On climate change, expect the worst

[n2doc]

Mario Molina and Bob Litterman

For far too long, our national debate about climate change has been about "yes or no:" Is human-caused climate change real? That debate should now end. Based on well-established evidence, about 97% of climate scientists have concluded that human-caused climate change is happening. If 97 of 100 doctors told you that your child's health was at serious risk without surgery, how long would you wait for the other three to get on board?

The next debate is about how we should respond. Those decisions should be supported by the best information climate science can give us about what's already happening, what's likely to happen in the future and – importantly – what might happen.

Let's start with what's already happening. Temperatures are going up. Ice sheets are melting. Sea level is rising. The patterns of rainfall and drought are changing. Heat waves are getting worse as is extreme precipitation. The oceans are acidifying. All of these impacts have social and economic costs. But we must also consider what science tells us as we conduct this unprecedented experiment with the world's climate system: expect the unexpected.

As global temperature rises, the risk increases that one or more important parts of the Earth's climate system will experience changes that may be abrupt, unpredictable and potentially irreversible with massively disruptive and large-scale impacts. As one example, we could experience abrupt losses from both major ice sheets in Antarctica, precipitating rapid and irreversible sea level rise all around the globe. Will that happen? It's unlikely, but the point is that it might. And the risk increases as global temperature goes up.

more

http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2014/04/12/climate-change-global-warming-evidence-science-column/7438567/

[dhill926]

1. rec….

and USA Today no less….

[Auntie Bush]

2. Send this to your conservative friends and relatives that are stupid enough

not to believe in climate change. It just might open some eyes that aren't closed too tight or glued shut.

[TheKentuckian]

6. For why? They can only be either too limited in capacity to process the information or lying ass

malignant liars that lie or ideological zealots cooking up excuses at the rate and as desperately as freekers cooking up meth (usually the guys that actually admit it is real but have elected to argue if it is caused by humans, as if it matters the cause if we still die).

I like this one because once we are in the same neighborhood of facts the questions becomes really simple -

Don't we need a certain conditions to survive and thrive?

You do want the species to go on?

You acknowledge we need other flora and fauna to pull that off?

You accept that said plants and animals also have tolerances that must be maintained and needs met to survive and flourish?

Then you do not dispute that regardless of cause the climate must be maintained within some range for survival? Do they not eat or require pollination and so doesn't all of that have its own infrastructure that in turn has its needs?

Can your children or grandchildren live breathing carbon dioxide? Care to prove it, go ahead show me.

May I give your baby this water? Never mind where it came from, there is nothing in it that you have an objection to. Now, please sign this waiver.

Then what is your practical opposition to climate maintenance?

What is climate maintenance? It is maintaining environmental, climate, and habitat conditions conducive to our form of life. You are a 100% behind that aren't you or do you think that the time comes for us to make room for the next cycle like the dinosaurs couldn't be here with us now. Maybe the dinosaurs can return or maybe it will be the age of the insects next.

[Aldo Leopold]

3. Like Bill Maher said, talking about believing in climate change,

or believing climate change is human-caused, is like talking about "believing" water boils at 100 degrees Celsius. We need to move beyond using such language about climate change.

[2naSalit]

4. K&R

[WillyT]

5. K & R !!!