Wake up, Australia
Some years back, there was a philosophy in mathematics education circles that students should be encouraged to create knowledge via discovery processes.
It is true that finding out how to find out is incredibly valuable, indeed actually invaluable, but the time factor has to click in at some stage.
Also, if every generation had to reinvent the wheel, progress would be abysmally slow!
So, the compromise is to accept some knowledge as fact.
Some of us have the luxury of time to explore what is going on all round the world, to research history and science, compare information sources and check the truthfulness of available information. Others, by the nature of their employment, have to follow this path in order to keep those who employ them suitably informed.
Once upon a time, most democracies employed public servants, whose role was to provide this knowledge source for governments. It was intended to be apolitical, to provide unbiased and factual information and advice, whatever the political flavour of the current government. and to ensure this, employment was permanent and promotion was on merit.
In many countries, including Australia, that system is now well on the way to being destroyed by political masters, who prefer to reduce the size of the Public Service and spend squillions on consultants whose role is to provide the information the politicians want to hear! How will you be called on again to offer advice if it does not suit the political masters?
Gone are the days of “Yes, Minister!” and “Yes, Prime Minister!” with knowledgeable experts heading up government departments!
This is also the age of ready access to information via the internet, so that anyone with a computer, time, ability to compare sources and to fact check can find out what is going on all round the world.
And it is not good!
It is clear that for over a century it has been known that burning fossil fuels could affect the climate. For over 40 years, the fossil fuel industries, having researched the effect increasing use of fossil fuels would have on climate, have funded a disinformation campaign to hide the knowledge of the eventual severity of the man-made disaster which was looming.
In the process, party political funds have been flowing in nicely and, in gratitude, the fossil fuel exploration and extraction ventures have been generously subsidised by governments.
There are other greenhouse gases other than those produced from fossil fuels, and thawing tundra in northern Europe is set to release enormous quantities of methane.
In 2018 the news was released that the rate at which climate change was happening was in fact increasing, and, this year, we learn that we are already past at least one of the tipping points which scientists have alerted us to.
The tipping points relate to the stages of climate change, defined by various temperature increases – that is the average annual global temperature – based on pre-Industrial Revolution temperatures. We are already up by one degree Celsius and we have been warned that increases above 1.5 deg C ensure more severe and more frequent adverse weather events.
The various international commitments made, the most recent being the Paris Agreement, have not been honoured by every signatory, and the latest reports indicate that levels of emissions are still increasing, making it unlikely that the Paris goals will be met.
Many people complain, incorrectly, that China is doing nothing to reduce its emissions, and examination of this graph indicates that total emissions can be divided into three similar sized pieces of pie, one of which represents China. It is worth noting that reduction expectations at Paris were influenced by several factors, one of which was the stage of development of each country – and China was recognised as still being in a catch-up period.
The total of the sectors from India through France is roughly equal to China and includes countries which are already taking significant steps to reduce emissions. The USA is a large part of the remaining third and, despite Trump pulling out of the Paris Agreement, many of the States of the USA are also taking steps in the right direction.
For any country to do as Australia is doing, and hold back from having a plan because others like China are having so much more impact, is totally counterproductive. There are countries less developed than us who will struggle to meet targets, so the most developed countries need to take up the slack. We all live on the same planet, remember!
Fortunately, most of our states and territories, and many communities and individuals, are acting to reduce emissions but for some time now, business and industry have been pleading with the Coalition government to provide guidance by providing a national plan. We need to reduce emission but we also need to tackle pollution with effective recycling on a national scale.
After all, piecemeal introduction of renewable energy sources creates problems for a grid which has been severely neglected after privatisation. Many issues need to be guided by an over-arching plan.
There are, as always, many issues requiring attention. Inequality, Indigenous recognition, regulation of the banking industry and financial institution, reforms for aged care – a never ending list!
BUT – the highest current priority is saving the planet!
The activism of the Extinction Rebellion groups round the world has not necessarily been well received. Nor were the suffragettes or the French revolutionaries!
Somehow governments MUST wake up to the fact that we need a planet before we need a government!
We should all be camping on our federal politicians’ doorsteps demanding action – NOW!
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17 comments
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Bernie -
Rosemary J36 -
Bernie -
Matters Not -
Bernie -
Matters Not -
Bernie -
Kaye Lee -
johno -
Puking Wartneck -
Bernie -
Kaye Lee -
Rosemary J36 -
Bernie -
crypt0 -
Kaye Lee -
Bernie
Return to home pageClimate Change can be broken into 2 types:
1. overt CC – that cause by lifestyles, transport, industry etc;
2. covert CC – that caused by geo-engineering.
From what I’m seeing, its the covert CC causing more damage.
If you are unfamiliar with geo-engineering check >
Geoengineering Earth, Exposing the Global Climate Modification Assault
Bernie – is this not yet another conspiracy rheory?
Rosemary, do mean geo-engineering as in ‘weather modification’ is a ‘conspiracy theory’?
Don’t know for sure, it might be a conspiracy, except there’s a fair bit of evidence to the contrary.
Did you watch the video or check up the website?
One reason the average person fails to comprehend this idea is they are unable to conceive a group of nutty scientists, possibly even with good intentions, are tinkering with the weather and things are not going good, or maybe it is.
Bernie, get a life. The fair bit of evidence you cite – simply isn’t! Chemtrails – really?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemtrail_conspiracy_theory
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2101611-chemtrails-conspiracy-theory-gets-put-to-the-ultimate-test/
Nutty scientists? Tinkering? Lol.
MN, wikipedia is useful at times but on this issue it shows a child’s understanding of the science backing weather modification. Ask yourself, if weather modification is a conspiracy, why is did the UN go to the trouble of this back in 1977:
Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques –
http://www.un-documents.net/enmod.htm
“Article I
1. Each State Party to this Convention undertakes not to engage in military or any other hostile use of environmental modification techniques . . “
Stupid UN conspiracy? Really?
Yes Bernie. You might be on to something. (Backs slowly away.)
MN, careful not to bump into the UN while reversing, they are fully fledged conspiracy theorists according to some 🙂
Bernie,
You link to a video from GeoEngineering Watch.
“GeoEngineering is a one of a kind conspiracy and pseudoscience website. This one has few rivals in how far they will go to sell unproven, misleading claims. Literally off the charts!”
https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/geoengineering-watch/
Wake up Scotty, it’s time to start riding a bike and catching the train. We all need to pitch in.
Many bands are waking up to their carbon footprint.
Massive Attack have spent a lot of 2019 with the environmental campaign group Extinction Rebellion, even playing a set at one of their protests in London in April.
Robert del Naja, aka 3D, told the BBC he felt conflicted because of how his career has contributed to climate change.
“[As musicians] we have enjoyed a high carbon lifestyle. But as a society we’ve all existed in a fossil fuel economy for a long time and had very little choice in that.
“The challenge now is to not only make personal sacrifices, but to insist on the systemic change that’s needed. Business as usual is over.”
Today, Crikey.com – a website that is absolutely non -partisan, has reported that we are now living in a ‘Police State’.
What took them so long? The AFP has been a Coalition tool for a couple of decades and the alopecic Tambourine Man calls the NSW top cop ‘his mate.’
Thank you Queensland – May his God rot you all!
Thanks Kaye, good to see some group is looking out for conspiracies with a critical eye.
Now, back to the science. From the now declassified USAF document –
‘Weather as a Force Multiplier: Owning the Weather in 2025’ – Executive summary page vi & vii –
https://archive.org/details/WeatherAsAForceMultiplier/page/n5
“In 2025, US aerospace forces can “own the weather” by capitalizing on emerging technologies and focusing development of those technologies to war-fighting applications.
Table 1. Operational Capabilities Matrix –
DEGRADE ENEMY FORCES: Precipitation Enhancement – Flood Lines of Communication; Storm Enhancement Storm Modification – Deny Operations; Precipitation Denial Space Weather – Deny Fresh Water – Induce Drought”
Another link in the ‘conspiracy’ chain, the USAF. Just because the general public can’t manipulate the weather doesn’t mean some group with the ability and hardware to superheat sections of the ionosphere thousands of degrees are incapable.
Bernie, I suggest you read the disclaimer on that 23 year old article you linked to. It specifically states that this is NOT government policy and “This report contains fictional representations of future situations/scenarios”.
It’s a work of science fiction where the authors let their imagination run free.
PS Bernie….perhaps you misunderstood….they said geoengineeringWatch are crackpots.
“In review, GeoEngineering Watch is primarily concerned with weather manipulation for sinister means and the use of HAARP. For example, they claim that the devastating hurricane Florence was manipulated by Microwaves Transmissions, and that the government is using Chemtrails for control of the environment as well. Throw in some anti-vaxx hysteria, and you have yourself a truly tin foil-quackery website. “
PW: Crikey has been aware for some time of the police state situation and its INQ now have it in their sights for special investigation. Did you follow their take-down of the liberal loading of unsuitable politicos on the AAT?
Thanks, I skipped the Disclaimer, could it be yet another part of the conspiracy? Just think, another level of conspiracy, this time between the authors of the study, who took a directive from the Chief of Staff of the US Air Force to examine concepts-technology to dominate air and space, and the Chief of Staff / USAF itself. Impressive, both the authors of the study and the USAF showing no fear of consequences of either submitting or accepting unscientific rubbish on behalf of a government organisation. How good are rubbish studies? Reading the Disclaimer changes nothing in terms of the science available today.
Johno … Can’t see Scotty riding a bike or getting out among the common folk via train without a large posse of security dudes!
Mind you this is the bloke who wants all those hard working Australians to work till they’re 70 … meanwhile at the tender age of 51, he has trouble walking up a hill !
Guess who has never done a tap of hard work in his life !
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7717369/Scott-Morrison-struggles-walk-uphill-Hike-Hope-bushwalk-Blue-Mountains.html
Bernie,
“Reading the Disclaimer changes nothing in terms of the science available today.”
You linked to that article as proof of what you are suggesting. I have shown you it was a flight of fancy. Lots of people are employed to speculate on what might be possible in the future.
The fact that you “skipped the disclaimer” shows you unquestioningly accept stuff you are being fed.
I do appreciate the fact that, unlike other climate change deniers, you are at least linking to your sources which gives me a chance to point stuff out that you may have missed. It suggests you might be open to listening.
“Impressive, both the authors of the study and the USAF showing no fear of consequences of either submitting or accepting unscientific rubbish on behalf of a government organisation.”
They explain that they are making no attempt whatsoever to discuss the technical feasibility of what they are speculating on. They are engaged in a “what if” exercise
If you have better proof of what you are saying than what you have offered so far, I am happy to look at it.
Hi Kaye, re weather modification-chemtrails, try the link below with embedded video. The more I look, the more I’m convinced the tech exists to modify weather so why isn’t being used to modify it in a good way.
First, I looked into Project Popeye, a weather modification experiment conducted during the Vietnam war 1967. Apparently the powers that be thought it ‘too successful’ and halted the experiment. I wonder why increasing rainfall now is a bad idea given the number of droughts around the globe.
From there I ran across the Chemtrails Project UK. Below is an embedded video clip of Professor Tim Lenton, (2015 Chair in Climate Change/Earth Systems Science, University of Exeter) explaining how aerosols are being used to modify weather and that the current system is virtually an out of control experiment:
The best question to the panel and Tim’s reply starts at about 1hr 37m 25s:
Questioner to Tim: My question really is about aerosols . . . Reasonably easy to show the aerosols passed the tipping point decades ago . . How much work have any of you done on assessing the effects of these continental-scale aerosol plumes which didn’t exist 50 years ago and which now exist in 8 places in the world. . . IPCC in the AR4 said … aerosols MAY effect hydrological cycles and global circulation systems than greenhouse gases. I think they’re right, in fact I know they’re right. How has that been incorporated into any of the work you’ve done?
Tim replies: I’ve done some work on the aerosols, I’ve certainly considered it . . important forcing factor in some of our candidate ‘tipping factors’ . . . observational data, or at least correlational data, showing strong link between increasing atmospheric ‘brown cloud’ of aerosols and overall declining rainfall effects on crop yields . . ‘tipping points’ analysis that if there were a threat to sub-tropical monsoon . . . the more immediate or apparent threat was from the aerosol pollution. I think that’s a subject that deserves more attention. . . the flip side, good news is the potential to more quickly control the aerosol pollution.