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Future Underclass? No. Not I.

Posted: 12-04-07

Like anywhere I imagine, but especially here in NZ at the moment, there seems to be an ever increasingly vociferous bunch of climate-skeptics, operating out of the "The Science is inconclusive" camp – referring of course to the imminent release of the IPCC's Report on Climate Change – bent on dissuading as many people as they possibly can that human beings are far too insignificant-a creature to possess the ability to wreak havoc on mother earth and that human-induced climate change isn't real.

I think my girlfriend was onto something when she said that these people are probably scared: Not of climate change itself, but of the definite changes they'd need to make to their own lives should they be swayed - clearly too mighty-an undertaking and far beyond the abilities of these poor, unfortunate souls. Unfortunately it also follows that their attitude will inevitably grant them an ill-earned right to continue to pollute, waste and nag those of their polar opposite, even as the latter easily settle into a mitigative and adaptive phase of consumption and living standards.

So it makes me laugh and exasperates me simultaneously whenever I read articles and forum-posts written by climate skeptics. Their oft-stated argument that the science is still not concrete enough to warrant making any changes whatsoever to their current lifestyles. So to them I would ask: What for you would constitute evidence that human-induced climate change is very real and that important parts of it are caused by build-ups of historically never-seen-before Carbon Dioxide levels?

The other argument I hear very often is that working to mitigate against climate change would be harmful to economies. I'd like to see the scientifically derived evidence that economical harm could come to any country's economy who's government had decided to clean up and become more efficient. Increasing efficiency saves money. Isn't that why industry for one, streamlines itself continually to strive to become more efficient and save money?

The people one hears whining about negative economical impact are likely those folks too used to the status quo and who would do anything to prevent things changing – changing them.

So am I really left pondering who's likely to become the social underclass of the mid-21st century?

Not not really.

Cheers,
Russ