Let's all be civil now...

[Mr. Cronos]

A post about eating less meat in the diet/nutrition section got me thinking. I have opened this post to see what everyones thoughts/opinions are about "global warming". I know that we are all very similar in the way we train, but have very different views of the world. I am suggesting that we refrain from repressing talks and discussions about these matters. A lot of people I know, especially professors, give this topic the "hush-hush" But why? Isn't it important that we try to engage in healthy discussion?

However, I am NOT opening this post looking for arguements. What I am looking for is your views, in hopes that we may discuss them and perhaps gain a different perspective on things.

Here is my take.

The earth is ever changing, to me that is undisputable. It has been changing for billions of years, and shows no signs of stopping. I do believe that our climate is shifting, and it has shifted periodically for millions of years. We have had Ice ages, and periods of heat, and places in between. What makes humans think that they cannot experiece a shift such as this? I do not believe all of the hype about "going green, man-made global warming, and saving the planet. Saving it from what, its natural cycles? Yes, the polar ice caps are melting, but so are the ice caps on Mars. The universe is experienceing an energy shift, and this is what we are seeing on earth.

That is not to say that we should continue to pollute like we do. Every pollutant that comes as a byproduct from manufacturing, goes right back into our bodies through water, food, and air.

[CHRISLOWE]

my take is: i do agree we should try to keep the earth healthy. but i also believe the earth is only about 6000 years old instead of billions of years. and i also believe the earth wasnt made to last forever but that dosnt mean we cant try to keep it in top condition. this is just my humble opinion. veiws my vary on this.

[Gubernatrix]

I don't quite understand your take Mr Cronos. Are you saying that you don't believe global warming is happening and that it is man-made (which is the current accepted wisdom although not universally accepted)?

Or are you saying that global warming is happening but in the great scheme of things it doesn't matter and that the planet - and indeed human civilisation - will cope?

Incidentally if you haven't seen the Al Gore film The Inconvenient Truth, it is worth watching.

[Mr. Cronos]

What I am saying is that indeed global warming is not mad-made. Sure, adding pollutants to the atmosphere doesn't help, but trying to "go green" will not do anything. If we radically changed the way we lived by producing cleaner air, and stopped putting millions of tons of CO2 into the atmosphere, we would only prolong the effects by a few years in the next century.

As I said before, the planet has warmed and cooled periodically for millions of years. The reason people believe the crisis is man-made is because that is what they are led to believe, no one looks at history anymore. Lobbyists and politicians with agendas create a sense of crisis to gain support, mainly Al Gore. I don't disagree with the fact that many species and regions are suffering, but it is not the fault of man. It has happened countless times in history, why can't it be happening now?

This video provides an interesting perspective:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpWa7VW-OME
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpX-Kae00s8&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BJrdSRDVlQ&feature=quicklist


If you have some time, I highly recommed this movie, there are several more parts than what is listed here.

[Gubernatrix]

Looks like an interesting movie, I will try to watch some more of it. It appears to be just as polemical as the opposing views though.

Of course, since neither you nor I are climate scientists we don't know the truth, we simply choose which side we want to believe.

Incidentally, I am not aware that anyone is making the argument that the earth's climate hasn't changed before. Everything I've seen, including the Al Gore film, explains that the climate has gone through many fluctuations but seeks to explain why the current change is different from the changes that went before.

[Mr. Cronos]

That's true, we can only speculate and guess.