Zeev's Turnips Talk Politics (ZTTP)

[fuagf]

Embedding disabled by request .. lololol .. thanks .. anyway, an example of approach .. of attitude .. Lomborg .. The Litany ..
"the the environment is in poor shape here on earth .. our resources are running out ..the population is ever growing ., leaving less and less to eat .. the air and the water are becoming ever polluted .. the planet's species are becoming extinct in vast numbers - we kill off more than 40,000 each year .. the forests are disappearing .. fish stocks are collapsing .. the coral reefs are dying .. we are defiling our earth .. the fertile topsoil is disappearing .. .. we are paving over nature ., destroying the wilderness .., decimating the biosphere and will end up killing ourselves in the process .. the world's eco-system is breaking down .. we are fast approaching the limit of our viability .. the limits of growth are becoming apparent"

"We know the Litany and have heard it so often that yet another repetition is, well, almost
reassuring. There is only on problem: it does not seem to be backed up by the available evidence"

"We are not running out of energy or natural resources .. there will be more and more food per head of the world's population .. fewer and fewer people are starving .. in 1900 we lived for an average of 30 years; today we live for 67 .. according to the UN we have reduced poverty more in the last 50 years than we did in the preceding 500, and it has been reduced in nearly every country .. global warming, though its size and future projections are rather unrealistically pessimistic, is almost certainly taking place, but the but the typical cure of of early and radical fossil fuel cut-backs is way worse than the original affliction, and moreover its total impact will not pose a devastating problem for our future .. nor will we lose 25-50 percent of all species in our lifetime-time - in fact we are losing probably 0.7 percent .. acid rain does not kill the forests, and the air and water around us are becoming less and less polluted"

"Mankinds lot has actually improved in terms of practically every measurable indicator."

"But, note carefully what i am saying here: that by far the majority of indicators show that mankind's lot has vastly improved .. this does not, however, mean that everything is good enough .. the first statement refers to what the world looks like whereas the second refers to what it should look like .. while on lecture tours i have discovered how vital it is to emphasize this distinction ............."

"However, pointing out that our most publicized fears are incorrect
does not mean that we should make no effort towards improving the environment ............"

"What this information should tell us is not to abandon action entirely, but to focus
our attention on the most important problems and only to the extent warranted by the facts."

There is a little more straight Lomborg for you .. i couldn't paraphrase it any better without losing some
.. his skepticism is extended graciously while so many as you drip with derision and condemnation. Attitude.

He talks of prioritization of our resources .. that there will always be good projects we
are forced to reject .. that the only scarce resource is money with which to solve problems ....

Lomborg suggests often the Litany can be traced to Lester Brown and his Worldwatch Institute .. is critical of, amongst
others, the use of single examples while ignoring global data .. he then analyses some of the most pronounced of World-
watch and contends that "the Litany's claims are founded on very fragile examples or merely offered on faith.

That said this is the difference i appreciate ..

"The problem of course is not the lack of data - Worldwatch Institute publishes fine data collections, which
are also used in this book - but merely a carelessness that comes with the ingrained belief in the Litany."

He is critical of of communication, of solutions, but does not dispute all crucial
data and does not do a blanket condemn. As you and so many others do.

Are you able to use your embed? Off now. Nice. Early night.

ps: have hardly touched his book yet .. you should read it.