Cinjin Cain Wrote:You have a cold cold heart ... and no amount of debate on my behalf can change that. Clearly you have made up your mind about the value you put on human life - little to none. Disturbing - but really no surprise I spose after I read your remark about 9/11.

Wouldn't say I have a cold heart, considering how much I donate and give to those poor people who don't even ask of me

And yet it is correct that the value of random humans is to me rather low. I don't view it as disturbing at all... but then I have had to deal with watching my people mercilessly butchered by Klackon jumbo death fleets enough times that my response to it is very emotionally cold. Dropping bioweapons on my planets will still send me into a rage... how little they respect us that they will not even have the honor to combat our defenses.

(April 25, 2011 at 2:42 pm)Minimalist Wrote: An asteroid hit of the magnitude of Chicxulub would probably suffice to wipe us out but failing that I expect that we will suffer through a major die-off but there will be enough survivors to start all over again fucking things up.

If we retain a modest collective memory of some of the technological knowledge we gained since the farming revolution, I expect enough of us would would survive a chicxulube scale impact to continue the species afterwards. We are nasty, resourceful little buggers extremely hard to eradicate.

So from what I can tell - everyone is in agreement that the human race is not going to become extinct anytime soon.

I'm in agreement for the most part.

So perhaps the question that should be posed - Do you think that we will soon face worlwide catastrophe in the next 50 years due to the reasons the study gives?? And will this (these) catastrophe(s) result in the deaths numbering in the millions?

I think it's very likely.

Cinjin Cain Wrote:So perhaps the question that should be posed - Do you think that we will soon face worlwide catastrophe in the next 50 years due to the reasons the study gives?? And will this (these) catastrophe(s) result in the deaths numbering in the millions?

Hundreds of millions - low billions.

I never read the study, and don't care about the reasons it gives. I have my own reasons, and they are enough for me.

(April 25, 2011 at 4:29 am)Chuck Wrote: The average species live 2 million years. We humans have 90% yet to go by the law of averages and assuming we do not leverage our technology to give us unprecedented advantages in species survival.

2 million? I didn't know that. Be interested in seeing some evidence,not that I think it's relevant,or to be blunt,that I care.

Humans are smart enough,greedy enough and ignorant enough to make the planet uninhabitable for themselves and many other species. I can't think of any other species which can do that. Two MILLION years? Unlikely;just look at the damage we've managed to do in two HUNDRED years.

My observation is that with any luck,I'll be dead before the situation reaches the point of severe personal inconvenience.The whole issue is academic to me.

(April 25, 2011 at 8:58 pm)padraic Wrote: The whole issue is academic to me.

Not to me. Well, maybe, if it was just the remainder of my life. But I have a son who has an entire lifetime in front of him. My conscience will not allow me to shrug my shoulders and ignore the signs of an ailing planet knowing that my son could suffer a number of hardships including but not limited to - world war due to famine, nuclear fallout, lack of resources, political and literal tyranny and quite possibly the complete absence of basic human freedoms.

Maybe they won't die, but what good is life if it has no quality about it?

I don't think for a moment that the human race is going to escape catastrophic destruction. We're going to embrace killing eachother as we have done so many times before.

Maybe the next wave of humans will figure it out. Maybe not.

Cinjin Wrote:Maybe the next wave of humans will figure it out. Maybe not.

They won't

Quote:Not to me. Well, maybe, if it was just the remainder of my life. But I have a son who has an entire lifetime in front of him.

I understand,and would absolutely feel the same in your place. However, I had no offspring by choice.I didn't get married until I was almost 32 because I couldn't find a woman who did not want children.


That was nothing to do with our species. I was terrified I would become the same kind of cunt as my father. I was determined to stop the cycle of abuse. My brother did not have any children either. The cycle is broken. I am content.

(April 25, 2011 at 7:13 pm)Cinjin Cain Wrote: So from what I can tell - everyone is in agreement that the human race is not going to become extinct anytime soon.

I'm in agreement for the most part.

So perhaps the question that should be posed - Do you think that we will soon face worlwide catastrophe in the next 50 years due to the reasons the study gives?? And will this (these) catastrophe(s) result in the deaths numbering in the millions?

I think it's very likely.

15 million children alone die of hunger each year already.

http://library.thinkquest.org/C002291/hi.../stats.htm

In the next 50 years, it may get very bad. How much we will be affected in the fisrt world will depend on the economy. It dosen't look good.

As Sea has pointed out, the problem is the Worlds population. The thing is we need to reduce the population, a very hard thing indeed. Not many are willing or able to do this. Its a hard moral choice, how do we reduce the population without affecting people rights.

Would you not have children if you could, would it make any difference.

Saerules Wrote:People do die, and I accept this. Do I want a few billion people to die? Absolutely.

Which few billion, your few billion or their few billion, or any few billion. But as others, and now myself, have said, would this be such a bad thing? Ofcourse it would be bad. But the survival of the human species needs this to happen. If we are to make it to the next level, hard decisions must be made, or hard things will happen automatically.
We can do it in less devastating/destructive manner ourselves, or we can wait and see what happens. Sadly, I think we are going to wait until it happens.

Cinjin Cain Wrote:I think the human race will be driven to the very brink of extinction before it can stop destroying this planet. Earth will be fine ... eventually ... as long as the majority of us aren't on it. Sadly.

(April 25, 2011 at 10:46 pm)ib.me.ub Wrote:

(April 25, 2011 at 7:13 pm)Cinjin Cain Wrote: So from what I can tell - everyone is in agreement that the human race is not going to become extinct anytime soon.

I'm in agreement for the most part.

So perhaps the question that should be posed - Do you think that we will soon face worlwide catastrophe in the next 50 years due to the reasons the study gives?? And will this (these) catastrophe(s) result in the deaths numbering in the millions?

I think it's very likely.

15 million children alone die of hunger each year already.
In the next 50 years, it may get very bad. How much we will be affected in the fisrt world will depend on the economy. It dosen't look good.

As Sea has pointed out, the problem is the Worlds population. The thing is we need to reduce the population, a very hard thing indeed. Not many are willing or able to do this. Its a hard moral choice, how do we reduce the population without affecting people rights.

Would you not have children if you could, would it make any difference.

Saerules Wrote:People do die, and I accept this. Do I want a few billion people to die? Absolutely.

Which few billion, your few billion or their few billion, or any few billion. But as others, and now myself, have said, would this be such a ba thing? Ofcourse it would be bad. But the survival of the human species needs this to happen. If we are to make it to the next level, hard decisions must be made, or hard things will happen automatically.
We can do it in less devastating/destructive manner ourselves, or we can wait and see what happens. Sadly, I think we are going to wait until it happens.

Cinjin Cain Wrote:I think the human race will be driven to the very brink of extinction before it can stop destroying this planet. Earth will be fine ... eventually ... as long as the majority of us aren't on it. Sadly.

The population issue that Sae brought up - I actually agree with. We desperately need population controls and I would be the first to volunteer for a vasectomy if thats what it takes. But that does not fix the problems we already have and Sae's willingness to kill off people she doesn't care about is disturbing because it is that exact mindset that is going to bring the world to a violent end. If everybody wants everybody else to die except for them - where is that going to get us. Endless war.

I do understand the concept of, "thinning the herd", but I don't think she would be so cavalier if it was her house and her friends of whom the world decided to "thin".