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Environment & Energy
In reply to the discussion: Bill McKibben: This is how the earth works now [View all]longship
(40,416 posts)2. And it is going to worse before it gets better.
These non-linear systems can change state quickly, or even go chaotic. Hansen seems to think that the climate has clicked into a new state.
For instance, the jet stream seems to have moved north this past season. That brought a record warm Arctic season and accompanied record ice melt, blasting previous years by a considerable margin. The number of alarming climate papers is stunning.
I know that President Obama has advisers who know about this, but I am not surprised that he hasn't said anything about it in the campaign. He wants to win and a pissing contest on climate might not be the best thing to do.
But he is going to have to address this soon, hopefully soon after the election. I hope.
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How is your description of the future in any way different from the present?
GliderGuider
Sep 2012
#41
True, to an extent, but I was trying to ask you to imagine in a world where things are 100x worse...
AverageJoe90
Sep 2012
#46
Mlllenia is a bit of an exaggeration. A couple centuries is more realistic.
AverageJoe90
Sep 2012
#16
Sad but true. The hardcore doomer set didn't make things any easier for us, though, that's for sure.
AverageJoe90
Sep 2012
#15
A 50% reduction would decrease the rate of increase. It takes an 80% to 90% reduction to start....
Junkdrawer
Sep 2012
#21
"It takes an 80% to 90% reduction to start.... a SLOW 100 to 1000 year recovery."
AverageJoe90
Sep 2012
#30
Fine, as long as we address Reality and not some Green Washed version of Reality...
Junkdrawer
Sep 2012
#63
"July turned out to be the warmest month ever recorded in the United States, any month, any year."
dixiegrrrrl
Sep 2012
#10
It may not be a coincidence, but I'm not ready to jump to any conclusions yet.
AverageJoe90
Sep 2012
#39