[ExI] Apocalypse Soon: Has Civilization Passed the Environmental Point of No Return?

[David Lubkin]

As was noted when the original Limits to Growth study came out,
the core fallacy is that they assume we're a closed system.
Ironic for a book that's come out just after the Planetary Resources
announcement.

We don't need to live within "planetary limits" any more than a
lifeboat in a freshwater lake has to ration food and water. There's
all you need once you get past thinking the boat is all there is to
the world.

Meadows and Randers remind me of those apocalyptans who
keep revising the date on their sign for when the Earth will end
when it doesn't on schedule.

The part I find most depressing is how often earnest, trumpeting
prognosticators (in whatever sphere) who were wrong before
are listened to as if their past failures hadn't occurred.

(It doesn't seem to matter what the topic they were wrong about
is. If X is elected, it will be the last election the country will know.
It is impossible to build reliable software of more than Y lines of
code. The country will have no fresh water after year Z.)


-- David.