Some within the climate science community, as well as many outside the climate science community, have called those who underscore the enormous threat posed by global warming the peddler of climate “porn” in recent years.
A leading climate scientist has even warned that we should avoid terms such as “shocking”, “horrific” or “devastating” when describing climate collapse, so as not to induce “denial, paralysis and apathy”.
This is wrong on so many levels that it’s hard to know where to start.
collapse
I’m pretty sure that if a poll were held today to determine how much of the population is terrified by the prospect of a dangerous climate breakdown, the number would be very small.
A lot of people may say they are worried, a lot of people may admit to being very worried but scared, no, not a lot. this is a problem.
The truth is that we are at the heart of a crisis situation that threatens to tear global societies and economies apart within decades.
Downplaying the dire predicament we find ourselves in will not help us address the climate emergency. Instead, it will — inevitably — foster the idea that things aren’t actually too bad.
So it could get hotter, the weather could be wilder, but nothing we can’t handle. Of course, this is completely untrue. Our once-stable climate is rapidly unraveling, and no one is immune from the chaos this will bring for decades to come.
alarmist
It is now almost impossible to keep this side of the dangerous 1.5°C climate change barrier, but if we have any chance of controlling runaway heating, we need to take drastic action now.
And the only way we’re going to get it is if the scales can be dropped from people’s eyes, the terrible future in which their children will grow old and their grandchildren will grow up is revealed to them. To do that, climate scientists need to tell it as it is — uncensored and uncensored.
In other words, we need to fight terror. In some cases, fear can be paralyzing, but more often it drives action. Today, we only have to look at the reaction of the Ukrainian people to the Russian invasion to confirm this. Fear sends adrenaline levels soaring, which in turn fuels an innate, irrepressible urge to act.
We have never needed such compulsion as we do today. To say it is not alarmist, far from it. In fact, it’s a matter of debate whether it’s possible to paint another bleaker picture than the reality to come.
heating
The truth is, if we want to see the whole population rise up and demand serious action, which is what we need – and soon – then we need everyone to be scared, really scared, not just a little bit worried.
