1. U.N. Draft Cites Humans in Recent Climate Shifts

Comment #30044 by E_L_G on April 6, 2007 at 10:38 am

Philos,

At some point you have trade a little passion for the coin of the real world, which is cash. The forces of ignorance are very well funded. Religion is big business in the US and elsewhere. Building construction, stained glass, bibles, and hymnals all have producers, suppliers, distributers, employees, and supporting communities. Schools, colleges, universities, bureaucracies. To go up against this you need cash and lots of it. We have the Randi challenge. I don't see a lot of Templeton Fund size entities fighting for rationality, reason, and a dogma free world.

2. U.N. Draft Cites Humans in Recent Climate Shifts

Comment #30008 by E_L_G on April 6, 2007 at 5:55 am

Private Equity means the money doesn't necessarily follow the politics, so it is increasingly difficult to herd the international cats to a single purpose.

The big CO2 issue is ocean acidification. We are already rapidly approaching a crash in global fisheries. Soilent Green anyone?

3. U.N. Draft Cites Humans in Recent Climate Shifts

Comment #29994 by E_L_G on April 6, 2007 at 3:22 am

Brian,

It isn't just a debate over science and religion. As a nation built by immigration and expansion, the US has a secular culture that says, "Hey, if things get too bad where you are, then just move on to somewhere less hostile. Them pacific islanders will just have to suck it up, get back in their canoes and head for higher ground."

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina the sense is, "so what?" if it is your home. You don't move back to New Orleans unless you are personally willing to assume the risk and cost. It is not the Government's job to tell you how to run your life, with or without Hummer, just provide reasonable institutions to "regulate the seams" and enforce contracts. Much of which is still playing out among people, who had insurance, and their insurance companies in the courts. A very different world view from Europe's and a poorly understood one if you haven't grown up in it.

We can try to change the global trend, but don't expect much organized help from the US. More likely we will all simply have to live with it. 15 years from now our university freshmen will have grown up knowing only global warming, much as today's grew up knowing PC's and cellular phones instead of typewriters and rotary dialing.

There will be pain and dislocation. That's life as most of human history has known it. My generation has just been lucky.

4. Does God answer prayer? ASU research says 'yes'

Comment #26106 by E_L_G on March 17, 2007 at 2:03 am

At the risk of seeming cynical, I have to wonder how much a study like this positions the author(s) for future funding from the Templeton Foundation.