Comments on: "Geoengineering" To Fight Global Warming?

Radical Approaches Being Considered, Obama's Science Adviser Says In First Interview

[ktcchina]

JGH please do a just little research! Carbon cost of what? Carbon is your friend. We are a carbon based life form. Without it you die!. Ice melting is common and before1970 has not been a big problem. NASA did not invent the problem for seals, polar bears and penguins in the Artic or the Antartic. I know the polar bears are not in the Antartic by the way. Deniers do not give foreign countries the edge (you say competition, but, governments do that) it requires investment to get into other markets. The US auto industry is in trouble not because they do not make great cars, but, because they gave away the store forty years ago to the union. Livng in China, I wish I could get US white ware. You got tot be kidding!!! You do not know how good you got it. Give it up for Noble/Oscar Al and occedental!!

[geminispyder-2009]

3. For electrical power: go 30% coal/oil/gas, 30% nuclear, 40% alternatives.

Posted by ubrew12 at 5:58 AM : Apr 9, 2009

Though Jane Fonda liberals would be promoting 0% nuclear as opposed to "30% nuclear". Their solutions for global warming would be to bash/apologize for America, kill American troops to minimze American global influence, and promote Communism.

[ktcchina]

Hey ubrew! try current numbers of 95% coal/oil/gas, 4% nucleur & 1% alternative. No way we can get to where o wants without major disconnects to your living standards. North America, Europe, Japan. S. Korea, Australasia pyaing the freight for the rest of the world does not cut it. 1 billion vs. 8 billion is not equal terms!!!!!

[J_G_H]

What is the carbon cost of these measures. Also, what are the risks of overshooting and starting an ice age. If our commputer models are not precise enough to predict the rate of ocean rise or the date of the disappearance of the polar ice cap, I would be careful about additional tinkering. The temptation is also to achieve a rapid reversal of the trend, which would increase the risk of an overshoot.

As for the economy, Jesse Helms and his fellow deniers ultimately hurt US industry by giving our foreign competition an edge. They developed more energy efficient technology, not just for climate stabilization, but also because they did not have our cheap energy. Although there are bright spots, the US auto industry is still trying to catch the competition, and appliance efficiency is dismal.

[littlehenry]

How come scientist are saying that the earth is actually getting colder, while others are getting awards for saying it's getting wamer? Who the heck do we beilieve? I guess the next idea is to shoot a rocket up into orbit with a giant straw penetrating the atmosphere to let the earth vent out hot air. After all, I'm reading a bunch of it.

[tomanyt]

Scientists can't cure baldness, what makes you think they can fix the atmosphere????

[ubrew12]

Something I wrote a year ago - predicting this very solution:
Lib vs Con Solutions to Global Warming
Lib Solutions:
1. Plant more trees (deforestation over the last 100 years is probably responsible for half of the effect of Global Warming). Use the wood for construction rather than fuel.
2. Increase gas mileage standards by 5-10mpg.
3. For electrical power: go 30% coal/oil/gas, 30% nuclear, 40% alternatives. (Versus current usage 72% coal/oil/gas, 20% nuclear, 8% alternatives). (There's enough power in ocean waves in 100 miles of California coastline to power all of California, indefinitely, using technology ALREADY designed and built and functioning in Hawaii and Europe for 3-5 cents/kWhr. Never heard of it? I'm not surprised).

Lib solutions require some 'central planning' (also called 'looking ahead') cuz they'll take years to have an effect. This smacks of 'socialism' so Cons turn away, shut the doors, and continue praying.

Con Solutions:
1. Wait until the roof is burning and half of Florida is underwater, and then place massive amounts of aerosol pollutants into the upper stratosphere using inefficient jet engines. The resultant global dimming reduces sunlight hitting the earth by 30-40%, solving Global Warming almost instantly. Agriculture goes belly up, millions of people starve to death. Millions more die of lung diseases like emphysema and cancer. As Cons would say, 'Acceptable Losses'.

Typical Con solution: wait til the scratch gets infected, then cut off the arm.

The punch line? Cons say Libs want to 'ruin the economy'!! Shakespeare himself couldn't write such comedy.

[rf35]

If we covered the roofs of all the buildings in the world with tin foil, the amount of solar energy reflected would cool the planet and we'd have this global warming thing licked in no time. We could speed up the process even more if everyone in the world also wore tin foil hats for a month. As an added bonus, they would be free of the alien mind control devices used by the New World Order to keep the populace ignorant to their evil machinations.


FNORD!

[lloydbest1]

Bad idea. The "global warming" issue can be easily solved by simply scaling back those activities that encourage increasing concentrations of gasses - such as methane and CO2 - that are known to have a heat retaining effect. We can also rein in rising temperatures by increasing the size of our forested tracts and pursue agricultural practises that do not lead to desertification.
What I mean by "easily" above is the knowledge of what to do and how to do these things is readily available. All it takes is the social or political will to do so. Part of that is a commitment among the more well-off of us to simplify our lifestyles to a point that many would find uncomfortable or even downright austere. That part's not so easy.

So what's Lloyd doing to reduce his own carbon and resource usage footprint????
1. Walk or use the ten-speed to run errands. Not only does this cut down of the use of expensive gasoline but the exercise keeps me trim enough to see my shoes while still wearing them.
2. Turn the thermostat down to 60 degrees......Brrrr. I also do not use air conditioning.
3. Shop local whenever possible. Don't have to buy something that's trucked 1500 miles to get here.
4. Buy locally grown food, not necessarily organic. I live in the Pacific northwest so this isn't an easy thing to do during winter; but spring, summer and early fall....
5. I happen to like cotton. It's amazing how water and energy intensive is is to process the stuff. The environmental impact of the cotton culture is staggering. That's why I always try to buy used clothing.
6. Also the meat culture. I eat meat but d*mn'd little of it and not very often.
7. All those power tools to assist one in yard work? Don't us a one of them.
8. Line dry my clothes. Tough to do during our rainy winters but even then I seek out the rare sunny day.

There are other little tricks and strategies. Every one I mentioned above either reduces the amount of "greenhouse" gas production or reduces resource usage rate. These are just a few examples. I do not do this out of virtue. I am nothing of the sort. I live in that never-never land between dirt poor and middle class so a lot of what I do is based on economic necessity as much as altrustic public mindedness.

Tinkering with our climate to alter delibrately a temperature or rainfall trend is the height of arrogance. We don't know enough about climate dynamics to do any of this safely and we may never know enough. I am concerned the law of unintended consequences will rear up and bite us once again. The whole point of my post is we CAN solve our climate problem without resorting to such extreme measures as discussed in the article.

[ktcchina]

Tipping points? 350 ppm of CO2? How many solar panels do we need per day for the next 100 years to get there? How many nuclear power plant sdo we need to get there? Not one person in Government is addressing this. If nucleur is not in the equation then we are all condeming our children and grand children to poverty. how many ppm perduced the oil that we now use to heat our homes today? Noone will be alive if we achieve CO2 at 150 ppm. This is not about CO2 it is about $$$$$$$$$$$$$$.

[julieohio]

It's not the global warming that is going to kill us all -- it will be the geoengineering -- man thinking he knows better than mother nature that will end up doing us all in. Such ridicuIousness! Pray that our government will stop interfering -- shunning -- denying research funding to those of us scientists who believe that so called "global warming" is nothing more than a natural cycle in the life of our climate. Global cooling will be here soon enough -- hopefully before the hysterics associated with global warming kills us all.

[tbird6740]

BWHAHAHAHAHAAA! Okay. I guess the press/govt. think that we don't remember anything. Shooting pollution particles into the air? This is the stupidest thing I've ever heard. After the masses being told for YEARS that POLLUTION is the CAUSE of global warming, now they tell us that shooting pollution into the atmosphere will inhibit it? The drug companies that make allergy meds and masks will at least make a gazillion bucks off this.......................

[the0racle]

even better... shoot Rush Limppaw into the upper atmosphere, and he (solo) can spew enough pollution to darken the sun

[budmag06]

Another global warming report from CBS? It's too bad that the once respected CBS News feeds the gullible all these "trash" stories as fact when they are only theories without any proof. It's a coincidence that our socialist leaders do the same.

[rf35]

The "artificial tree" idea doesn't seem so bad, but I am very concerned about shooting pollution into the atmosphere to try and combat the natural process of climate change. Even if one buys into the idea that man-made pollution is causing global warming, it does not logically follow that man putting MORE pollution into the air will help. I find the whole concept frightening and obscenely irresponsible. To even consider poisoning our atmosphere with sulfur is truly alarming. Anyone remember acid rain?

[street-smart]

think army core of enngenneers dried land caged rivers, to sell houses, paved roads and now they cry we are in drought,and getting hot

[hetup-2009]

I love it, just love it.

People have been screaming for years about the use of Chemtrails for weather modification.

Now that the world climate is heading for the end days the politicians want to get involved.

It is too late, I just love it. Everyone has played around and had their stupid opinions.

Just go outside for a few hours and see how fast you get sunburned.

Skin cancer is skyrocketing.

I love it.


We deserve everything we get.

[street-smart]

if you block the sun,will leave less crop growing season.and really bring the end of life as we know it! would rather deal with global warming(earth made)than man made shade that was put to block sun.it also said sulfer based,mom(an rn) and sister(dcf) swells when in contact with sulfer,what goes up must come down,and pollute our earth.lets say it put this sulfer film around the earth what is to say it dont make a new man made ice age???how do we get it out of our breathing air if they do this????science tring to outdo god?????

[McHineguy]

Step one: Verify that global warming is something more than an Al Gore publicity stunt. There is serious science that refutes the claims. Most of the so-called "models" that claim to orove the theroy are too elementary to be believed.
Step two: Create an advanced, believeable model with adherents from both sides of the argument. This model may show global warming to be real, or it may not. Doesnt matter, it will prove the science that is necessary for geoengineering. Pretty good stimulus too.
Step three: Begin a global research effort to manage earths climate. Whether you believe global warming alarms or not, we need to be in better control of our future climates. Less we get caught with our pants down in the next ices age.

Finally, I dont think its wise to announce to the world that our anti-missile systems arent perfect. They havent ever been perfect. The idea is for your sworn enemy to think they are. Its how Reagan bluffed Gorbachev.