Global Warming: First Do No Harm
Whatever you think about global warming, our first responsibility is to make sure that the cure is not worse than the disease. As the father of medicine -- Hippocrates -- put it, "first do no harm".
In other words, if all the patient has is a slight headache, you don't want to bleed him with leeches and then cut out part of his brain.
What am I talking about? Well, initially, liberal pundit Noam Chomsky has said that he would submit to fascism if it would help combat global warming:
Moreover, I heard years ago in college that people were debating dropping a nuclear bomb on the Isthmus of Panama (the little spit of land which separates the Pacific ocean from the Carribean), in order to join the two oceans and so - hypothetically - curb the effects of global warming.
Now, "government scientists are studying the feasibility of sending nearly microscopic particles of specially made glass into the Earth's upper atmosphere to try to dampen the effects of 'global warming.' "
Some people are also suggesting cutting down trees and burying them.
These proposals are insane. They would cause unimaginable damage to human health, and could very well destabilize climate in a manner we haven't foreseen.
Whether you believe in man-made global warming or not, it is vital that we all use our heads and stop our government from doing anything crazy and destructive in the name of protecting us from global warming.
In other words, if all the patient has is a slight headache, you don't want to bleed him with leeches and then cut out part of his brain.
What am I talking about? Well, initially, liberal pundit Noam Chomsky has said that he would submit to fascism if it would help combat global warming:
"Suppose it was discovered tomorrow that the greenhouse effects has been way understimated, and that the catastrophic effects are actually going to set in 10 years from now, and not 100 years from now or something.I don't care if Godzilla is about to attack . . . submitting to fascism is always a bad idea.
Well, given the state of the popular movements we have today, we'd probably have a fascist takeover-with everybody agreeing to it, because that would be the only method for survival that anyone could think of. I'd even agree to it, because there's just no other alternatives right now." (page 388).
Moreover, I heard years ago in college that people were debating dropping a nuclear bomb on the Isthmus of Panama (the little spit of land which separates the Pacific ocean from the Carribean), in order to join the two oceans and so - hypothetically - curb the effects of global warming.
Now, "government scientists are studying the feasibility of sending nearly microscopic particles of specially made glass into the Earth's upper atmosphere to try to dampen the effects of 'global warming.' "
Some people are also suggesting cutting down trees and burying them.
These proposals are insane. They would cause unimaginable damage to human health, and could very well destabilize climate in a manner we haven't foreseen.
Whether you believe in man-made global warming or not, it is vital that we all use our heads and stop our government from doing anything crazy and destructive in the name of protecting us from global warming.
2 Comments:
"Now, "government scientists are studying the feasibility of sending nearly microscopic particles of specially made glass into the Earth's upper atmosphere to try to dampen the effects of 'global warming.' "
Do not panic. This is what happens naturally every time a large volcano blows its top several times a century.
They are right, one should use it in a controlled manner, if it is needed. At the moment it is not, since the warming has stopped. If it starts again, or more to the point, if it becomes runaway, why not some "artificial volcanoe" manmade effects?
Actually I put my money on the solar scientists who predice a cooling the next thirty years, so all this is unnecessary. It is good that it is studied though.
Instead of spending countless billions to study kooky ideas to combat global warming and consider taxing us trillions more, why not spend a little more on developing and coverting to the cheaper and cleaner nuclear power that recent technological advances have made available. That's got to be better than facism, and it has the potential benefit of lowering my electric bill. Of course to the best of my knowledge Al Gore has not invested in any companies that would benefit to a switch to newer and cleaner nuclear power. Guess that rules out that possibility.
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