we relate with this fact that I feel the need to break it down.

If you deny climate change, you are essentially imputing conspiratorial motives to the 97% of climate scientists (not economists, geophysicists, etc, but individual human beings who study the science of atmospheric process) who exclaim that it is happening.

To break this down further. You think, you feel; you are a subject experiencing the world through your own personal lens. So too - climate scientists. And yet, even though this is the truth about each of us - how we feel in the world, how we relate in the world, how we adapt to the world, nevertheless, climate scientists - unconsciously - are reified, made concrete, stereotyped and reduced to a categorical standard: whether it be the words "UN" or "97%" or the fact that their warnings imply government intervention, the people who perform the science, people just like us, who experience ups and down, feel the need to make meaning in their lives and definitely feel the pressures, like all of us, of feeling "a part", are treated incredibly inhumanely: that is, we treat them as if they were objects alone: our thinking about them is as an "object" - without any reference to the simple, irrefutable fact that they are subjects experiencing the world just like you or me.

If you succumb to the bias - to the unconsciously made error - of treating climate change as a conspiracy, before hand - than the science, which is rather simple and straight-forward, will never enter your noggin.

In a sense, Abovetopsecret is a censure of contemporary civilization; but not in the way that you would think. People have become so objectified - so removed, psychically, from what they feel and think (relational patterns that govern our everyday thinking) that we've come to impute conspiracy to people; to ascribe powers to an "elite" that is immutably bent in demonic ways; implied in this dynamic is that they are unlike us.

But how can they be unlike us? That question is never asked because we never make it. Developmental psychologists and contemporary psychoanalysts have coined the term "psychic equivalence". The idea is associated somewhat with our concept of "projection", but psychic equivalence gives meaning in a larger sense: psychic equivalence explains how ONE persons psychological makeup - their self states, denied feelings, etc - are unconsciously "framing" how they understand the world they relate with. In short, they draw an equivalence between how they operate intrapsychically - and also interpersonally with others - with whatever they believe about the world. Psychic equivalence is a process of freezing personal psychic dynamics into a worldview: into how you see others and how you understand the world.

Conspiracy thinking, then, is a perfectly natural outgrowth of a culture which puts a premium on object, external analysis - within academic psychology and all other "natural sciences" - the experiencing subject is denied, and so, we become paranoid about others; "gasping at straws" in trying to understand the world - we unconsciously enact our psychic biases by making equivalent our own thinking with what we see "out there" in everyday "objective" reality.

This explains, for me anyways, why people are so liable to ignore climate change.

Climate change, also, might be a type of poetic justice: the system which sustains us 'striking back' - vituperating us for denying the relationships which all beings are embedded; human beings in an external ecological environment. And even more subtly, human beings embedded in a social and relational environment: "culture", being more than the shared beliefs; is ultimately the "prgramming" for how our minds seek meaning.

Todays culture reifies our self-concept, turning us into "commodities" to be used for profit - ignoring the fact that our own thinking, feeling and being is essentially and always will be "process"; a happening in the moment. But for people - and a culture - that is so object-oriented, so "thing" obsessed, our own minds become "things" to ourselves; and thus we obsess, become paranoid; greedy and insistent on "more". Take, for example, those studies which show that above a personal income of $75,000, there is no increase in happiness. This means we need just enough to live materialy comfortably; but when we pass it, we find ourselves enslaved to the objectified external standards we pay allegiance to. We become slaves - not knowing.

Climate Change is an indictment on the culture of individualism - the creed of Ayn Rand and pure capitalists who believe that "growth" is good.

Even though climate scientists, the people best situated to know what we are doing to our planets climate, and thus to such important economic metrics as "food supply", "natural disasters" etc, have rung the bell dozens of times; and keep doing so. We seemingly - at least the clearly pathological people alive today - cant transform knowledge into emotion: the need to do something, quickly, to prevent this future calamity.

Scientists have reasons for why this isn't happening. But for me, the only science which can offer a solution is contemporary psychoanalysis - which is to say, it is only by understanding ourselves - and our embeddedness in cultures, families and communities - can we find the emotional wherewithal to do what needs to be done to fix this wicked problem.

do what you need to do... locally....the word will spread.

The climate has been changing ever since the earth was formed, and it has been getting steadily warner since the last interglacial. Have SUVs been around for that long?

a reply to: ketsuko

and it has been getting steadily warner since the last interglacial.

No. It hasn't.
math.ucr.edu...

a reply to: ketsuko

No but I think politicians have in some way. Lots of hot air from them.

The climate changes. Mankind does contribute to it but it's been going through changes since it's existed.

I don't need mouthpieces of the academic masses to tell me "it's getting warmer!" or "it's getting colder!".

a reply to: ketsuko

It hasn't been 'steady' though. The Earth has been warming at a greater rate in the past 150 years than what's been recorded in the past. The last time the planet was this warm was 150,000 years ago.

We're very, very certain that the Earth is warming. The real question is whether or not humans are increasing the rate of warming or not. We've got some evidence suggesting that we are. If we are capable of increasing the rate, we should be capable of decreasing the rate.

a reply to: Astrocyte

When you get rear-ended at an intersection, there are two types of people who get out of the car behind you. The first kind is the reasonable person who exchanges insurance and takes on the accountability to make it right.

The second kind is the person who refuses to believe that the tail light is broken or that the scratches weren't there before he hit the car. This person will fight every step of the way and deny responsibility while claiming the injuries are a ruse to rip him off.

That second person is the type who is challenged when trying to accept responsibility for seemingly innocuous actions that provide him with convenience (like texting while driving or not recycling).

The difference is an overall willingness to act on awareness or deny their own active participation. The easiest solution for them is to not accept the damages as reality in the first place. The climate does this naturally or that bumper was already scratched, etc. That sort of paranoid thinking can be powerful enough to debate 97% of the experts on climatology or 97% of the witnesses who saw him rear-end you.

Indeed it is. Winter is coming, I drove through a snow storm yesterday.

Remember the seasonal talking points, when its hot or it can be attributed to heat extremes, its global warming. Anything cold is climate change. If unsure always default to climate change.



If we really are causing climate change, the solution should be very simple.

Climate change is real, it is cyclical, and for the most part unpredictable long term. If we survive the times directly ahead, most of you will get to see just how extreme a climate shift on this planet can be.

Until then...

Cheers.

a reply to: Astrocyte

Do? Nothing. Its ridiculous to do anything when its exactly what the Earth has always done. ...for millions of years. You're scared?
Right...stop it from turning too...we're getting dizzy.
...so what?
Its supposed to do this...you weren't aware of that?

a reply to: Astrocyte

So what should we do?

Invest heavily in carbon credit scams.

Move coastal cities 50 miles inland.

Well we could all stop accessing our computers in order to contribute on forums such as this.

Or accept we have done bad things and expect to be punished in the most brutal of ways i.e plant 100 trees each to set off our carbon foot print.

I mean Mr Ban Ki-Moon has stopped using fossil fuelled transport hasn't he? He doesn't live in a building where he is reliant on Nuclear Power or Coal power to provide his electricity does he?

The science is unambiguous, how can you argue with that?

originally posted by: Astrocyte
So what should we do?

I am often baffled, aghast, livid, demoralized and a bunch of other emotions, when I think about how people respond to the claims of climate change.

Just relax, and sit on a branch..here, have a Cashew and whatever you do, don't fart. 'This enlightenment was brought to you from the Department of Homeland Security. We now return you to Penn and Teller..amen'

Former Weather Channel CEO Goes off on CNN: ‘Hello, Everybody! There’s No Global Warming!’

Source

Global Temperature Update: Still no global warming for 17 years 9 months – Since Sept. 1996

Source

It's been proven that humans are innately optimistic about the future. It's an evolutionary mechanism that keeps us perpetually doing stupid stuff, like throwing all of our trash into the oceans and cutting down millions of acres of trees to wipe our asses with, because the opposite attitude wouldn't be very good for our survival capabilities.

No one cares what's happening... until it begins to affect them, and once the fear kicks in, if they have the resources, which most of the planet does not, then they'll decide, "Holy crap. We'd better do something." Usually when it's too late.

It's like the Gulf oil spills. Tons of leaks and spills occurred there for as long as we've been drilling in the area. But when a big one went viral on MSM, people were outraged and fearful and decided something should be done. Meanwhile, in a dozen other places in the world, environmental spills by these same companies went ignored. It didn't effect America, supposedly, after all, so who cares? Something for someone else to handle... just like all our trash being dumped in the ocean.

And who cares if the PH of the oceans is lowering. I'm too busy texting on my smart phone to care about such matters. It just doesn't affect me... yet.

Or like building a city, New Orleans, and other major cities right in the path of hurricanes. Heck, we even destroyed the natural barriers that nature put in place to protect the coastlines. Finally, one came right down the alley... and suddenly we were concerned! Oh my, this may now have been so smart after all.

And what about these rising sea levels? No one cares... yet. Until their hotels and beach front property will start going under. So many examples...

Hilarious, aren't we? We won't lift a finger about anything until it's too late. They turn into political matters. Misinformation. Debates on Youtube.

Not so intelligent after all.

a reply to: Calalini

It's been proven that humans are innately optimistic about the future. It's an evolutionary mechanism that keeps us perpetually doing stupid stuff, like throwing all of our trash into the oceans and cutting down millions of acres of trees to wipe our asses with, because the opposite attitude wouldn't have very good survival capabilities.

I look at it differently. Humans don't tend to do anything unless they absolutely have to. The long view is not human nature but the consequences of that started to change when we began acquiring more and more "mastery" of our world.

Again the arrogance of humans to suggest they know all about weather patterns

The Earth is 4.54 BILLIOn years old ....

We have been collecting weather data ( and i am being kind here... from at the best 3000 Bc... ( this is when weather was first discussed , modern data collection is 1850's onwards?

So

lets say 3000+ 2014 ( The total time human beings have discussed or monitored weather conditions on earth) = 5014 years

we have been ( cough ) experts in Earths planetary weather for 0.00011044052% of Earths total weather history.
And if you calculate it via modern weather techniques 1850 onwards.. we know precisely 0.00004746696% of earths history of weather.

THIS is why i have trouble believing we are having such a massive impact... warming up it may be .. man- made..hmmm??!?. can we confidently base these predictions on our current knowledge, knowing the total percentage of knowledge we actually posses on the subject.

is it just me or anyone else know what i mean?

besides even IF hard working and modern country's , pull back or switch to alternatives to help ( I do solar power for a living btw lol)

So many developing country's will forge ahead with their own industrial ages .. i just cant see how we can possibly control it planet wide to make the difference they say it will.

Q

Every time this comes up, I have a couple more questions since the last time.

First, heres some charts…

Charts

Depending on whose chart you look at it is not "warming" that is the problem but the CO2 levels in the atmosphere. Thats what is supposed to trap heat or sunlight, right? Depending… some see it as a current problem, a periodic problem or a magnified problem (looking to close at the levels today instead of historical averages, for instance). This table says methane is more prevalent.

percentages of gas in the atmosphere

Are all these gases mixed together generally, or in layers?

My question is the CO2 is a heavier gas that clings to the ground. If levels rise "too high" like some say, then how is a ground hugging gas trapping sunlight hi up in the atmosphere?

Just an unscientfimacal question I was wondering about…

a reply to: Quantum_Squirrel

Simple math...

Arrogance + theoretical assumptions = exploitable ignorance

The illusion is that mankind is in any way the master, or keeper of this world. Our time in this world has been brief, and will not likely be long enough to either understand or appreciate our brief existence here.

We are a failed experiment.

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: ketsuko

and it has been getting steadily warner since the last interglacial.

No. It hasn't.
math.ucr.edu...

Here we go again....

We have no idea how the sun works, yet we know how climate change works...



I am sure allot of emotional keyboard warriors will be heading into this thread to argue over HOW they feel about it...

originally posted by: ausername
a reply to: Quantum_Squirrel

Simple math...

Arrogance + theoretical assumptions = exploitable ignorance

The illusion is that mankind is in any way the master, or keeper of this world. Our time in this world has been brief, and will not likely be long enough to either understand or appreciate our brief existence here.

We are a failed experiment.

pretty much and it is our fault.