To resent the cognitive dissonance that exists around climate change

Thats not really a very constructive way to look at it, wrecking the planet so humans can no longer survive on it, would wreck it for many other species too, it might even lead to earth no longer being habitable, especially as such climate disruption "could" lead to many more wars, possibly even nuclear ones.

There would also be the suffering and death as we go into this phase of our decline.

Based on the UKs imported emissions, the EU is nearer 15%, so with the UK, we are approaching 20% on global green house gasses.

I think thats worth, at least, trying to reduce.

But we would feel it with higher costs of goods, even the green stuff that’s being imported is cheaper from China

And the tariffs are usually reciprocal which would damage us more

So if people say stop buying stuff from China how much would they want to back that up with a price they pay?

Politically we’re trying to sell in China as a good relationship atm, well Reeves is

Us, India and china emit so much because of their size

China emits about 35% of global greenhouse gases.

If every other country said “ah, because of China, we don’t need to reduce ours” we’d miss 65% of the required reductions.

Every country needs to reduce emissions in line with preventing a 1.5 degree temperature increase or at least remain well below 2 degrees. By 2050.

But 1 or 2% only makes a difference of 1-2%
Which is roughly translated as none at all. Especially when other bigger producers are cheerfully increasing emissions with other developing countries set to join them.
And I also don't understand why activists are so wedded to keeping things as is. No one thinks that this is a special time in the history of the world do they? We are just a phase, a blip. If we disappear something else will come along. And that's fine.

High street & consumer spend is important to the UK s economy, tariffs would dent that.... we apparently, all want growth!!!

Its a conundrum, better way is to ensure China makes better quality, longer lasting goods, which tbh, it is starting to do.

We like to travel, have a nice home, a decent car, etc etc all those billions in China and Africa and India all want the same.... Airline travel set to triple over the next decade.

I will keep trying. Regardless of who sneers at me.

One problem is that we've benefited so much from economic growth over the last two hundred years and it's not reasonable to expect that other countries won't want the same lifestyle - so they are catching up, at all costs.

Another is that when you see the level of destruction going on globally - Gaza is now 90% destroyed, Ukraine similarly razed - not to mention the LA fires - one's own efforts at scraping beans from a can to recycle it seem utterly pointless.

I think we've reached peak human intelligence / evolution: we are really doing the same as the Vikings, pillaging the earth: maybe humans don't change. The mistake was to think that we were any type of kind, compassionate steward of our planet. We are selfish apes.

Generally people change behaviour when there’s a cost attached

So if people want to lower consumption from China that would mean something like tariffs

So politically would we want that?

Yes. And if you go on the S and B thread or many other threads, you will find people with 30 pairs of jeans, a 100 dresses, 60 pairs of shoes.... Then all that is discarded as rubbish and dumped in poor countries.

We-including myself-could all consume more mindfully.

I thought if measured as a consumer nation, not just what we produced here, the UK is responsible for around 2% of world green house emissions but even on the 1% figure, we are the 21st country of the worlds top emitting countries.

Agree with this!
It's all very well to insist the UK is only responsible for 1% of global.emissions but a lot of that has to do with the fact we dont manufacture on a massive scale. But that doesn't mean we aren't the consumer or customer of the nations we're pointing the finger at.
China and India etc are not producing billions of goods just for their own residents , they are providing the world with phones, cars, clothes, toys etc etc. (We recently replaced our towels after 20 years, new ones are made in India - the old ones are going to an animal shelter)
So there will be an environmental cost to the production and the transportation to other countries including the uk

Not really. I had untreated asthma while I studied and biked more than that a day.

Even though I drove slowly, it still only took the same amount of time as using public transport.

With falling reproduction rates worldwide, the world's population will eventually peak and start to fall

So cycling and not eating meat is expensive?

I think the Keanu Reeves film explains it perfectly "The tragedy is they know what is to become of them, they sense it but they can't seem to do anything about it"

People are selfish (myself included). We do bits and pieces that help the environment but many people put their own comfort and convenience first.

No, i said thats one interpretation.....

You tell me how China maintains its growth of around 8% by any other means other than mass manufacturing? how it supplies energy to its billion plus citizens?

How does Europe keep its populations in work? the so called Green industries cannot compete with cheaper SE Asian products.

These world leaders are very rich, quite old, Xi is 71, Trump 80? Climate change is for another leader to deal with... many Govts also think tech will save the world.....

I'm not saying you re wrong by the way but i do look at my local environment, just a few years ago, vegetation died off from October onwards, now its still growing in December....
Squirrels used to hibernate, not anymore... Tick season was March till October, now its year long.

These are things that have occurred in just a few years.

The UK and Europe have declining birth rates, totally dwarfed by India’s growing population.

I have sympathy with the population posts. We have a declining birthrate already I wouldn’t do anything to counter that.

AI will kick in by twenty years and lower workforce would be better than loads out of work.

It is difficult to be a conscious consumer but every little bit helps. You must also remember that we all influence each other. So if you start doing something in a more environmentally friendly way you might influence someone else to do the same and that way your little effort counts double.

We use washing nuts and I know that two other families have started using washing nuts too because we had told them about it ( and how much money we had saved). If you start wearing clothes with visible mending or clothes from a charity shop instead of the latest range from Primark you might inspire others to do the same even without talking about it.

I know that it is difficult to avoid products that are made in a way that cause a lot of pollution. Even if you buy local products they might have components that were made in countries you don't agree with politically or where they use child labour or pollute a lot. But it is better than buying a product where all the components come from such countries.

I err towards @Anniedash ’s opinion.
Why is air travel unlimited? Cruise ships everywhere? America, and Europe, selling cars with huge engines capable of ridiculous speeds? SUV’s still for sale? Buying shite from China? India and China building fossil fuel power stations? Drill baby drill? Beef still a staple part of the food chain? Factories producing non essentials like biscuits and cakes? Bottled water being transported all over the world!
That last one boils my piss though. How the fuck is it possible you get a bottle of Evian in an Edinburgh restaurant?
I’m not a climate change denier, but it’s either too late, or nowhere near as serious as made out.

The biggest issue by far is the fact we have 8 billion people and counting. A reduction in reproduction would be the biggest improvement mankind could make. Get back down to 4 billion.

So basically your explanation is that they are all stupid, ostriches, short sighted, don’t mind being wiped out.

And the vocal minority following the climate hysteria cult is smarter and knows everything. Sorry but I struggle to think that climate hysteria types sitting in their cold homes, feeling good about never flying are smarter than the people running the biggest strongest countries in the world.

Well, that is one interpretation.... it could also be that countries like India China etc know there is disaster coming down the tracks but due to their huge populations and utter reliance on growth, see no real way to halt it, so bury their heads in the sand... Trump isn't going to get elected if he said i want to Make America Poor Again, Xi has a population that demands growth, India the same.

The elites think their money will protect them and the climate people like Attenborough believe they are our last chance, environmental prophets.

Yes let’s do nothing. Because people in this country doing something hoping for it to make a difference knowing that it physically and statistically can’t is the real cognitive dissonance. It’s actually weird. Like being in a cult