clearly outside the range of natural variability
2010 May 11
I saw this article linked from a comment on Bryan Alexander’s blog. This part jumped out at me:
e360: I understand that the Dome C record shows very clearly that we’ve got more CO2 in our atmosphere now than at any time in 800,000 years. Mosley-Thompson: Oh yeah. Very clearly. If you look back over the eight glacial/interglacial cycles, you essentially see that CO2 never rises above 300 parts per million and we’re at about 389 now. Methane never rises above about 800 parts per billion, and I think we’re at about 1,700 parts per billion. So we’re clearly outside the range of natural variability. I personally think that graph simply showing the natural fluctuations in those two important greenhouse gases, over almost a million years of Earth history — and then you see the two dots [today] that are so much higher than anything that we see in that near-million history — tells us very clearly that we have a serious problem.
Um. Yeah. But please feel free to continue denying climate change as scientific fraud or something. Significantly higher CO2 levels than at any point in the last 800 THOUSAND years. (update: oops. I’d typed MILLION. it was clearly not 800 MYA. I must have been thinking “almost a million” and the fingers just followed…)
More info and graphs from NASA, including this gem:
The recent increase in CO2 levels is so sudden, it’s a simple vertical line. That’s not a natural increase.
14 Responses
A while ago I said to you that the Matrix was philosophical, in which you replied that the whole point was to make money. In terms of the environment the reason the green house gases are so far out of whack is because human don’t as a natural part of the existence, seek to reach any sort of equilibrium with their planet. Instead, the game that they want to play is a totalitarian game where they get everything and don’t have to pay anything in return for it. In playing this game, they ignore everything both their own personal economic utility which is not based on real needs as defined by homosapien the animal, but imaginary needs defined by human being the intellect.
It would be fine if technology pushed us into a new, better equilibrium with the planet where we would not suffer so much and life was still somewhat interesting. But it does not do that. Instead, technology destroys any idea of equilibrium or nature, we use technology to destroy any idea of equilibrium and instead wish to marshal all resources to our intellect in a “devil may care” sort of way. Neo-liberal economics is the hallmarks of this philosophy. As such we are on a path in which we are forever dependent on our manipulation of our environment in hopes that we can utilize technology to avert the disaster created by our reckless ways.
The point being that unless we want to take the approach of reaching equilibrium with the planet, we will as a matter of course destroy the environment and will be dependent on technology to keep us alive. It’s a deep philosophical choice that at this point cannot be avert. The unconsciousness that I was talking about is in these terms, that we have chosen an ideological path and are unconsciousness compelled down it without reconsideration, resistance, or recourse. In that sense it is a religion, and a dangerous one at that.
Now for the Matrix: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHiX0FZcjkA
To elaborate on the Matrix, though it’s poorly written, it is a world in which the machines have taken over. For some reason in order to maintain their own equilibrium they need to keep us alive — why isn’t exactly well thought out other than some part of the machine goes rogue and starts cloning itself destroying the machine civilization and for some reason a single human element can protect against this in a dramatic re-enacted of a salvation.
In the scene above you are getting a dose of your own medicine from a supposed machine (or technology) by which you are enslaved. In that technology has become the primary actor, nature is completely dead… and you need technology to keep you alive… In that equilibrium with technology you exist, and it has the upper hand in limiting your freedom… and you are in an artificial prison of the matrix where your existence does not matter but for the needs of the machines. It’s a parable of sorts of where we are and where we are headed.
Nature exists. Nature creates man. Man creates gods. Gods modelled after nature. Man in battle with the gods. Man destroys gods, creates God. God modelled after man; in Him his salvation. Man says God creates nature. Man destroys God. Man destroys nature. Icarus and his new wings. Wings burn; no nature to break its fall. Man falls to the vacuous sea. Beside nature, his eternal grave.
well, there’s the rub. humanity is not separate from nature. we were not spawned from it, nor are we above (or below) it. we are a part of nature. no more, no less. when we crap on the planet, we foul our nest. we’re getting really, really good at doing that. but, we’ve also shown the ability to collectively decide to stop and even reverse the damage. lead was put into gasoline in the 70′s. it wound up in such high levels in the atmosphere to actually increase rates of violent crimes. we removed the lead. same with ozone. we stopped CFC production, and the ozone hole started to fill in again. but, now we’re faced with a crisis caused by the very basis of our global economic system – the dependence on cheap, ubiquitous petroleum to power individual transportation. until we either break the back of the artificial “need” for individual transportation, and/or replace petroleum with something less damaging, we’re pretty much fucked.
I really doubt we have fixed the ozone problem:
“The Antarctic ozone hole is expected to continue for decades. Ozone concentrations in the lower stratosphere over Antarctica will increase by 5%–10% by 2020 and return to pre-1980 levels by about 2060–2075, 10–25 years later than predicted in earlier assessments. This is because of revised estimates of atmospheric concentrations of Ozone Depleting Substances — and a larger predicted future usage in developing countries. Another factor which may aggravate ozone depletion is the draw-down of nitrogen oxides from above the stratosphere due to changing wind patterns.”
So yes we have, but China and India are just getting started. After them, there is a list of other countries that might want to develop as well. I researched some of the ideas that I was talking about, they seem to have a history to them. We’ll just wait and see…
Also, the fossil fuel burning is a small part of the problem. Methane is a worse greenhouse gas than CO2 and huge quantities are produced by cows. It may be contributing more to warming than burning fossil fuels. Also, if we are not burning it in cars, I am sure we will find other uses for it… we will burn it in factories or by poorer countries… in the end it will end up in the atmosphere no matter what because someone will buy it and burn it… even if we find an alternative source for our needs.
right. so, like I said. we’re fucked. party while the partying’s good.
I am thinking this a great idea to protest and celebrate the ending of the world… we should throw global, the planet is going to die parties.
The moral of the story is wrong… The problem isn’t with planting trees or caring, the problem is with the ideology that enables the behaviour of the Onceler. It makes so much sense of how we got the “green” consumerist movement once you consider the Lorax. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6650219631867189375
“It is the sin of greed that has delivered us over into the power of the machine. If greed were not the master of modern man – ably assisted by envy – how could it be that the frenzy of economism does not abate as higher ‘standards of living’ are attained, and that it is precisely the richest societies which pursue their economic advantage with the greatest ruthlessness? How could we explain the almost universal refusal on the part of the rulers of the rich societies – whether organised along private enterprise or collectivist enterprise lines – to work towards the humanisation of work? It is only necessary to assert that something would reduce the ‘standard of living’, and every debate is instantly closed. That soul-destroying, meaningless, mechanical, monotonous, moronic work is an insult to human nature which must necessarily and inevitably produce either escapism or aggression, and that no amount of ‘bread and circuses’ can compensate for the damage done – these are facts which are neither denied nor acknowledged but are met with an unbreakable conspiracy of silence – because to deny them would be too obviously absurd and to acknowledge them would condemn the central preoccupation of modern society as a crime against humanity.”
– From SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL (E. F. SCHUMACHER) Full book: http://www.ee.iitb.ac.in/student/~pdarshan/SmallIsBeautifulSchumacher.pdf
Thinking about “no amount of ‘bread and circuses’ can compensate for the damage done “… I think the current iteration of the bread and circus which has lead to significant decline in crime is the internet and virtual reality in terms of games. This has had a massive impact in aiding escapism and therefore reducing the amount of aggression that otherwise might exist in the lack of a medium that aids this… Since 1993 crime in the US has taken a nosedive, I believe the main reason is the internet and free access to all sorts of entertainment that was not so easily accessible before.
You know we’re fcked when people see the feedback through graphs. You know we’re mighty fcked when the ecologists make love with the economists and spawn the globalists to make things right!
I’m not sure if you’re saying “clearly the huge spike in the last 50 years, compared to the previous 800,000 years of ice-core CO2 data is faked by the global science conspiracy” or “yeah. that’s bad.”
No one is working to make anything right other than maybe throwing more technology at it. The system that we have created is short sighted and concerned with profits. As long as the solution can be framed in terms of profits, then there is some chance of finding a solution. Profits more the less move the system forward, so just like the economic problem with the banksters who created the mess in the first place being put in charge of fixing it, the same people who brought you the enviornmental problem are now fixing it for you… When really all you have to do is pull the plug, the system is at the same time becoming more centralized, corrupt, powerful… I just see it as this vicious sort of beast which has nothing going for it and yet keeps growing more powerful.
Anyhow, enjoy this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REfDCPhPQQ4
And go do something productive. The only way to deal with this problem is to sit back and let the beast destroy everything. Then pick back up the pieces, create a new ideology and/or religion and start from the beginning. I am off to start my work on founding that.