Carlos Pascual and Strobe Talbott of the Brookings Institute declare in the Washington Post that the End is near, that we only have 7 more years to stop global warming and world devastation. From 7 Years to Climate Midnight;
The world may have only seven years to start reducing the annual buildup in greenhouse gas emissions that otherwise threatens global catastrophe within several decades. That means that between Inauguration Day in January 2009 and 2015, either John McCain or Barack Obama will face the most momentous political challenge of all time.
Reflecting a consensus of hundreds of scientists around the world, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has affirmed that greenhouse gas emissions are raising the Earth’s temperature. The Earth is on a trajectory to warm more than 4.5 degrees Fahrenheit by around mid-century. Exceeding that threshold could trigger a series of phenomena: Arable land will turn into desert, higher sea levels will flood coastal areas, and changes in the convection of the oceans will alter currents, such as the Gulf Stream, that determine regional weather patterns. Manhattan and Florida would be under water, while Nevada would have no water at all.
A suggestion: Don’t set dates. When you do and the date passes with the prediction not happening–as Christian end-of-time millennialists have learned–you look really foolish.
But I don’t think the world is going to do very much about this problem in 7 years. Maybe the world should, but it won’t. So perhaps we should all make plans to face our doom. Move out of Manhattan, Florida, and Nevada. Stockpiling supplies will only buy you a short time. Accept death with dignity. Above all, make peace with your Maker.
About Gene Veith
