[ExI] global warming again.

[Stefano Vaj]

On Wed, Mar 18, 2009 at 6:25 AM, John K Clark <jonkc at bellsouth.net> wrote:
> 2) If in the future if it does cause problems we will have to deal with it
> then because right now with our technology there is absolutely nothing we
> can do about it. All the "solutions" I've seen are just gestures, multi
> trillion gestures that would drive the world into poverty and make the money
> lost in the sub prime mortgage crisis look like chump change. And still it
> would just be a gesture.

While as already mentioned I am a "possibilist" on GW, this is indeed
a serious concern.

For instance, doom-mongers usually warn us of the possible - and
theoretically plausible - existence of a "tipping point", beyond which
runaway positive-feedback loops would take over.

Now, it seems bizarre that any serious discussion could not take into
account that such a tipping point might already be behind us.

Were it the case, I imagine that a case could be presented that we
might be better off by burning fossil fuels like mad, as if there were
literally no tomorrow, if this marginally increased (the available
resources relevant to) our chances to get access in the near future to
an large enough energy source (say, space-based solar energy, nuclear
fusion, deep geothermy) to allow us to embark in serious remedial
action.

But even asking question on such aspects, which are normal in ordinary
strategic thinking and risk assessment, are taken as blasphemy
whenever GW is the subject at hand.

-- 
Stefano Vaj