UN assessment confirms world is standing on the brink of climate catastrophe

[limpyhobbler]

Posted on 23 November 2012

Gland, Switzerland – Governments are falling far short of their commitment to keep global average temperature rise below the accepted 2°C goal, putting the world on the brink of climate catastrophe.

The UN Environment Program’s Emissions Gap Report 2012, released today, identifies a huge gap between current pledges to cut polluting greenhouse gas emissions for 2020 and the benchmark of 44 gigatonnes that offers a credible pathway to staying below 2°C.

Last year, UNEP put the gap between pledges and what’s needed at 6-11 gigatonnes – but has now increased this estimate to an alarming 8-13 gigatonnes. In context, annual emissions from the US and China are currently around 7 and 10 to 11 gigatonnes, respectively.

“UNEP’s assessment confirms that the world is standing on the brink,” says Samantha Smith, head of WWF’s Global Climate and Energy Initiative.
...

more: http://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/?206816/WWF-UN-assessment-confirms-world-is-standing-on-the-brink-of-climate-catastrophe

[RKP5637]

1. To some $$$$$'s are more important than survival, thinking they are immune or

sometimes simply too ignorant to give a F.

[AverageJoe90]

3. Sad but very true.

What good will their riches do them if they're being chased down by angry mobs? That might be happening soon, especially outside the West.........people are fed up with the bullshit.

[RKP5637]

5. I'm totally fed up with the bullshit. And it seems to be increasing and increasing. They have

found out how much they can get away with, but there's a bridge out ahead and they better learn that or go off the cliff.

[AverageJoe90]

13. Yeah, they are getting desperate.

Because they know they can't keep doing this shit forever. Eventually, the tipping point will come and then their influence will be trumped for good. Let's just hope, for all our sakes, it happens sooner, rather than later.

[RKP5637]

14. Probably why DHS and surveillance has been beefed up so much and local

police militarized. They know eventually the sh** will hit the fan and it will be difficult to keep the peasants in line. $$$$$ always talks.

[calimary]

6. Well, money trumps peace, too, according to these bastards.

Remember when george-the-second said that?

Money seems to trump everything these days.

[RKP5637]

7. Eventually, their money won't buy them much, I think. n/t

[calimary]

8. As the Steve Miller Band would put it - "your cash ain't nothing but trash"!

[RKP5637]

9. Yep! I often wonder what the tipping point will be when they wake up, but it

might be too late. ... seems often humanity does not progress until after a crisis.

[ananda]

2. That is a fair assessment.

..

[ProfessionalLeftist]

4. Meanwhile, Obama may be on the verge of approving

the Keystone XL pipeline

[NoMoreWarNow]

15. oh god-- seriously?

what a freaking catastrophe that would be

[The Straight Story]

23. I am pretty sure he will approve it

After he denied it (due to congress forcing him to make a decision) the administration left open the possibility that XL would not have to start from scratch again for the permit and they could grandfather in all of the other plans once they made the needed adjustments.

This will save them a ton of work (imagine how difficult it is to research the routes, etc, across rivers, roads, electrical usage of the pumps - which will strain some smaller co-ops, getting permits from the counties, eminent domain, etc and so on).

Hope I am wrong though and someday soon someone can point back to this post and laugh at me.

[ProfessionalLeftist]

24. Unfortunately, so am I.

And it's SO wrong, backwards and damaging to the planet and human life. It's immoral. But, after seeing this nation flock to Mal-Wart for "Black Friday" even though Walmart treat their employees like shit, forcing them onto public services because Walmart pays such low wages, while those black Friday shoppers and most of Congress resents those employees' use of public services - well, the nation has COMPLETELY lost its conscience and any semblance of logic or common sense.

I guess it makes sense that its President loses his, too.

[blackspade]

10. Thanks to the nitwits in control of

government and business, the future for my kids is a bit grim.

I want to scream every time I hear one of these assholes bloviate about 'preserving America's future' for our kids by cutting social services and funding for climate science.

[Kath1]

11. I'm hoping for the day people wake up.

You don't have to be a liberal kook like me to want the planet to survive!

[AgingAmerican]

12. Please do something Mr Obama

Please!

[hobbit709]

16. The history of Rapa Nui says people ain't going to change until it's too late.

[Kaleva]

32. We wouldn't have the New Deal or SS without the Great Depression.

[hobbit709]

33. And what has happened to most of those programs and regulations?

Just like we're waiting for another Dust bowl to happen.

[Mangoman]

17. I view the issue in this way...

Suppose you are out to sea in a small wooden rowboat with 10 strangers, stranded.

After a few days a wild eyed guy pulls a drill out of his pocket and says "fuck it ,I'm drilling a hole in the boat."

I would imagine the sane members of the crew would stop that guy with any means possible..... and thats where we stand now.

There is a hole being drilled in our boat , and if we don't stop the drilling (by any means necessary) ...we will sink.

[limpyhobbler]

20. Good analogy, and welcome to DU.

[Ezlivin]

28. The guy with the drill is making a fortune and paying others as well

So out of the 10 strangers he's probably got three on his payroll.

They'll keep up a friendly banter while he earns money drilling.

The four of them will keep the others busy with bullshit delaying tactics and lies until it's too late.

And when the lifeboat the three paid for arrives and it's only big enough for the guy who was drilling...

[Mosby]

18. this is not news

Climate change/global warming is happening, makes little difference what the US and the EU do at this point, China, India and Russia are the major polluters now, and they could not care less about the evironment, emissions or air quality.

[Kaleva]

19. I've thought for a long now now that it's foolish to believe anything meaningful...

would be done to eliminate or even just reduce humankind's contribution to climate change. Human nature being what it is.

IMO, the only thing that can be done now is that individuals who are very concerned about this try to prepare to adapt to the projected changes (based on the best data currently available) where they reside.

Where I live, it's expected that the summers will be hotter and drier and the winters milder and wetter. Because I'm on SSDI and I'm trying to cut costs as much as possible, I'm already done to 500 gallons a month in water usage. I plan on putting in a garden next year to cut food costs and will be using the wash water from washing clothes to water the garden with. I just need to switch to a bio-compatible laundry detergent as I already have the pump, piping and barrels on hand to be able to transfer the wash water to a barrel outside. if I can find a really good deal on rain gutters (like free or near free), I could put them up on my garage to capture rain water.

To supplement the garden, I also plan on harvesting as much as needed edible plants found in the wild. Mainly towards saving money on the food bill and I think it'll be an interesting hobby. To that end, I've been reading on the internet about such plants and posting about it and reading other members posts on the subject in the Frugal Living group here at DU.

The milder winters is actually going to be a plus for me as it will certainly save on heating costs and the growing season will be extended. There were still Robins here looking for worms as recently as the middle of this month and I never, ever saw such a thing when I was younger.

[limpyhobbler]

21. you may well be right about this.

Sadly millions or even billions of people may not be able to make the needed adaptations unless we have some kind of large-scale collective action.

[Kaleva]

22. That is the sad part of it.

There will be many millions, mostly poor, who, for whatever reason, will be unable to prepare to to adapt.

At this time, I don't believe one bit that there ever will be a global concentrated effort to greatly reduce, much less reverse, climate change so I'm not going to pin any hope at all on that.

[Jasana]

25. I'm one of them...

I am also on SSDI but I live in an area just outside of Boston that has no handicap access on my street to get to the bus stop. I have to use a car to get out of here but I have MS and it is getting worse so now I can't even drive anymore.

Some people with MS also can't function in heat. I am one of them. I actually become mentally confused if I don't realize I'm getting too hot so sadly in the summer, I have to use not one but two air conditioners. I live in terror of power outages.

I am so screwed.

[Kaleva]

31. You are in much worse condition then I am

I'm on blood thinners as I have a tendency to get blood clots but even with blood thinner meds, if I did too much, I ended up in the hospital. If things got so bad where I couldn't get the meds and have my blood thickness checked regularly, about the only thing I could do then is work as much as possible for my family before I bite the big one.

But unlike you, I can get around and do things. Do you have family near by that could take care of you?

[Mosby]

26. even worse is the fact that 40% of the world population

Lives within 200 miles of a coastline.

When sea levels rise many of those will have to relocate farther inland. It's going to be a disaster of epic proportions.

[Octafish]

27. You gotta problem wit' dat?

A chosen BFEE few will survive.



Know what I mean, see?

Is survival only for the rich?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=9084342&mesg_id=9084342

[limpyhobbler]

29. LOL, yeah I've got a bit of a problem with that.

[stuntcat]

30. k & r

And I've been told by people I'm supposed to consider family that I should DIE because I refuse to give the rest of this century to my daughter. For her to be pressured in 2040 to make someone else's little grandbaby??? Yah, F that.

I hardly know anyone who cares one bit about this kind of news. Instead I've been shown the hardest, most selfish examples of humanity the last few years. Is "What are you doing in my life if you aren't going to make my grandchildren?" considered normal dinner conversation now? Maybe that's how they talk on TV these days, I wouldn't know. I just feel pity for the little babies people keep making, and the one thing I'm gladdest for is that my years are half over. Even though a lot of babies born to 1st-worlders may never starve, or die fighting for water, they will still have to watch the natural world be trashed, poor people die even more (more than the 40,000 already starving to DEATH each day), the seas die, the mass-extinction speeding up.
No. Humanity's biggest fail is the lie we're all living right now. It's pathetic and embarrassing how god-like we think we are. It's a shame we can't go back in time and act on what the scientists have been warning for so long.