Scary Climate Stories or Armageddon?

Throughout human history, most information spread organically through word of mouth, and eventually through what was intended to be an impartial press. The purpose has always been to keep people informed about facts, which they could each process and prioritize as they saw fit.

In our modern age of mass media, however, we are no longer deciding which facts are important, but which facts are actually facts. The concept that absolute power corrupts absolutely has come to be applied, as the conglomeration of mass media into a pulpit with worldwide accessibility has skewed its presentation of facts into one of partisan thoughts with self-serving ends.

The reality is that there is more money to be made by inflaming topical division than by impartiality. People would rather rally to a cause they’re passionate about than process all the facts of an issue and streamline the most logical responses. Modern mass media fuels this fire, lighting partisan matches to ignite profitable culture wars.

For an example, look no further than climate change. Both sides have taken to extremes because extremes provide financial support, ignoring the inconvenient fallout such extremes produce.

Climate change deniers point out more immediately pressing needs for resource allocation. But they ignore the fact that none of those needs will matter if the world eventually becomes functionally uninhabitable. Advocates belittle any who don’t fall into lockstep with their views. But they ignore the repellant effects their Chicken Little The sky is falling! demands have when doomsday scenarios fail to materialize on their exaggerated schedules.

Downplayers seem content to pass the buck to future generations, assuming that the effects will be too minimal in their lifetimes to justify prioritization over other needs. However selfish, there is some validity to that stance, though its extremes ignore other contemporary realities. Coastal flooding, dying coral, and polluted air and water affect humanity right now, and will only worsen if not addressed.

Hyperbolists, however, overplay their hands in fanciful dreams that they can pull an outside straight flush on the river. Forcing draconian lifestyle changes creates pushback against any change at all, the benefits not befitting the sacrifice for most. They also act

oblivious to the enormity of our planet and its existing energy systems, and the true amount of time and resources such hurried conversion would involve. Change needs to happen in its due course - artificial deadlines ignore the substantial collateral damage they create.

Change requires the funding of advanced science to come up with creative solutions, science that is already well underway. Jamming square pegs into round holes and calling them filled is ignorance embraced.

We can discontinue the use of all fossil fuels, but the sacrifices in jobs, economy, and convenience will be pointless as long as the 60+% of the world’s population in Asia continues their status quo. We can call for electric vehicles and machinery, but would need to accept that their creation, maintenance, and electrical power supplies require fossil fuel use.

We can try to convert to alternate energy sources (wind, solar, hydro), but would be ignoring their shortcomings in prohibitive maintenance, available space, and environmental effect. As such sources are intermittent, they would also require massive production of storage cells, the disposal of which is environmentally damaging. They also use materials mined in China, empowering them and other countries to continue burning fossil fuels in the process as their government has no interest in such regulations.

Picking sides only ensures there are still sides - finding balance is key. The world is not coming to an end anytime soon but neither is it unaffected by damaging human activity. We can wish all we want for everybody to just be better people, but that is a pipe dream which ignores the financial priorities of most humans. I don’t mean only the rich, “Big Oil” CEOs, but more importantly the majority of people who need to account for every dollar. Continued scientific advancement and organic, profit-motivated conversion are the only real paths to effective change that minimize collateral damage and will incentivize other nations to follow.

Zephareth Ledbetter is the author of “A White Man’s Perspectives on Race and Racism”, available as an ebook at smashwords.com/books/view/1184004