I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW IT'S GONNA HAPPEN...
I've joked about ti in the past but really...
...we are, i know, well and truly shafted when it comes to climate change.
LAst night I watched two films about two men who should have got the job they were meant for though niether of them did.
The first, BOBBY, about the day Bobby Kennedy was shot ( great film, by the way ) told us that he was the man that America wanted as presidaent, a humanitarian, the right man for the right job for all the right reasons but he was assassinated before he had the chance to be voted in.
The second, AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, the brilliant lecture movie that shows us all for certain that the planet is in deep shit and mostly because of us. Al Gore, a man, a student of climate change who's university lecturer was the frist person to start to measure carbon dioxide emmissions way back in the early sixties, takes us through a step by step guide to planet suicide. It's a formidable performance made even more ironic by the fact that had he beaten Bush to the White House, instead of being beaten by a single dodgy count in Bush's brothers or cousins district, America and the world would have had one of the, if not the, most qualified and motivated global green campaigners in power, as opposed to Bush who's family had claimed for the last couple of decades that climate change was something nothign short of a science fiction plot.
Ho hum, now here's my problem. I would love to help and I will but unless big business is brought under control now, via legislation that will criminalise certain actions, there's no point, except to make ourselves feel better. As well as that, a huge number of people have such poor lives that they don't give two hoots about how long they leave a light on for or what size the cloud of smoke is that seems to chase their crappy old car around.
The there's the people who are never going to care just because they're not, which honestly I think,sadly, maybe the majority of the people on planet earth.
The public, as a whole, are reluctant to change, yet if they are incentivised to do so, or are threatened if they do not, then they seem to catch on pretty quickly, eg. the smoking ban, taxation, etc.
The weather over the last week or two has been crazy, I think things are going to get a lot worse a lot quicker than anyone is saying.
Happy Monday !
CLP 2007.
X.
Comments
Ho Hmmm
A deep and very thoughtful blog for us to mull over for a Monday indeed CLP.
If companies and poor countries (deforestation, cooking ovens etc) are not given incentives then nothing will change.
However, one person can make a difference - if you practise what you believe is good then you will feel better for it.
The mantra I do my bit is good for the soul.
on a less serious note - loved the picture of Johnny and Sally in the lift very funny and lots of captions came to instant mind indeed.
Missed most of the Friday conversations so I hope everyone out there is okay and enjoyed the calm weather we had over the weekend.
Me I had a couple of things to do but most of the weekend was catch up time after being busy for the previous two weeks and the weekend at the Lifeboat College - which was superb - Chris next year you should come down
Phoenix
I agree that we should do what we can as individuals, blah blah. but the simple truth is if major industry around the world doesn't change as well we have a snowballs chance in hell of reversing or delaying what we're told is the inevitable.
DD out
Hi Chris (and everyone)
I totally agree with every word you have to say today. The problem is that the "big guns" could not care less about climate change. It's all about making money. And anyway, the majority of them will be dead and gone before it REALLY affects them. But where does that leave their children, and their children's children? It's very frightening. And as for the inhabitants of planet Earth who don't give a damn, it's very doubtful they can change. In the meantime, the rest of us can only do our bit. I agree, it doesn't really make much of a difference if we put off all the lights in the house that we don't need, but if we can all do just a little, it's better than nothing.
I haven't seen the Al Gore film. I will make a point of doing so, but it sounds as though I may need a strong drink to get me through it! As for Bobby Kennedy (did enjoy that film) I was 12 years old when he was assassinated. I was off school with a really bad cold and I prayed all day, listening to every news bulletin on Radio One. I had been working on a school project on Bobby Kennedy and I was devastated when we died.
What a world, eh?!
C xx
I'm with you Chris. Its the big companies which need to change. I recycle, I've cut down using plastic bags, and reuse or re cylcle paper, card etc but thats not making any difference really. Why should I feel guilty about going on a plane to Manchester instead of going on train when I do loads to help when there are mega companies who don't even think about what they are doing to the enviroment. Oh the stress of it all.
Now I must go as half way through painting my nails! hehe, missy xx
Chris. Remember where you ranked in the "Most Influential People in the Country" league.
Whilst you maay not exert as much power as Al Gore would have done had it not been for those darned tags, you can make a much bigger difference than most of us. Me recycling helps a bit. You recycling helps more; but you encouraging the rest of us to do our bit could be the start of something big.
It's the snowball effect. From CLP to the drivetime audience. From the drivetime gang to their loved ones, their workmates, the crowd they drink with. That's a lot of people. A lot of people pulling in the same direction will affect governments and businesses. And once they come on side that's when we'll get the world moving in the right direction.
So, come on Chris. Do it because it's simply the right thing to do.
On top form with the blog today CLP!
I know that it's not quite relevant to climate change but I recently watched a documentary about orang- utans in Borneo and how much they are affected by the diminishing rain forests. It was absolutely heartbreaking to see the orphans but as mentioned it's all about big business, in this case the palm oil industry. These apes are being beaten to death too if they stray into into the plantations. This country is the second biggest importer of this product in Europe.
'We have not inherited the earth from our ancestors but borrowed it from our children' I think that's how I read it, not sure where though. But how true.
Love Debx
Chris
Things happen (or don't) for a reason.
In terms of Al Gore, perhaps he has managed
to be an advocate on Climate change by
*not* being President. He is free to say what
he wants without having his hands tied by
(whatever). If I remember correctly, at
the time he lost the Presidency, the
Republicans controlled both "Houses" therefore
it is conceivable he would have been "thwarted"
at every turn by vested interests plus having
other battles to fight. Perhaps he is better placed
where he is. Wizards and all that......
In terms of "the last decade" being wasted,
I don't think that in the bigger picture of
how long the planet has been around that
10 years or so is anything more than the
equivelant of a blink of an eye.
Do you think that those poor Pepes in
England affected by all the flooding
will become more "Green". I doubt it.
Perhaps they'll just blame the Government.
Al lthe above doesn't stop me from thinking
we are weel and trully 'stuffed'. Maybe not
in our lifetime. But then again, Mother Nature
has a habbit of cleansing when needed.
Methinks this lump of rock we call home
is long overdue for one.
Happy thoughts for the Day-Before-Tuesday.
(P.S. To save me waiting five mins to be
allowed to send a 2nd message :
Bingo Starr; If you were arrested in
Carsnootie, you should have been taken
to Arbroath, not Dumpdee. Carsnootie,
whilst under the control of Tayside Police
is part of Angus and as such comes
under the durisdiction of the Fiscals there.
As far as I know anyway - he said hurriedly)
So much waste in the world one and all.
Everything gets thrown away, what happened to repair. Everyone wants cheap so we import rubbish that soon ends up on the rubbish tip.
Are people more happy today than yesterday, with all their gadgets and whatnots? I don't know.
I had lunch yesterday at an establishment with a rather full course menu of four courses. Sitting close by was a former star of Hi Di Hi with his partner. Through all the mountain of food, I overheard them discuss where they would eat in the evening! How do they find the time let alone the appetite.
Give me beans on toast anyday.
Guten Niche
Well, that's a cheery but, alas, all too true, start to the week.
We recycle our bottles and switch off lights wherever possible while multinationals hack down and burn thousands of square miles of rainforest. Put in perspective, most of our efforts do seem futile, but what do we do? Just give up? Accept defeat and go with the flow?
I think that the damage is done. We've been given something to look after and we've broken it. Now we're trying to put a sticking plaster on it thinking it'll all be alright. We'll keep on doing our bit, however small, because the day we stop bothering is the day we should pack up and go somewhere else.
Except there isn't anywhere else.
Off for a few more chapters of HP & TDH before a nice lavender bath and a proper early night.
Love & peace
MfR
PS Now there's a hole in the sky
and the ground's not cold
and if the ground's not cold
everything is gonna burn
PPS And the wounded skies above
say it's much, much too late
Matt from Rudgwick - Thanks for the PPS, I love that song it, is so beautiful and from my favourite artist of all time.
I am going up for a bath and I'm going to listen to his CD as I can't get that song out of my head now.
Love Deb x
PS, I don't think it's too late x
PPS, I'm praying for time x
hmm why so few blogs maybe you've got us all thinking???well nature usually sorts itself out but we may not ness like the way it turns out...great shamen chat on show tonight missed some of it but how true what you were saying about thse who would really benifit remain ever sceptical or just are scared of it all.many of us find it through deep depression or bad stuff going on and then ironicly are thankfull for it as it is our path to awareness.and how do we show others when we know you can only do it for yourself???very hard when you have children and you wish beeter for them.hmmmmm..........love you loads,keep up the good work.mx
oh dear here we go again. You are so easily conned Chris. Its not unreasonable really. I suppose you have the financial ability to have the biggest carbon foorprint in the world if you want to but you are restrained by the great apocalypse driver, guilt. Al Gore is not a scientist he is a politician and more importantly he is a liar. His film is lies and maniplulation and it hinges on CO2 causing temperature rise. Of course the data does not support this. CO2 rise lags temperature by 800 years and if man is the cause of climate change its is the activities of William the conqueror not Henry Ford who have caused it. Greenhouse gas is primarily water vapour 99%, methane, 0.9% and finally CO2 0.1 %. CO2 is 0.07% of total atmospheric gas and as humans produce less than 0.01% of Co2 emmisions then it is both disgusting and immoral than Gore et al continue to lie about carbon as an atmospheric driver. The sun is the driver of atmosphere although the IPCC and the drug infested University of East Anglia are "in denial". The truth is greenhouse theory is unproven as the upper atmosphere refuses to heat up. The IPCCs computer models are exactly as convincing in terms of evidence as any Nintendo offering. Al Gore, George Monbigot, and worldwide public enemy No 1 David Begg are nothing more than social engineers and erstwhile communists. The great Global warming swindell is just the method by which which they seek to avenge the greatest statesman of the 20th century Michael Gorbacov for the humiliation and ridicule he heaped on them. I am sorry Chris but global warming is a means to a communist end and I have no time for it. A copy of " the great global warming swindall will be on its way to you tommorow and I hope it changes your mind because you are a great positive force in this nation and allowing the negativaty of global warming lies to wash over you is both tragic and unfortunate. I will never succome to the foul greens who want us all to wear the same state funded clothes and travel by bus to our state owned jobs. No No No Never Never Never.
JK Nonegreen
Good Choosday Christophe, persons known and unknown, and a happy day to you all!
It all depends what you believe really doesn't it. If something is convincing enough, and it matches your belief or your up-bringing, then you will usually believe it. It's the people who choose to challenge that are the ones who get picked on. The mass of people who go along with a common flow are the ones who believe they are right.
At risk of being contraversial, and in my opinion, that's how wars start.
I don't think we should build on greenbelt or flood plains, but I would be shouted down by the property developers. I don't think people should be persecuted for their religion. I don't think ANYONE should be persecuted for ANYTHING. More than that, I don't think we should be fighting over countries who have oil. For what ever reason the powers that be say that we have to.
I only boil enough water in my kettle. The boy and I share the bath water. We recycle as much as we can. We only turn the lights on when it is to dark to see. I have (had) a small engine car as it is relatively impossible for me to get to work safely on any other form of transport. The boy has a bigger car because he is self-employed, will always have to drive somewhere for his work, and carry his tools.
I've been doing that for years as I expect lots of others have too, but until there is more peace in the world, and the 'leaders' think more about getting that in place so that our children can inherit a world that isn't ravaged by fighting, what do people care about more? They can be led, they will follow, but any difference that anyone can make, however small, has to be good.
Doesn't it.
love
hazel
x
Three wheels on my bandwaggon and I'm still rolling along...
Morning CLP and gang!
Too right more needs to be done by us all for doing our bit! But what amazes me is the simple things that people don't seem bothered to do - the amount of people at work here who leave monitors switched on over night or at the weekend is mad - I've taken to switching them off for me...and when asked why, make a joke of it saying that I'm saving a penguin...and nothing more of it. Don't get me started on the recycling issue either - paper in a normal bin - grrrr..!!
It only takes a small bit of effort to make a difference, but the message needs to change from saving the planet to saving some money!
If the message really got through how much money can be saved by low energy lights or switching off appliances - then maybe we'll all have a chance....
So next task - get a carbon-neutral blog going!
Tickle :)
Morning all,
Am in agreement with you John (#12) re the sun being the driver. I also agree that it would have been the activities of conqueror Bill et al that would have caused current problems, not latter-day people.
Am also in agreement with Debbie and Matt f R re song - brilliant, couldn't get it out of my head last night either : )
Have a good day.
Mange tout
Gaby
xx
Right now, am sitting in the office windows wide to the world, and lights off.
Always keep the lights off. Is better for the eyes. Switch everyone elses lights off too. .
Boil the kettle with just the right amount of water.
Recycle the rainwater in my garden to water the flowers. Take the lavender off the plants in the garden to make nice smells in the house.
Recycle all my rubbish. Take my clothes to the Second Hand Shop - buy my clothes from the second hand shop, sell things on ebay. Use my soap until it doesn't exist,
I think I'm doing my bit, and additionally, rather than send my mum to a nursing home when she gets past it, I'm going to bash her on the head.
Cool.
DWNB
Greetings Bloggers and Bloggettes from the Cote D'Azure, sunny Galway, from where Paddy Power has the book open on not just the race winners, but also the number of reports of the Crypto-sporidia from the water.
Hot tip. I mistakenly brushed me teeth from the tap this morning so that'll be at least one.
Anyway. Wise words indeed Christoffe Lambie Pie.
I agree with you that George Bush is a Numbnut, whose defining moment for me came the day after 9/11 when he stood amid the rubble of the Twin Towers and declared, "The Folks who drove those planes will be hearing from us soon...."
FOLKS? No, George, not folks. Psychopaths. Whatever Al Qaeda might be, Folks doesn't cover it. Take your stetson off now and stop playing I've Come To Get The Man Who Shot Ma Paw..., you've a job to do now. Starting with looking outside America and at least wondering how things had reached this point.
Sadly, years later, I suspect he's still playing Rawhide and doesn't understand. However, CLP, I'm not at all sure that Al Gore would have been what he ought to have been. Call me a cynic but I reckon he'd have bowed to the pressure of the posse mentality and been a disappointment also.
And it's not like you to do the old What If.. thing.
It's certainly an interesting thought but things happen in life for a reason and we have to move through it and learn.
Don't shoot me for saying this but I honestly believe that this goddam awful war is nowhere near its conclusion, maybe never will be as long as there are thugs and psychopaths out there looking for any cause to call their own in order to rein their mayhem on the world. But over here in Ireland, I see the way the Peace Process has improved the lives of so many, and it's for that that I believe Tony Blair will be applauded in the history books. Without him and Bertie Ahern I don't think this would have happened, and it's truly astonishing to see the Rev. Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness working together.
Please God it lasts and flourishes.
Now then. Talking of Bertie, or the Teflon Taioseach as he's fondly known, consistently sidestepping rumours of some past financial creativity, it's hilarious to see how Kieran Fallon is lauded as a hero for similar transgressions. "Fair Play to him"... Hahaha excellent. How the Irish love a bit of boldness.
Well, must go now... I've a parrot's beak to repair and the heel of me shoe is broken. Fek. They were me bargain Buy One Get One Free and wouldn't you know it's the one I paid for. Typical.
Bottoms up.
Clodagh.xx
Hi Chris
I'm with John at #12. Climate change is a political football.
When you think about the amount of carbon released into the atmosphere during the smog-belching 19th century surely the world would have imploded back then with all of the heavy industry pollution.
Saying that, I still do my bit for the planet, despite not having any kids to save it for, and despite being laughed at for bothering by people who do have kids.
I recycle any household waste that I can, save my veg peelings to be composted, donate clothes to the charity sack etc.
My main driver for energy and water conservation is cost. I just can't afford large household bills.
Jan x
ps that doesn't mean to say that I don't recycle etc......I do : )
By the way Bingo.
Cealm down cealm down mate...I'm born an' bred in Liverpool, am a good scouse geerl meself, even though I claimed political asylum in Wigan for me formative years so listen up.
I'm not tryin' to chat yous up mate. If I was doin' that I'd simply utter the words of Wigan Birds everywhere, Get Yer Coat Yer've Pulled. And Don't Forget yer Pie.
But bless you I'm sure I'd snog the face off yous if I saw you because I'm also Common s Muck. No, it's just scouse car park attendants I'd tar and feather and beat the crap out of with a toilet brush.
And Debbie. Thanks for that. Hope you're fit and positive this morning. And if you're not, go out and buy a Father Ted DVD, the one where he tries to give up the fags. Then go and give those boys (including the hubby) a big kiss.
Clodagh.xx
DWNB - My dad's made me buy a shotgun, or a wheelchair near a very high cliff!
As for the recycling stuff, I always recycle and I'm proud that my mum and dad do more than their fair share too. My outlaws however just put token bits into their recycling bin and can't really see that changing their ways could have an effect.
The first thing we bought at our new house was a butt (I like big butts and I cannot lie - Is that about conserving water???) to connect to next doors garage drainpipe, I don't have the heating on past about April and I am so pleased that our new council recycles plastics from the doorstep.
Councils are so crap though because in theory they promote recycling but then don't take plastics because they don't weigh enough and the perfrmance indicator is for weight of recycled goods...Rubbish
Not convinced about the climate change argument by the way - I think Muichael Chrichton wrote a book about it a while ago, it was very good and I trust his research, even though it was a fictional piece.
:o) Jo
PS. Am going the whole hog with reuseable nappies too, they look so much cuter and i shall feel smug :o)
Ello CLP & ALL Blog Friends,
Bingo Star ere.
Great blog CLP, i'm glad you've written on global warming, it gives me my excuse to write something i've wanted to write for a while but keep putting it off as I don't want to depress people about our serious situation we're all facing. (I'll get it out the way today.)
I agree what if Al Gore had become president would he be kinder to the world. It's a shame what bad polititions are running the world at present. It all seemed like peace was near a few years back but now it's slowly reversing back to wars and tensions.
Some really interesting comments already from fellow bloggers out there.
I'll try and keep this as short as I can -
Something very BIG is happening to the earth right now and unfortunately I think it's too late to change it. We are all very insignificant compared to the might of nature, the earth and the solar system. All this kind of talk can get too much for the mind, you start to question what is life all about, why are we here in the first place?
I WANT to change and become carbon neutral but I've tryed and find it's so difficult if not near impossible. Sadly we are all controlled by big business, goverment and money. It says in the bible, man will destroy himself with greed and that's exactly whats happening.
Why do we need polluting power stations? We ALL have slopeing roofs that could house solar panels and wind turbines could be fitted too. We all could be self dependant for power but the panels are so expensive and you even need planning permission to install them. Why don't the goverment make all new houses have to be fitted with them? Why aren't they being mass produced? Then the price would become very affordable. But of course all the big energy companies and the goverment wouldn't like us to get free power from the sun and wind.
Then there's cars. I really have looked into getting an electric car but they are so impratical unless you travel a short distance - except a new one - The Smart electric car. We all see Smart cars everywhere but there all petrol. Why is the new electric version being witheld from us or developed at a snails pace. It can do 70mph and has a range of 70miles - ok for most peoples journeys. Yet only 100 have been produced and given to local authorities etc NOT to the public - WHY? If global warming is so bad why aren't they quickly mass producing them now?
Then there's biofuels - what a disasters that's been. Petrol stations started selling biodoesel only to find people having problems with there cars. So they've withdrawn it near were I live. They there's bio-ethanol - I believe only a handful of forecourts sell it in the whole country.
Why could all trucks not be made to run on bio-diesel? Think how good would that be for farmers growing bio products and our country being self reliant on fuel. It would be so good for our country and economy but maybe that's to simple for the goverments.
Why are all new cars and trucks not being produced to run on bio-fuels, gas, etc? We need to move faster - NOW!!!
Sadly it's all gone too far, the greed, big business and the way the whole world's economies are run.
Theres no will to change, it's all false talk of change and very little action by the goverments.
Even if the UK completely changed and became totally green other countries in the world wouldn't.
China and India are causing far more polution than us and there expanding fast without any thought of global warming. Most people in India have never heard of global warming. Aswell air travel is dramatically increasing in India.
I've read the thames barrier is having to shut more and more and it's only a question of time before London does get flooded. So the £2bn of the recent floods would be nothing. If these events keep happening how long would it be before insurance companies couldn't pay out and wouldn't insure.
How much could goverments keep paying out from these disasters before they run out of funds?
Our fragility is getting closer to being revealled if nature gets nasty.
I've read alot about Nostradamus, religion, the mayan calendar, the bible and very sadly world events do seem to be dramatically speeding up and tying in with what i've read. Google any of the above and you can read so many different theories and text.
I've read about the earth, how an ice age lasts about 110,000 years but at present the melting of the ice caps is speeding this process up 1,000 times faster. Also the earths axis is in change at present. The earth wobbles 2.4 degrees on it's axis every 40,000 years but scientists have noticed it's seems to be upto 3 degrees out. Something to do with the magnetic pole that runs through the centre of the earth.
One theory of mine, which I hope is just a silly theory of mine, is could the polar ice caps act as giant weights helping to keep the earth on it's balanced axis? If they melt there will be less weight at the north and south pole. The seas will rise as predicted - could this cause the earth to topple onto a different axis? Just a theory of mine - I hope it's rubbish but who knows.
If that did happen large tsunami's and earth quakes would take place all over the world. Again ties in with the bible and Nostradamus - but, again, who knows.
Were all going to go one day, within 70 years or so. If anything like that did happen your mind just adjusts and we wouldn't know anything about it anyway so there's no point losing sleep over such possible events.
Lets hope we do manage to change and that global warming won't hit us as hard as I think it is beginning to.
Theres always been doom mongers predicting the end OUR earth but nobody really knows when it will be and if it will be.
So many dates and predictions have come and pass let's hope the next ones prove to be false.
One thing for sure though the earth has gone through a mind boggling change over the past two centuries.
All the inventions - air travel, motor vehicles, medicine etc, it's incredible to think the earth has been here for millions of years but in 200 years the change has been unbelievablely fast.
Just a shame we can't reverse greed and change global warming fast right now!!!
Hope I havn't depressed anyone too much today - I'll return to humour errrr...... termorro!!!
PS Gaby. I should hope not.
PPS Clodagh, could you do e30 for me each way on the sheepskin noseband? I'll settle up with you later if that's ok.
Coming up on the inside
love
hazel
x
I felt exactly the same after watching AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH...
... but then I watched an equally hard hitting documentary called "THE GREAT GLOBAL WARMING SWINDLE" which puts it all into perspective.
This is a must see.
(See also www.greatglobalwarmingswindle.co.uk)
Its shocking stuff, the whole global warming alarm, raises serious issues about the way science functions in the real world, about the political bias of scientists, about censorship within the scientific community itself, about the routine practice of scientists drawing false or inflated conclusions from ambiguous or uncertain data, about the manifest failure of the peer review process, about the extraordinary unwillingness of scientists who have invested time and reputation in a particular theory to consider evidence which directly contradicts it, about the elevation of speculation (models) to the level of solid data, and much else besides.
Hi one and all,
I agree with wot lots of you are saying, if we try to do our bit re carbon footprints etc. I know I've been on carbon tippy toes for some time now so am trying to do my bit.
Anyhow, the point of my joining in today is to say a huge thank you thank you thank you to Mr E and team for the fantastic Proclaimers ( I know I'm a little late but couldn't be helped)
They were the business, I sang my socks off all the way home, so thanks again. In fact once I got out of the lanes on my journey and back into traffic I could see I was not alone enjoying the boys, as all around were people in thier cars mouthing the same lyrics! made me smile, it was as if we were all playing some strange mime game.
Well, I guess that's all for now, hope everyone is well.
Take care
Nicki
PS It'll soon be Friday, and yes I'm still in love.
Great blog - not able to see it until late this morning but have had a very interesting time reading all the comments.
I would just like to say surely it is immaterial whether there's global warming or not. The earth is a finite planet and all her resources are also finite. We are using up the earth at a phenomenal rate so we need desperately to slow that down. We need to preserve all we can by repairing, reusing, recycling. We need a huge change in the ethos of our throw away society and I don't think that will make us communists!
So the same changes need to be done with the way we live our lives whether you believe in global warming or not!
jx
ps Bingo - you really are a star!
Nice comment about the changing climate, slightly ironic that it is made by someone who has bought/used/has expensive performance cars or Land Rovers which are not the most economical users of fossil fuels nor the cleanest modes of transport. Chris, do you really need a Land Rover in Surrey??
#22 Bingo, what an excellent lot of questions. It always strikes me how like religion global warming is. In the end the warmingists "believe", just as Al Quieda do and those who champion the market mechanism. Its just like god and Allah in the end, nothing more than an imaginary friend. Although I am not too happy that some believers want to kill me cos I have no beliefs.
As for the Ice caps, well there is no evidence that they are melting, in fact the engineer from the British Antarctic expedition let slip on the radio recently that the base building complex automatically jacks itself up by 9 feet every year to take account of the build up of ice as the southern ice mass increases by 54 million tonnes annually and has been doing for about 70 years.
I always find it fascinationg that whenever anyone proffers alternatives to burning fossil fuels such as biodiesel etc its the greens that quash it because of course nothing less than pounding the western economies back to the stone age will ever satisfy your true sandalist.
The planet is 4 billion years old and it has another 4 ish billion to go before the sun runs out of fuel. That means we need to stop with imaginary freind wars, ditch the individual achievement stuff and get working on a collective plan to get out of here and go collonise somwhere else. That requires a whole different mentality. If we were smart we would start by scrapping silly Kyoto and spending the 50 trillion on getting the population down to about 3 bn by education and the destruction of poverty on a worldwide scale. But hey what do I know? I am just an ordinary Joe
JK Nonegreen
Well Chris, I hope you are pleased with yourself!! What a blog!
All really interesting, all really fascinating, and some of it utterly terrifying!
I will continue to recycle, put off lights and continue to be too poor to travel anywhere, so my carbon footprints are up for grabs.
I am totally on board with all that's being said, but my darling, deeply missed, daddy used to say: if you think too much, all you end up with is a sore head!
Love you all!
C xx
Whilst I believe that we live in a world where the majority of people are totally selfish and do not care for others or the environment, I wholeheartedly support us all doing what we can to recycle etc. otherwise we all sink to the lowest common denominator.
I was interested however to hear that the recent weather has nothing new and has occurred in the past. The real change is the landscape the rain falls on and that is what causes the floods. We have far more built up areas and these have replaced soft landscaping that would have previously absorbed the water. Instead it is being channelled in to out of date drainage and sewer systems that cannot cope.
All seems very logical to me so I'm off home to dig up the drive and replace it with a lawn!
Nev
systems
Ironically, in the event of a full atomic nukerler attacking world-ending war, the only people who will survive it, are the ones in bunkers, who are the ones who started it in the first place.
Am now feeling deeply profound and in need of cig. Am off-setting carbon foot print of cig and lighter by not having a cup of tea with it.
There
love
hazel
x
I hear what you're saying, however the problem we face is a matter of priorities. If you subscribe to the newsletter of the Union of Concerned Scientists, www.ucsusa.org, then you'd realise that there are even greater and more pressing problems which require our efforts right now rather than global warming. Sure, they acknowledge, that global warming is a real problem that needs tackling, but even a relative minor legislative and commercial change we make now will cost hundreds of billions of dollars worldwide and result in an almost imperceptible climate change, yet the same amount of money could be spent on finding a cure for AIDS, providing clean water to hundreds of millions of people worldwide, eradicating the re-emergence of epidemic malaria which costs millions of lives per year, and providing real trading avenues for isolated third- and second-world farming communities - all of which will have a more immediate and sustainable impact on the quality of life worldwide.
Also, you can call me a cynic if you like - I've seen An Inconvenient Truth and I was impressed by it. Some of the evidence and pictures are shocking. However, even more shocking, is the discovery that Al Gore has turned his lecture circuit into a big money-spinner and grosses millions of dollars a year by holding these lectures. As valid as his points are, he's doing what all politicians do - working at becoming famous and rich.
I happen to believe that the most important force in our world isn't climate change, nuclear weapons or multinational corporations; it's the human heart. No matter how reasonable or manicured the message is, the motives have to be weighed first, because somewhere, eventually, after some time, the force of the motives outweighs the campaign or project or short-term successes, and our motivations have a way of pulling us in directions we didn't anticipate. The present-day situation in Iraq is a good contemporary example of this.
Making rash choices based on the hot-topic of the day leads to disaster. Worse still: making choices based on questionable motives leaves even bigger disasters. As Proverbs tells us, a wise king has many advisors and seeks thoughtful counsel before acting, but the foolish rush into disaster. It is better for us to hear as many sides and angles of the debate as possible before we regard ourselves as making a wise, long-term, global choice.
Ironically, in the event of a full atomic nukerler attacking world-ending war, the only people who will survive it, are the ones in bunkers, who are the ones who started it in the first place.
Am now feeling deeply profound and in need of cig. Am off-setting carbon foot print of cig and lighter by not having a cup of tea with it.
There
love
hazel
x
The world has been heating up and cooling down for millions of years it's a natural process and there will only be one winner - Nature.
Admittedly man may be speeding things up but
Nature will sort it out eventually. It might take a few thousand years to resolve but there will only be one winner in the end.
Great Blog Chris!
I am so glad that you are writing about this subject. I work for a non profit environmental organisation in San Francisco and it is very alarming the unbelievable political stories you hear over here!! I am originally from Newcastle and will be coming back to the crazy weather in June 2008. Here are a couple of websites that are extremely interesting:-
- basically a writer who lives in New York and is trying to live carbon neutral for 1 year in the big apple - there are some very inspirational ideas!!
- this is a list of the best writing blogs out there on the interweb for LifeRemix is for people trying to figure out how to improve their lives
Please check them out!
Love the show!!
Geordie Nige
Dear All,
The total population of the UK is less than 1%
of the World total. FACT. The total landmass of
the UK is less than 1% of the World total. FACT.
Any action we take in the UK to try to affect global weather activity - would be like passing wind in a hurricane ! (Note they've had NO
notable huricanes in the carribean since Katrina -(Aug 2005)) The activist are setting you up for the biggest tax shafting of the next generation.
If we want to affect global weather stop the latin american & asian countries chopping the rainforests down THAT is what's caused CO2 levels to rise - i believe they've been clearing areas of rainforest BIGGER that the UK EVERY DAY since the 1950s.
If they continue the planet will totally loose it's ability to scrub CO2 from the atmosphere.
Weather records have apparently been kept in the UK since the 1770's - wow 230 years worth of
records on a 4.5 billion years old planet - statistically insignificant. Wonder how they collected & collated these records before email - no wait before mobiles, no wait before the telephone, no wait before the car, no wait before the train.
Baldrick was probably the collater.
Remember these are the same politicians that told you Sadam definitely had WMD - believe them at your peril !
Gawd is that the time pub shuts in an hour - night all.
Chris
I’m sorry but I have to disagree with the whole global warming issue. Yes the planet is warming up, yes we are producing massive amounts of the so called green house gasses, but temperature changes have occurred since the earth was formed. There have been ice ages, and due to global warming the ice melted, this is a cycle that has always been preceded by a gradual warming and change in the amount of gases in the atmosphere. At the end of the day it makes no difference any way because no matter what we do as an individual or as a whole, this process has started with no way of stopping it.
As for Al Gore do you really believe that he would have been able to make any change to the American way of life wit all the money and political power wielded by the oil companies and industry, he may mean well but put him in power and all he would be concerned with is keeping that power no matter the cost the environment.
Love the show keep it up