If you aren’t alarmed about climate, you aren’t paying attention

[limpyhobbler]

By David Roberts

There was recently another one of those (numbingly familiar) internet tizzies wherein someone trolls environmentalists for being “alarmist” and environmentalists get mad and the troll says “why are you being so defensive?” and everybody clicks, clicks, clicks.

I have no desire to dance that dismal do-si-do again. But it is worth noting that I find the notion of “alarmism” in regard to climate change almost surreal. I barely know what to make of it. So in the name of getting our bearings, let’s review a few things we know.

We know we’ve raised global average temperatures around 0.8 degrees C so far. We know that 2 degrees C is where most scientists predict catastrophic and irreversible impacts. And we know that we are currently on a trajectory that will push temperatures up 4 degrees or more by the end of the century.

What would 4 degrees look like? A recent World Bank review of the science reminds us. First, it’ll get hot:
...

from http://grist.org/climate-energy/climate-alarmism-the-idea-is-surreal/

[NYC_SKP]

1. K/R (nt)