The Straw That Broke The Planet's Back

Mother Jones: Humans Can And Must Adapt To Stop Global Warming

(Mother Jones) 
Until then, our denial facilitates "social loafing" — the tendency of individuals to slack when work is shared and individual performance is not assessed. There's no better example than the U.S. Congress, where members cloak their lethargy regarding global warming behind the stultifying inactivity of their fellows. And why not? After all, who's watching?

Not the media, which habitually squelch new science stories on global warming by rationalizing that we've heard that before — though they would never ignore another round of Middle East bloodletting. The growing body of scientific knowledge on climate change gains heft and power as it accumulates, but the public rarely hears about it, reinforcing our loafing.

Scientists don't help when they react to the terrifying dimensions of public ignorance by sheltering inside hallowed halls. At a recent meeting of the Society for Conservation Biology, 70% of members argued in favor of advocating real solutions to environmental problems directly to lethargic policymakers and the press. Yet most researchers remain sequestered at a time when we need their knowledge and expertise like never before.

The nature of tipping points is that they happen dizzyingly fast. The good news is that history proves we're capable of keeping up. Social scientists once believed it would take decades of government pressure and education for Americans to choose smaller families, since the desire to procreate is an absolute part of the human animal, or so they thought. Yet population growth radically declined over only three years in the 1970s — one woman at a time, without an ounce of government involvement.

Political leaders can help. But even without them we can help ourselves. Whether or not Marie Antoinette actually said "Let them eat cake," she inspired change that reverberated far beyond Europe. Likewise, when George W. Bush says we can't act on global warming until we "fully understand the nature of the problem," we can use his callous disregard as a rallying cry.

The truth is, humans can change, and change fast. Our hallmark is adaptability. Long ago, we looked out from the trees and saw the savannas. Beyond the savannas we glimpsed further frontiers. History proves that when we behold a better world, we move toward it — one person at a time — leaving behind what no longer works.

We know what to do. We know how to do it. We know the timeline. We are our own tipping point.


This piece is adapted from a longer article in the current issue of Mother Jones, where Julia Whitty is a contributing writer. She is also author of the forthcoming book "The Fragile Edge: Diving and Other Adventures in the South Pacific."

[bushrocks1]

Would I send my son to this war? You might ask would I send him to World War II? Or Vietnam? Maybe you would distinguish those conflicts and whether you would send your son to fight in them. But that question is misdirected in a very important way: I can't command my son to go to war. He has to make that choice. So the better question would be: would I volunteer to fight in Iraq, WW II, Vietnam? Would I volunteer to fight in any war? Respond if drafted? I don%u2019t know. I'm not equivocating, only addressing that it is a hypothetical. To a hypothetical, I can answer, sure I'd fight. But I have nightmares of battle (from my past life as a Jacobite). So how do I feel toward those who do volunteer? Impressed and maturely knowing that many things go into their decision. But I do strongly believe that a country that can't find those men is doomed. The fact that we can find them is one reason why I say there is no failure in Iraq. Objectively, I also believe it for other reasons. An attempt to establish democracy in the Middle East is a bold, brilliant, noble effort, facing a high chance of failure. That's why I greatly respect and admire those who have made the attempt--the Bush administration. They have been resolute, something I have not seen in my lifetime. They may not succeed, for reasons outside their control or fault: traitors on the home front. Now those traitors have occupied the high ground. Yet... we're still in Iraq; the President hasn%u2019t been impeached. Why?...I'm waiting.

[boydgood]

Global warming, global schwarming. The fact is, human society is going down, down, down. It has been since the beginning. What starts new, ends up old. Just like a car. Brand new, shinny. Ten years later, ready for the junk heap. Or a baby. Brand new, then old. Spring, summer, fall, winter. Human society is in the winter of this cycle. After this cycle ends, it will be spring again. Not to worry. But it will get bad, very bad, before it gets good again. You think things are bad with pollution now. Just hang around a hundred thousand years, or wait until the end in 400,000 years. The planet will be indistinguishable from Hades. For the next 9500 years, however, we have a respite from the downward trend. Eastern wisdom and western technology will combine to make the earth a garden. That is the environmental movement of today. Just chant the Holy Name and lead a holy life. There is nothing else to be done.

[ressigmann]

to grumpas
Congratulations on joining the Gaia spirit of the Earth cult, but lets try to keep religeon out of this shall we. I was not spoon fed anything, and my I.Q. registers just below the genius level and higher that John Kerry's 120 if you insist on bringing things like this up. Clorides are supposed to destroy Ozone, and this principle led to the banning of CFCs(peak CFC production was 1.1 million tons of CFCs per year). Mount Tambora erupted in 1813 and it ejected 211 million tons of cloride into the atmosphere(taken from a book). This means that in one eruption of a volcano that more clorides that all the nations of the Earth would manufacture in about 200 years was belched into the atmosphere. There does not seem to be any lasting damage from this event. Nature contributes more than 95% of the CO2 going into the atmosphere, it does not sound like nature is hitting back, it is more like a first strike.

[thgdriver]

I watched a documentary on the tv the other night, it showed some scientists drilling out long shafts of ice. They were able to show that this warming and cooling has been going on for millions of years. We are in a warming cycle right now. According to them, the earths orbit, as it travels around the sun over long periods of time is not round but oval, we are in the more round period now, and warm, over time the orbit will get oval again and farther from the sun, when this happens we will have another ice age. They also pointed out that volcanos on earth have change our climate many times in the past also.

Are they right? Who knows. About as right as the studies above I guess. I have no intention of selling my car or leaving my comfe home to move to a cave with a few candles to save mankind, thats for sure!. The earth is better off without us.

[grumpas]

Common sense should tell you ressigmann that when someone is abusing something like the enviornment. Eventually it is going to come back a bite them in the butt one day! It doesn't take a genius to figure this simple fact out, which obviously you aren't any genius! It's obvious you have been listening to much to right wing propaganda that is geared for big business! They could care less what happens to the planet we live on as long as they continue making millions off other people's misery! We are destoying ourselves population wise too! But, conservative's can't seem to get that fact through their heads either! But, I imagine you will continue to believe that *** you have been spoon fed! Most people like you do until the day arrives when you get a rude awakening! But, by that time it will be to late! So, have a nice day if you still can!

[ressigmann]

My eyes are brown already, I suggest you reread the rules of engagement for posting on CBSNEWS. If you know these numbers are false then post the correct ones. It is easy to say someone is incorrect, but it is different than actually proving them wrong. A science degree is nice, but not required for this sort of thing (I do a lot of self study on these issues). It might suprise you to know 250 scientists including 27 Nobel laureates signed a statement Jun 1, 1992 at the beginning of this hysteria called the Heidelberg Appeal requesting that common sense and reliable science be used before predicting that global warming was a threat.

[mrthornman]

ressigmann:

When you have a science degree, come back & post. You are so full of c-r-a-p your eyes are brown.

[ressigmann]

This global warming nonsense is nothing but hysteria. Case in point CFCs: accused of destroying ozone 20 to 40 Km above the Earth, however the molecule is heavier than air, eco nuts have yet to explain how something heavier than air can make its way 20 Km straight up. Little known fact water vapor is a greenhouse gas and has about three times the warming effect that CO2 has, yet there are no calls to ban water. Man produces something like 7,000,000,000 tons of CO2 a year, nature produces 200,000,000,000 mabye we should shoot nature and call it self defense.

We will all die in WWIII well before any global changes like that happen, and perhaps then it will happen when we start exchanging nukes with the rest of the world

[swingalong]

Why worry? George W has declared global warming "bad science" and you know how much expertise he has.

[doctor--o]

Global warming,
exponential population growth,
accelerating demand on resources
past peak production of oil.
Put this together with no political will, right wing and fundamentalist kooks saying these issues are liberal lies and distortions it doesn't bode well for our grandchildren. In fact, cataclysmic economic collapse which leads to world wide political upheaval is far more likely than any solutions which maintain the status quo.

There is a wide range of excellent literature by knowledgeable scientists and academics which paints a gloomy picture. Virtually every time I suggest a book like this to people I know, I get dismissed. People just don%u2019t believe it. It%u2019s not in their face and they don%u2019t choose to look either. This message can%u2019t get pushed hard enough.

[sparkcolo]

"Earth will do what earth does it will survive and it will flourish long after we are gone"

Of course the earth will survive. The insects and bacteria will be around long after we're gone. The question is though, is can WE survive with it?

[mrthornman]

"True religion has nothing to fear from the findings of true science."

If true, we have little "true religion" these days, judging by the Intelligent Design crowd.

[djconklin]

george2221: "Religious people have successfully blocked any scientific education of school children."

In fact, it was the Christians under the auspices of the RCC that funded much of early science. It was because of professional jealousy by Galileo's fellow scientists that the RCC was used to attack him. Did you know that Newton wrote more on the Bible than he did on science? Care to guess why you weren't told that in science classes?

True religion has nothing to fear from the findings of true science.

[peterbaldwin-2009]

As individuals we can in 2008 all act responsibly in concert to get America in step with the rest of the planet by making sure that Al Gore becomes our next President. Today we can get involved in the draft Gore effort. The netroots community is already four square behind him in the latest polls at dailykos.com.

As long as the politicos are under the thumb of Big Oil American will stay with its head in the sand.

[Syndicate]

Global warming is natural phenomanon. It may be caused by humans it may not. Either way it is natural. It is what earthlings have done since their conception. Every creature that has ever lived has taken things from its environment and polluted. When people walk on a beach they do not see the pollution from other species. They think the sea shells are neat but they are trash. Discarded by some carless earthling who no longer needed it. Without the pullutant oxygen we would have never been able to evolve. Without the co2 pollution caused by microbes the earth would have long frozen over. Who are we to enterfere with nature. Fighting global warming is a sefish act by humans. It is a matter of human survival that drives us not the good of the planet. It is the possible loss of our valuable realestate that makes us take notice. Not the loss of coral reefs. Earth will do what earth does it will survive and it will flourish long after we are gone. We should stop fooling ourselfs the planet does not need to be saved we do.