Anyone else see that huge changes are happening right now and we’re still sleep walking?

[RudsyFarmer]

its Interesting to me that life is just carrying on while there are huge, seismic shifts occurring globally that will impact us. It’s like the start of the pandemic actually. When I read the paper and Covid had been found in China and I thought, ah China, that’s along way away and within a couple of weeks we were at the beginning of lockdowns and my joke about hoarding pasta became a reality.

We’re about to have a heatwave in October. We now have wildfires as standard in Europe every summer and mass migration of people from continents that are starting to become inhabitable are overrunning areas of Italy and Greece. More and more people will start moving away from devastated land in search of more temperate weather, food, housing and employment.

This isn’t something that will be happening in a decade. It’s happening right now. The places that used to grow our food are going to start conserving the food for their own people. I want to feel positive but I can’t see how times are going to get better from here. I read the news and it feels really, really fucking bleak.

I think we are in a live version of Don't Look Up.
Earlier in the year when it was very hot, someone started a thread saying the extreme heat was an example of climate change. She got loads of replies saying this level of heat was normal and they remembered hotter days in the last few years. Then that evening the news said it was the hottest day on record in Britain.
People are just denying the truth.
And their children are going to suffer because of this.

People are even easier than data to manipulate.

🙄

What will happen I'm Britain is,
More wildfires in rural areas
More flash flooding
Some very hot days
New insects from across the ocean which will bring new illnesses
Increased subsidence
More expensive food
More wars over resources

We will adapt, just as day follows night. We arent going to wake up one day and its suddenly 60 degrees with sand is blowing everywere.

Im waiting for another half dozen warnings of the beast from the east this winter that will result in no more than 2" of snow and some mild frosts that the media will jump on the back of to stir up panic / boost sales.

We will adapt. Just as we adapted to lockdowns.
But it will affect some people badly. Some homes will be unrealistic to live in due to flooding. Some people will complain as certain food will no longer be available or will be incredibly expensive. There will be less choice.
It's all liveable, but our way of life will change.

Climate change is worrying but I try to be positive.
if you look at our technology and our knowledge on almost anything between 1901 and 2001 it shows how quickly we learn and develop. If you take for example the technology usable to the average person in 2001 (uk only 25% of households had the internet) to what we use today, it’s genuinely mind boggling. A student of mine couldn’t get his head around how in 2001 phones were very simple and by 2010 Instagram was launched (an irrelevant point I know but I’m just illustrating.)

what I mean to say is. Yes we could be doing more, should be doing more. Once that does happen it will happen at a very fast pace. I’m not saying we will understand and implement change in time, but it gives me hope.

Yes, they were started by arsonists (in Europe, not sure about the 100+ burning in Canada) but the climactic changes excacerbated the conditions which wildfires thrive in.

Then we have the supercharged storms. They have been predicted for over 40 yrs.

And if the Gulf Stream changes course it will be rather a lot cooler up around the North Sea.

Exciting times!

You can't really 'adapt' to war. Lots of people tend to die.

I’m not sure we are having a heatwave in October, certainly not countrywide as here in the NW it’s rather nippy today and my heating came on this morning which means my house temp was lower than 16°. I guess the milder weather will just affect the South but as always the media make sweeping statements.

Its my birthday today so obviously I have better memories of the 4th October than for other days. I’ve certainly been wearing summer clothes enjoying a BBQ in the garden to celebrate my birthday when I live near Reading, I had some beach holidays in October when it was warm enough to go swimming - but equally it’s been stormy, raining hard and I was in my winter clothes.

tattygrl · Today 14:24

Yes.

People understandably are over-awed, daunted and scared into passivity, denial or simply overwhelm and inaction from the scale of the problem, how complex and far-reaching it is, and the fact that any significant single actions can only be taken by major corporations and governments.

However, apathy and doomerism/despair only make our situation worse.

I'm desperately trying to do some local things - forming groups, researching, trying to set things up, etc., some in partnership with the council, some more independent, and the BIGGEST obstacle is peoples' lack of engagement and apathy. The biggest.

If everyone who cared (and I believe that the vast majority DO care) actually got involved, engaged and simply showed up, it would make a monumental difference.

I'm not judging, because I think the main reason people don't engage is because it's overwhelming, and there's a sense that it's too demanding of time and money in this current day and age of COL crisis, etc. It's not, though. Engaging can be as simple as attending a local group a few times a month. Just showing your face, being there, learning what's going on and seeing if there's any efforts you can put your shoulder to along with others.

I feel desperate, utterly desperate, simply to see some engagement from the vast majority of ordinary people.

I know what you mean. I feel like we should be rioting in the streets. But we roll our eyes and just passively accept Government putting ego and greed before what is right. This is what people can easily do….

https://www.imperial.ac.uk/stories/climate-action/amp-index.html

You are absolutely right. I vacillate between wanting to know as much information as I can possibly absorb and not being able to turn on the news or read an article. I used to worry about the state of the world for generations yet to come but now I worry even about the state of affairs for my children.

everetting

That is a very optimistic (and naive) view. There is no adapting to severe drought. There is no adapting to no food.

There is no excuse for not doing everything we can to mitigate the worst of it.

Havn't British water companies been pumping literal shit in the the rivers and sea. Hasn't rishi sunak just made billion pound deals with oil companies for oil extraction? Or am i making that up

@DysonSpheres I thought a lot of the wild fires were found to be the result of arsonists. Selective reporting conveniently didn't highlight that until interest in the fires died down.

Some of the fires were started deliberately but once lit spread more quickly and more dangerously. It was reported at the time.

You're using old statistics. But you know that.
I guess you are happy with the 'Vote Tory because you're going to die anyway' angle. I'm not sure that will work well at the polls. But maybe you can try to bamboozle people with old information there ... and they might forget about the billions siphoned off to Tory friends and funders.

My ancestors are largely dead.

Im in Naples on holiday atm. There are 100s of earth quakes in Naples every year.

Climate change done for them @Daftasabroom?

Well we can if it’s linked to oceans rising temp- climate change impacts.

It's all been known about for years. At least since beginning of this century.
At least steps are being taken now. I was even more depressed about it 10 years ago

Climate change probably not, unless you go back a very long way. PM2.5 and PM10 pollution? Highly likely.

And obviously the beaches will get smaller as sea levels rise (not aimed at yourself).

Volcanoes tend to have a global cooling effect.

I thought a lot of the wild fires were found to be the result of arsonists. Selective reporting conveniently didn't highlight that until interest in the fires died down.

I don't think anyone is claiming spontaneous combustion in the case of the wildfires.

The point about them is that the burnt forests had experienced drought, which made the devastation far worse than fires normally are.

Interest in the fires shouldn't die down. They should alert us to the existence of deeper problems.

Sadly, we have become used to news as entertainment, just one more programme in the evening lineup.

They also tend to have a death effect.

The UK hasn't been self sufficient in food production for over 175 years.

What practical measures would you put in place?