It certainly presents a tremendous challenge and in may ways the situation looks exceedingly grim.jupiviv wrote: ↑Sat May 25, 2019 11:42 pmThank you for proving my point! The problems we face as a species are too large and imminent to be dealt with in incremental steps without inflicting much collateral damage. They require drastic collective action and willingness to make difficult personal sacrifices, which is very unlikely to happen by your own admission.David Quinn wrote: ↑Fri May 24, 2019 8:03 pmThis is pie in the sky stuff. It will never happen. It is about as likely to happen as 6 billion people suddenly offering to commit suicide for the sake of the environment.jupiviv wrote: ↑Fri May 24, 2019 2:58 am There will inevitably be major economic repercussions for a collective global rejection of cars, but it won't grind everything to a halt. There are many other ways of travelling like buses, trains, bicycles. There are also ways in which car owners can change their lifestyles, like moving away from the suburbs and closer to work, or working from home. You asked me for a solution and this is one that, if pursued earnestly, will definitely cause a significant reduction in fossil fuel usage.
It's obvious that you don't take the issue seriously. You offer full-blown fantasies in the same way that you offer full-blown cynicism - as a way to hide from having to deal with anything.
But I am old enough to know that things can change very quickly at the drop of a hat. A major technological breakthrough, perhaps, or a sudden sweeping realization across the world that urgent action has to be taken, or the ascension of an intelligent global leader who can galvanize people, or whatever. There is always the possibility that something unexpected can arise and overturn the tired, old ways of looking at things.
By the same token, I am also old enough to know that if people are determined to remain stuck in a pessimistic, nihilistic, cynical state of mind, then we have no hope. It becomes its own self-fulfilling prophecy.
I know you like to treat your cynicism as a safe space, but it offers nothing to humanity. And not only does it offer nothing to humanity, but it puts limits on your own inner development. It is no surprise that, even after 10 years of being here, you still haven't yet reached enlightenment.
Do I really need to list the numerous achievements by science in countless different areas, whether it be eradicating deadly diseases, extending our life-spans, eliminating infant mortality, creating labour-saving devices, exposing the falseness of myths and superstitions, increasing freedom of speech (via the internet), increasing our understanding of the cosmos, and so on?jupiviv wrote: ↑Fri May 24, 2019 2:58 amScience can at most identify real world problems accurately. Solving or overcoming them takes a lot more than scientific knowledge, e.g. cheaply extractable fossil fuels and other natural resources.Science has repeatedly shown throughout its history that it can make seemingly intractable problems vanish. It isn't magic. It is the application of rational understanding and solid theorizing.
Just the fact that you, an Indian, can come along to a forum like this and communicate near instantaneously with Australians, Dutchmen, Americans, etc, and be exposed to a deep wisdom which is very difficult to find anywhere else, is purely due to science. Show some gratitude, man. Without science, you would probably remain stuck for the rest of your life in the narrow confines of your own primitive culture.
You might well say, and you probably will, that these achievements have generated their own problems, such as over-population, but that's irrelevant to the basic point being made here, which is that science is perfectly capable of resolving all sorts of different issues and making them vanish.
Why do you say that? My understanding is that Modi initially started his Prime Minisitership with a far more positive and constructive message, promising to usher India into a new modern age, and Obama, who normally likes to encourage the best in people, did his bit to try and fan that ambition. But by the time Trump came along, Modi had dumped all that and confined himself to demonizing Muslims instead.
The good republicans would disagree with you.jupiviv wrote: ↑Fri May 24, 2019 2:58 amAnother feature of Trump Derangement - thinking that Trump and the "good" Republicans are at odds with each other. All/most disagreements on that front (thus far) have been about protocol, procedure or implementation, not content.That's because the saner members of the Republican party have long ago left his administration in disgust and Trump has since stacked it with his cronies, flunkies and yes men.
The Republican party has been steadily shrinking since Trump came along and turned it into his own personality cult. Everyone with dignity and brains has left.
You really do have your head in the sand.
Let's call it HITS Syndrome. A big, heavy, blinding dose of HITSS. And you have got it bad. Real bad.
Yes, the world has been shifting towards corporate oligarchy for a long time now, but that doesn't mean that what we are observing now is just business as usual. There have been major changes occurring over the past several years that have caused the world to become exceedingly fragile, thus making the corporate oligarchy increasingly more powerful and dangerous.
For example, one of the major functions of the liberal establishment is to act as a buffer against the rapacious actions of the oligarchs - who are, let's not mince our words here, nothing less than dangerous psychopaths. By using the rule of law and implementing regulations that protect the rest of us from environmental vandalism, financial crimes, scam artists, soulless cruelty, corporate bullying, etc, we have managed to curtail the ability of these evil men to inflict harm upon us, at least to some degree. Yes, it has been a flawed system, a flawed form of protection, but it is the only one we have. Take it away and there is nothing left to stop these psychopaths from completely screwing us over.
This is one of the reasons why I was disgusted a couple of years ago, and still am disgusted, by the sight of senior people on this forum - specifically, you, Diebert, Russell and Kevin - happily putting the boot into the liberal establishment, of being swept up by the alt-right movement and reveling in a sort of crazed bloodlust to bring it all crashing down - seemingly oblivious to the consequences of all this. It was disgusting to see the four of you so willing to be the pawns and dupes of these oligarchs, to fight for their interests against those of us who seek to reign in their psychopathic urges. And it disgusts me that, even now, none of you are willing to face up to this.