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[scriver]

I am fairly certain the proper nomenclature for such an event would be "superdupervolcano"

[Trekkin]

Also, arguing that the biosphere survived natural disasters X,Y, and Z so clearly it will survive climate change neglects to recognize that climate change directly impacts the capacity of species to adapt to natural disasters and other dramatic shifts in climate. Genetic drift naturally builds up a reservoir of neutral-to-mildly-maladaptive mutants in any given population, and come a shift, the subset of those mutations which turn out to be somehow beneficial in the new environment accelerate the recovery of local populations. Under prolonged and intensifying purifying selection, though, those mutations disappear simply because differences in reproductive fitness become more pronounced and biodiversity decreases. There are no serendipitously-happy-in-craters mutants to grow over a meteor strike because they all died off in favor of the heat-tolerant ones. That's not even getting into the interspecies effects.

In other words, we are the natural disaster the planet is dealing with right now, so all those natural events that people point to for comfort are much more dangerous now.

[Max™]

It'd take a lot of effort to send the planet into a Venus-style spiral of death before we all just die from what it ended up as before said spiral.

It's literally impossible to do anything which could set off a spiral of any sort into a Venus-like state, detonating our entire stockpile of nukes in every fault line at precisely the right spots to cause them to barf molten rock everywhere still wouldn't do it.

Venus didn't start out like Earth and end up in some nonsensical high gain positive feedback loop because of a slight CO2 excess. Burning every single drop of oil, coal, nuking clathrates, melting permafrost, none of that could possibly result in a Venus end state. It barfed itself inside out recently (in geological time) and lacks any weathering or subductive processes to pull shit out of the air.

There's 90 times as much gas piled up on the surface as we have here, there's no way to get around the fact that it's going to be stupidly hot and ridiculously high pressure at the bottom of that much atmosphere, whatever the composition of said atmosphere may be.

[Teneb]

In either case, I just want to point out that our food crops and livestock are rather dependent on the current biosphere, and if it's too expensive now to build enough hydroponics to feed ourselves, we shouldn't expect it to be any easier or cheaper when half of humanity is rioting because all the cows are dead.

Sacred cows are serious business, ok?

hey maybe we don't have a right to destroy or even "temporarily damage" the only known examples of life in the entire universe just because our species invented iphones


just a thought

But iphones are the true hallmark of civilization!

[Starver]

It is clearly the case that many people would like the outcome of Silent Running.

Whether that's the "we don't need no stinking nature" or "we will preserve it in domes" or "I like robots and explosions!".

(But it'd be better if it didn't come to that. Any of that. Apart from the robots, and maybe some small explosions.)

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

In either case, I just want to point out that our food crops and livestock are rather dependent on the current biosphere, and if it's too expensive now to build enough hydroponics to feed ourselves, we shouldn't expect it to be any easier or cheaper when half of humanity is rioting because all the cows are dead.

Correction: It is too expensive to do an overhaul to feed our current population.  Eventually enough of us would die from the riots that our current stocks of hydroponics and what would be built later on would be able to catch up.  And hey look, there's a lot more living space available in the aftermath.

[ChairmanPoo]

*shrug*  if push comes to shove we could eat the poor.

[smjjames]

In midterms news, there was an alleged failed hacking of the Georgia voters registration system and Brian Kemp (Gov candidate and State Secretary) is accusing the Democrats without evidence.

Obviously, if the Democrats are the ones to blame, it was an incredibly dumb thing to do, but given that it's an accusation without proof, I'll believe it when proof is given.

[Teneb]

*shrug*  if push comes to shove we could eat the poor.

Eat the rich. They are much plumper.

[Maximum Spin]

*shrug*  if push comes to shove we could eat the poor.

Eat the rich. They are much plumper.

Not enough of them. Never enough of them. Plus they have more guns.

[Kagus]

*shrug*  if push comes to shove we could eat the poor.

Eat the rich. They are much plumper.

Do not eat the poor, they are full of poo.

Do not eat the moderately wealthy, they have rat in them.

Eat the rich, they are rich with flavor.

[WealthyRadish]

In either case, I just want to point out that our food crops and livestock are rather dependent on the current biosphere, and if it's too expensive now to build enough hydroponics to feed ourselves, we shouldn't expect it to be any easier or cheaper when half of humanity is rioting because all the cows are dead.

A minor quibble with this phrasing that's worth mentioning is that if all livestock in the world went extinct tomorrow, that would be one of the single best things that could happen for both the environment and the food supply.

Currently in the US, around 67% of crops grown are used as animal feed. Globally, beef provides about 2% of calories while using up 60% of all agricultural land. Part of this is extensive agriculture on marginal land, but much of it is supported with intensive agriculture that requires massive use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and freshwater from non-renewable sources. Cow farts alone contribute a greater greenhouse effect than all car and truck use, and most of this is from animals fed on grain diets in the west under intensive agriculture. The total negative impact of livestock on the environment is greater than just about any other harmful lifestyle choice people in the west have personal control over, and it's going to get worse as more people outside the US and Europe can afford a greater amount of meat.

I don't expect our government to be capable of doing anything or all the people currently obliviously eating all this meat to be conscious enough to do anything, but on an individual level if any of this matters, cutting out meat is one of the best things to do.

[Trekkin]

In either case, I just want to point out that our food crops and livestock are rather dependent on the current biosphere, and if it's too expensive now to build enough hydroponics to feed ourselves, we shouldn't expect it to be any easier or cheaper when half of humanity is rioting because all the cows are dead.

Correction: It is too expensive to do an overhaul to feed our current population.  Eventually enough of us would die from the riots that our current stocks of hydroponics and what would be built later on would be able to catch up.  And hey look, there's a lot more living space available in the aftermath.

As a further "bonus", once everyone too poor to survive the global famine is finally dead and the rich stride forth from their bunkers, there won't be any poor refugees to screen for "criminal habits" and potentially send back to their home countries to start revolutions, right? /s

I'm noticing a pattern here...

[Folly]

Cow farts alone contribute a greater greenhouse effect than all car and truck use...cutting out meat is one of the best things to do.

Bovine flesh is far too delicious to give up. Can't we just hire some science nerds to invent a cow fart-muffler? Or even better, a fart-recycler! We could turn farts into a renewable energy source, then use them to power a new line of cars that we can all buy and feel smug about driving!

[Teneb]

Cow farts alone contribute a greater greenhouse effect than all car and truck use...cutting out meat is one of the best things to do.

Bovine flesh is far too delicious to give up. Can't we just hire some science nerds to invent a cow fart-muffler? Or even better, a fart-recycler! We could turn farts into a renewable energy source, then use them to power a new line of cars that we can all buy and feel smug about driving!

Genemod cows to not fart greenhouse gasses.

Watch as meat prices go up as corporations monopolize fartless cows.