Global meltdown

[Tindomul]

Perhaps, the Coldest Shakkai.
Can you tell me more about this self sufficiency book? I have a feeling I'm gonna need it

[Tindomul]

Here is some news on the subject:
By ARTHUR MAX, Associated Press Writer 46 minutes ago

If there's one document on global warming policymakers might put in their briefcase, this would be it. On Monday, scientists and government officials gather in Valencia, Spain to put together the fourth and last U.N. report on the state of global warming and what it will mean to hundreds of millions of people whose lives are being dramatically altered.

Unlike the past three tomes, this one will have little new data. Instead, it will distill the previous work into a compact guide of roughly 30 pages that summarizes complex science into language politicians and bureaucrats can understand.
It will be the first point of reference for negotiators meeting next month in Bali, Indonesia, to decide the future course of the worldwide push to curb greenhouse gas emissions after the 2012 expiration of the first phase of the Kyoto Protocol, the landmark agreement that assigned binding reduction targets to 36 countries.
The last of four reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change "integrates all the elements, the connections between them," said one of its authors, Bert Metz, of the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency.
U.N. officials delayed the Bali meeting by several months until after the report is released, expecting it would add political momentum to the conference.
Though the IPCC was created in 1988 to assess the science of global warming, its work gathered a momentum this year that has helped reshape opinion in the public and governments. In the ultimate validation, the IPCC's warnings of man-induced climate change shared the Nobel Peace prize with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, the world's best known global warming campaigner.
"The reactions that I heard from politicians around the world is that they were shocked by the reports and that they should be acted on," said Yvo de Boer, the U.N.'s top climate official.
The United States, Australia and many developing countries that shunned the Kyoto treaty are now ready to begin discussing a successor agreement at the Bali conference, De Boer said.
"There is a growing consensus that Bali needs to achieve a breakthrough to put negotiations in place, and that's very encouraging," he said. "But it's not going to be a piece of cake."
The studies issued earlier this year painted a dire picture of a planet in which unabated greenhouse gas emissions could drive average temperatures up as much as 6 degrees Celsius (11 degrees Fahrenheit) by 2100.
Even a 2-degree-Celsius (3.6-degree-Fahrenheit) rise could subject up to 2 billion people to water shortages by 2050 and threaten extinction for 20 percent to 30 percent of the world's species, the IPCC said.
The consequences for mankind are legion: while some people will go thirsty from lack of rain, millions more will suffer devastating floods; diseases will proliferate; the food supply may at first increase in some areas, but will plummet later; countries that are now poor will grow still poorer.
The scientists set out a basket of technological options to keep the temperature rise to the minimum, with investments amounting to about 3 percent of the world's gross domestic product — far less than what the IPCC said it would cost later to fix the damage caused by higher temperature increases.
Campaigners are looking for the final "synthesis report" to emphasize the action governments can take, the consequences of inaction and the brief time remaining to put that action into gear.
"We would want to emphasize the urgency which comes from the science," said Stephanie Tunmore of the Greenpeace environmental group. "We know what's happening, we know what's causing it, and we know what we have to do about it."
A draft report of about 60 pages — distilling the previous three reports totaling more than 4,000 pages — has been circulating for months to governments, environmentalists and scientists for comment. The authors gathered in Valencia last week to incorporate some of the comments into the final draft.
Starting Monday, delegations from 145 countries meeting in this Spanish Mediterranean city will review the Summary for Policymakers, the critical document that becomes the single most important reference for nonscientists.
Each line must be adopted by consensus — and sometimes the use of a single word can be heatedly contested.
The final document is due to be released Saturday. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's presence at the unveiling is meant to underscore its importance.
"I expect some scuffling over the final language," especially over the urgency and the level of certainty of some predicted events, said Peter Altman, of the Washington-based lobby National Environmental Trust.
Despite the haggling, the political input into a scientific document is essential, because governments cannot later disown it.
"After the summary is approved, it becomes the property of the governments," said Metz, who was one of about 40 scientists working on the final draft. "It becomes difficult for them to ignore the conclusions that they were subscribing to."

[Ross]

Thanks for this Tindo. While not so worried about myself, I am terribly worried for my grandchildren. All I have to worry about is lack of food, lack of fuel, no beaches in Florida, etc. My grandchildren may experience a world like no human being has seen so far. Who knows?

[shakkai]

Tin,

The best one, I think, is:

"The New Complete Book of Self-Sufficiency" by John Seymour (Amazon link)

"Self Reliance: A Recipe For The New Millennium" by John Yoeman (Amazon link) is another really good one that covers quite a range of topics including preparations to make and actions to take in case of any kind of disaster.

Quote from the back of the book:

"This is not a 'black book' of survival. It is intended as an introduction to self reliance, showing tested, practical and often entertaining ways to escape the mindset of helplessness and the chains of habit forged for all of us by the consumer society. It guarantees not only an improvement in the odds but also, if you follow its suggestions and experiments, a vast improvement on your own self-confidence. Because in the worst scenario, you will endure - and endure well."

Also recommended, but a bit heavy on theory and 'principles', is "Permaculture" by David Holmgren (Amazon link)

The 12 design priniciples of Permaculture (from the book) are:

1. Observe and Interact - "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder."
2. Catch and Store Energy - "Make hay while the sun shines."
3. Obtain a Yield - "You can't work on an empty stomach."
4. Apply Self-regulation and Accept Feedback - "The sins of the fathers are visited on the children unto the seventh generation."
5. Use and Value Renewable Resources and Services - "Let nature take its course."
6. Produce No Waste - "Waste not, want not."
7. Design from Patterns to Details - "Can't see the wood for the trees."
8. Integrate Rather than Segregate - "Many hands make light work."
9.Use Small and Slow Solutions - "The bigger they are, the harder they fall." and "Slow and steady wins the race."
10. Use and Value Diversity - "Don't put all of your eggs in one basket."
11. Use Edges and Value the Marginal - "Don't think you are on the right track just because it is a well beaten path."
12. Creatively Use and Respond to Change - "Vision is not seeing things as they are but as they will be."

The book devotes a chapter to each priniciple.

[kiki-do]

Global warming is happening now. If we aren't noticing it, then our heads are stuck in the ground. Every corner of the earth is being affected. Even areas that are untapped by humans are now starting to suffer. There's been ample studies about the polar bears' habitats slowly disintegrating...about the mutations of frogs, about bees disappearing, el nino (sp), winters are milder, summers are hotter. It's affecting everyone, but ever so slight that no one wants to notice. No one wants to be inconvenienced. We all want to live without inconvenience. After a while, it's going to bite us all in the ass. We should all be feeling a little nip about now.
No one can point fingers, we are all guilty. I'm guilty.
It's just basic math. If we keep taking from the earth and not replenishing, it dies. Yes, I am very concerned. My little efforts to recycle each week is just not enough! However, I'm re-evaluating my lifestyle each day. I try not to do things on a whim, but to conserve. Everyone has to do that, and everyone has to look within instead of pointing fingers. Global warming didn't happen overnight, but our habits need to be addressed, like yesterday! This is not an easy subject and no easy answers. I may be naive but I think we can do this if we all pitched in. The first thing is to get educated on the facts and not just ignor what is happening or say it isn't happening. If there are enough voices, then and only then, does corporate business understand we want accountability for our one and only earth. kiki-do

[ospylac]

Again, Thanks Tindo for a good thread.
The thoughts previously posted on the sad state of our nations leaders mirror my own. Reading Jared Diamond's book called Collapse. He describes global warming as only one of twelve different problems that are threatening humanity. Overpopulation is a big issue, but the real issue here is over consumption.

[weng]

Global Warming ?

I 'm no scientist, but being an accountant, I understand data. Have a look at the earth's temperature graph for the last 65 million years
Image:65 Myr Climate Change.png - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Is this graph upsidedown or just plain wrong ?

With all the hoo-ha, wouldn't you expect record temperatures to be recorded in this century? Have a look at the data
Hottest Temperature on Earth

Are these facts totally out of date or what ?

Weng

[Tindomul]

Originally Posted by weng

Global Warming ?

I 'm no scientist, but being an accountant, I understand data. Have a look at the earth's temperature graph for the last 65 million years
Image:65 Myr Climate Change.png - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Is this graph upsidedown or just plain wrong ?

With all the hoo-ha, wouldn't you expect record temperatures to be recorded in this century? Have a look at the data
Hottest Temperature on Earth

Are these facts totally out of date or what ?

Weng

Magnus, thanks for the important link. I hate that US news companies are not covering this important event in world history. Scientists from around the world have been meeting along with politicians to figure out what our next step is! Yet not a word from the US news. Hmm, yet the French radio station I listen talks about it.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

Weng, here are some charts for us to ponder upon.
http://www.ipcc.ch/present/graphics/...arge/02.01.jpg
http://www.ipcc.ch/present/graphics/...arge/05.16.jpg
http://www.ipcc.ch/present/graphics/...arge/05.18.jpg
http://www.ipcc.ch/present/graphics/...arge/04.17.jpg
this one shows we really messed up the earth
http://www.ipcc.ch/present/graphics/...arge/01.17.jpg

[shakkai]

I agree, great thread Tin! And really good points that people have brought out. One that hasn't been mentioned is food production. Intensive farming has meant that we cannot raise our food without loads of chemicals, pesticides, antibiotics, and hormones. With all of that stuff going into the food that we eat, no wonder allergies are becoming more of a problem for more and more people.

Overpopulation is a big issue, and it is contributing to overconsumption in a big way - as people in China and India achieve more economic growth, they want all of those things that they see in the movies and TV shows from the West. What kind of example are we (developed nations) setting?

You know, I always chuckle when I hear friends in the US talk about the outrageous price of gasoline (petrol). Petrol here has been close to £1 a litre for quite some time and recently has increased so that it is now over £1 a litre. Now £1 = $2.09, and there are 4.5 litres in a US gallon - that makes the equivalent cost here $9.40 per gallon.

For too long the West has funded over consumption with cheap (and/or easily available) credit, that is certainly now starting to bite us, with the US economy in a mess which has a knock-on effect around the world. There was a run on one of the banks here (Northern Rock) with people queuing up to get all of their saving out because the bank was having difficulties with the sub-prime mortage debt.

Everything in today's world is interrelated - everything has a knock on effect - every action or inaction by every one of us makes a difference, and when everyone realises this, then we will start to see changes - if those changes aren't forced on us sooner.

[Magnus A]

Hi weng

You hav to remember that Wikipedia is an encyclopedia that has no editorial control of the quality of the facts in Wikipedia.


For all,

For climate change facts, there is the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change homepage, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change . Everything that they print have ALL members agreed on to be the consensus of todays knowledge in the field!

Read this Mandate and Membership of the IPCC About IPCC so you can see what kind of organisation IPCC is before you neglect the facts.


/Magnus