After reading SuperFreakonomics, I both love and hate the book. As with most entertaining nonfiction I've read, complexities are far oversimplified. Any book that praises Alan Kay and Object-Orient Programming in a way anyone can understand is worth picking up from the 2.99 discount book table.
However, the authors also claim we may not need to worry because geoengineering will solve global warming. That may be true. However, global warming is not what we need to solve, and geoengineering only treats the symptoms anyway. Our climate is screwed up, (we probably did it to ourselves) and enough the resulting crazy, unpredictable weather could destroy civilization.
The increasing climate problems on our little planet are like a house on fire, with the residents arguing that we need to find out who is at fault before we can try to put it out.
The whole climate change thing will be moot when the Yellowstone Caldera blows, unless we get a couple of centuries grace period and can figure out how to safely relieve hot-magma pressure before it blows a hole in the crust.
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Perhaps we can solve several problems by putting BP in charge of the Yellowstone Caldera issue. They have people who know how to take the pressure off the pipeline and allow a continuous and reasonably even flow.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, regardless of how responsible we are or aren't, let's be reasonable stewards of our environment. Mom always said to leave a place better than we found it! Mother Earth would undoubtedly agree.