Eve is here. We have been denouncing the Green New Deal unicorn/hopium for some time as a grossly inadequate response to greenhouse gas emissions. We are past the point of no return. We featured the following solemn warnings: Preparing for collapse: Why the focus on climate change and energy sustainability is disruptive. Richard Murphy warns of what comes next on a more personal level, including the “devil’s tailgating” efforts to find a relatively safe haven. But Herren explained that it may be futile, as many people rate North Carolina as being less adversely affected by climate change than most parts of the United States.
Written by Richard Murphy, Adjunct Professor of Accounting Practice, University of Sheffield Management School, Director of Corporate Accountability Network, Member of Finance for the Future LLP, Director of Tax Research LLP. It was first published in funding the future
as The Guardian pointed out yesterday:
Many of the Earth’s “vital signs” have reached record extremes, indicating that “the future of humanity is at stake.” group The world’s most senior climate experts said:
The report says more scientists are now investigating the possibility of social collapse. The report assessed 35 vital signs in 2023 and found that 25 vital signs, including carbon dioxide levels and population, were worse than ever recorded. This marks a “significant and unpredictable new phase of the climate crisis,” the magazine said.
They added:
The record burning of fossil fuels has caused temperatures on Earth’s surface and oceans to reach record highs, the report said. The human population is increasing by about 200,000 people a day, and the number of cattle and sheep is increasing by 170,000 a day, all of which are contributing to record greenhouse gas emissions.
I believe those scientists. All the available evidence suggests that everything they’ve predicted so far seems to be happening, including extreme weather conditions and threats to the survival of life in some parts of the planet. That means they’re right.
I was eavesdropping on yesterday’s conversation. I know I shouldn’t, but two people my age who were part of it at the coffee shop I worked at did nothing to stop me from doing it. , their portions were large, so they gave me little choice, but be careful. They were talking about all the places they’ve been around the world, and some tourist spots, from Hawaii to all the places they thought would be closer to home, but apparently they missed out. Ta. Nevertheless, discussions are taking place as to where to go next, and the Himalayas appear to be high on the agenda.
Why were you interested? It was also clear that they care very much about their grandchildren. At that moment, I wondered if my grandchildren would really be grateful to these two people for helping us burn the earth down for no reason. Cocktails are cocktails all over the world and they seemed to love them as well. Their “memory making” world tour is clearly part of the problem of overconsumption that is pushing the world to the brink of chaos and beyond. But either they didn’t know, they didn’t care, or they couldn’t make the connection between their excesses and the crisis we face.
I’m afraid of the collapse of society. It will happen through what most people in this country claim to fear most: human displacement. That is happening right now. Hundreds of millions of people, perhaps more, will have to migrate over the next few decades to have a chance of survival. That’s not an opinion. That’s a fact. And you can be sure that those who are about to move will do so because, through no fault of their own, they are not going to sit and die in a place where life has become impossible.
If so, how can we manage the risk of social collapse due to mass movements of people? The following are incredibly simple suggestions, but in the face of a crisis of the epic scale we are in. Then you may need a simple solution.
First, we must accept the reality of immigration. Our story has to change. We accept what is going to happen. Otherwise, the chaos of conflict will end whatever we have.
Second, we must accept that our consumption will fundamentally change. First of all, we don’t want to aimlessly fly around the world, but that’s just part of the behavioral change needed.
Third, we may need to defeat the forces that try to prevent change from happening. Most of those forces are represented, for example, by the current power elite, who have decided that when faced with a choice between short-term profit and the survival of humanity, profit is profit. win. Or those who decided they should balance the books and win. In any case, those priorities will have to be let go, and those who try to protect them will lose power, even if it is unpleasant for them.
For the record (in case anyone in the security services might be looking), I am not suggesting for a moment that revolution is such a nonsense. Because that in itself means the collapse of society. What I am saying is that a democracy, a true democracy, must achieve this. In other words, ultimately the will of the people to survive must prevail at the voting booth.
Don’t plan on living comfortably for a while. There’s a good chance it won’t happen because of what’s already happened. The only hope we have is to change our attitude, change our priorities, and have the will to live. With them, we may be able to survive climate change. Without them, it’s a failure.
