Comment by cykotic | Hacker News Reader

Comment by cykotic | Hacker News Reader

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Hysteria is too strong a word. Perhaps you speak in hyperbole. Few people are actually hysterical over the destruction of the environment that we are doing collectively.

I just hope we don't kill too many people with the "degrowth" idiocy which is fueled by flimsy doomerist predictions that are only loosely based on legitimate science but mostly pushed by entities with political and/or financial interests.

Why is the idiocy on this side of the issue and not yours? In terms of pushing political interests I think a relatively objective analysis of how corporations are influencing research and the messaging with regard to climate science would lead one to the opposite conclusion you appear to have come to.

At least progress has been made. Thirty years ago people like you were at the denial stage. You aren’t denying the problem, just labeling those who want to take steps to mitigate it as hysterical. Soon you will be at the “We can’t do anything about it” stage.

I thought you were replying in good faith until the last paragraph, too bad. Legitimate climate scientists (who aren't just hopping on the bandwagon) will echo my sentiment, perhaps with less hyperbolic language although I don't believe that calling it mass hysteria at this point is hyperbolic. But they are consistently pushed out of mainstream, popular "science" because they tend to have the appropriate level of humility and nuanced views as opposed to apocalyptic screams that "the planet is on fire" and such, so much like previous episodes of mass hysteria, their comments are largely drowned out by the hysterics. Or they just don't speak up because of people like you who'd smear them as deniers.

The vast majority of climate scientists believe you are wrong. A very small minority of them believe you are right. Given that climate science is not like mathematics where absolute certainty is possible it’s best for people to go with the overwhelming consensus expert opinion. In a world of uncertain knowledge this is the best we can do and it isn’t hysteria to think there’s a huge problem.

If my view wins out in the political sense then we’ll end up with a world with much more clean energy, a lot less pollution, less reliance on plastics, less resource wars, cleaner water, cleaner air, more trees, etc. If your view wins out politically, and you are correct that the issue is overblown, then we end up with worse air quality, more pollution, unclean water, etc.

Whether or not my views on climate change are correct, mitigating the harm to the environment benefits everyone. This truly is a case where Pascal’s wager makes sense. So let’s stop swimming in our own shit and create a clean environment.

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