Thread by @JimBair62221006

I am (likely unwisely) wandering into the fray of the current ‘doomism’ debate.

Let me start by saying I offer no clear solutions, just nuance for consideration; admit culpability to being doomist at times; and blame no one except for the fossil fuel companies...

...that have pushed us into this corner where we are anxious, frustrated and exhausted from the challenges of what at times seems like an intractable problem.

My hope is that we can all work and engage respectfully and work towards effective #ClimateAction, recognizing:

-on the one hand that climate scientists have no doubt dealt with tremendous bullying, harassment and misinformation, all the while being ignored and downplayed by government after government (I really can’t imagine the stress and angst this would engender)

-we are in a unique situation, potentially on the cusp of great & meaningful climate action with President Biden
-when messaging is so terrifying that it extinguishes any sense that #ClimateAction will effect change (or is counter-factual), it should definitely be called out

But on the other hand recognizing:
-there is already substantial ‘doom’ on the ground. People have died because of climate change; climate change is killing people now; poorer countries have been ravaged by climate change as a threat multiplier

-this means that non-climate scientist citizens are getting increasingly scared. This is understandable.
-models have limits, humans have been known to succumb to hubris, and we have seen many recent phenomena that have been ‘worse than predicted’ or on the high side of models

-climate scientists, biologists and other scientists are all very specialized. They have huge demands on them in academic settings – teaching, publication, community service, media engagement. Others among us clearly need to defer to their expertise, but...

may also offer something through having the time to be more generalist. Right now we are clearly facing multiple overlapping crises that may intersect and amplify each other, extending beyond simply physical changes.

-brushing off and labeling concerned citizens (“doomist” / “old white guy” - yes I am one / non-scientist) smacks of elitism, creates distrust and breeds conspiracy theories (“why are they trying to silence us” / “why are they being so cautious”)

-there have been decades of inaction, countless administration that have made promises and then failed to act. Here in Canada, we are still very much facing this.
-activism gets results. This cannot be denied. Non-scientist activists play a critical role in getting things done.

So by all means, call out the bad behaviour, push every activist to call for urgent action, and educate them on that. But please let us continue to treat each other with respect and work together as best we can against the real problem –fossil fuel companies.