An Inconvenient Truth

[filkertom]

Watch the trailer.

And remember: Environmental protection is the most important issue, period. Because Republican, Democrat, rich, poor, straight, gay, pro-choice, anti-abortion, pro-immigration, anti-immigration, you name it... none of it matters five days after you run out of potable water, or five minutes after you run out of breathable air.

Comments

[mouser.livejournal.com]

They talk about global warming melting the icecaps... They show the water level rising, etc....

I've been wondering what dumping that much fresh water into the oceans would do to the eco systems.

[tigertoy.livejournal.com]

It has local effects in the immediate area where the melted water pours in. The oceans are so big that any global effect on salinity worldwide would be whatever the effect of the temperature change is, not the effect of the fresh water.

When the places where half of the world's population live will be under water in a few decades, all the other effects of global warming are trivial by comparison, and all the talk about those effects serves to trivialize the problem. The average American on the street just doesn't understand that twice as many hurricanes, or some weird animals going extinct, is actually worth his worrying about it. The idea of every coastal city being under water, a Katrina that is forever, not just for a few days, and affecting 200-300 times as many people, ought to be something that people recognize is a problem, but most people don't actually get it.

[mouser.livejournal.com]

Ummm... two thirds of the worlds oxygen comes from the oceans. An incredible amount of the food chain goes through the oceans directly, not to mention that ALL of it goes though it eventually.

So, yea, my concern isn't trivial. I just don't know the biological sciences enough to know if a reduction of a percent or two would have much of an effect. But then, you're not a marine biologist so I don't imagine you know either.

Oh, and Katrina just missed us last year. Our hotel (where I'm the I.T. department) was FLOODED with refugees for months, so I've got a bit of an awareness of what just ONE hurricane can do. I'm not looking forward to the next few years. Plus, twenty feet puts my house on the wrong side of "beachfront".

[mouser.livejournal.com]

I apologize Tom - this probably isn't the place for a flame war.

[tigertoy.livejournal.com]

I didn't mean to be flaming you, and I'm sorry if I came across that way.

I'm frustrated by what I see as a general attitude of complacency on the part of the public, which I think is fueled by the fact that most of the media coverage is about effects which are are much easier to dismiss than the sea level rise. While I meant to express that frustration, I didn't mean to direct it at you.

[mouser.livejournal.com]

It's why I apologized. I got frustrated for being dismissed out of hand.

[nomaddervish.livejournal.com]

I just don't know the biological sciences enough to know if a reduction of a percent or two would have much of an effect.

You're estimating a bit high there... Based on about 10 minutes of googling, it appears that the volume of water in the oceans is about 1,350 million cubic km and the volume of ice in the world is just under 30 million cubic km. The ice would melt into a slightly smaller volume of water, but we'll assume that decrease in volume to be insignificant to spare me the trouble of having to look it up. Melting all the ice, then, would increase the volume of the ocean to 1,380 million cubic km. The average salinity of the ocean (by weight) is 3.5%. 3.5% * 1350 / 1380 = 3.4%. Locally, ocean salinity already varies from 3.2 to 3.7%, so I highly doubt that a decrease in the average from 3.5% to 3.4% would have any effect. (Disclaimer: Dammit, Jim, I'm a physicist, not a doctor!)

[mouser.livejournal.com]

...Except it depends on a variety of factors, such as the speed it melts and mixes, if cold/fresh water "floats" in warmer/sea water, etc.

If it makes the areas near the poles drop by several point before it mixes, what's the effect?

[seanmonster.livejournal.com]

Because Republican, Democrat, rich, poor,

Sadly, the environment truly doesn't matter to the Fundies. The End of the World can't come quick enough for them. The sooner that happens, the sooner they get to go to their mansion in Heaven, and live with Jay-zuz forever more.

[dr-zrfq.livejournal.com]

Or so they *think*. *sigh*

[unclelumpy.livejournal.com]

Oh, but you're wrong, Sean. The World isn't ending. The World isn't going anywhere.

WE are!

All in all, no great loss.

[smallship1.livejournal.com]

Well, fine, then. If we're that worthless, let's just carry on as we are. :)

Of all the possible reactions to this crisis, I think possibly "serves us right" is the one I find most irritating, even more so than complacency. Complacent people can be jolted into awareness. Those who have already judged, convicted and sentenced the entire human race to annihilation are long past that. So I really hope, every time someone plays the "let's dump on humanity" card, that they're just kidding.

Just sayin', man...

[unclelumpy.livejournal.com]

http://unclelumpy.livejournal.com/2005/04/26/

Re: Just sayin', man...

[mouser.livejournal.com]

vhemt for the win!

[seanmonster.livejournal.com]

The World isn't ending. The World isn't going anywhere.

Oh, I know that. I was simply commenting on the Fundamentalist view on the environment.

[ludzu-alus.livejournal.com]

Sometimes, I secretly hope that the fundies are at least partially right in that they will all ascend to their 'heaven' and leave the rest of us well enough alone at long last. It's not the meek that will inherit the Earth - it'll be those of us with the sense to get left behind. :)


(Disclaimer - I don't really mean to seriously offend anyone's religious beliefs.)

[liddle-oldman.livejournal.com]

Inconvinient truth #1, in my opinion --

There's already too damn many people, and they're breeding unrestrained. It's called carrying capacity, people.