Thread by @SteB777

1) We need to urgently develop a new simple and clear cut way of defining the climate and ecological crisis, and defining what measures are actually necessary to avert catastrophe. I make this request to all working scientists in this field, and indeed all concerned scientists.

2) Currently we have a serious problem where world leaders are playing a deceitful game of pretending they are trying address the climate and ecological crisis, when neither their acknowledgement of what the crisis is, and nor their measures are at all realistic #MindTheGap.

3) This is a convoluted version of the straw man logical fallacy, in which a dishonest person tries to win an argument, by misrepresenting the argument of their opponent and arguing against the misrepresentation as if that were the issue.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straw_man

4) Except here, the straw man is not an argument, but the reality of the climate and ecological emergency, the causes of it, and the measures needed to address it i.e. the description of all that. Our leadership is seriously misleading the public with this charade.

5) As @GretaThunberg has succinctly observed, the primary problem is that our leadership, our governments, nor the media, have never treated the climate and ecological emergency as a real crisis. Our governments have never responded in the way you would expect if it was a crisis.

6) I say that our governments and our media have never treated the climate and ecological crisis as a crisis, because they have created a straw man misrepresentation of that crisis, to make it falsely appear as if their inadequate measures are going to address that crisis.

7) It's an intellectual sleight of hand, but on a grand scale. After 30-50 years of promising to address the climate and ecological crisis, and then doing nothing, it is now crystal clear that our governments never intended to take the action they promised the public they'd take.

8) The core problem is quite simple. Any realistic measures to address the climate and ecological emergency and it's causes would mean a profound change to business as usual, the current status quo, and the present economic model.

9) Business as usual, the current economic model, the status quo, gives a relatively tiny proportion of our population immense power, unbelievable wealth and status, massively greater than that of even relatively well off ordinary people.

10) In fact, so massive is the gap between those at the top, and ordinary people, that for all intents and purposes this elite might as well be a different species, living in a different world. Their world is profoundly different than that experienced by the majority.

11) Unsurprisingly, people of such wealth, power and high status are unwilling to see any changes to the system that gives them such power, wealth and high status, and such a life of luxury. The problem is this cabal is in charge of everything.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabal

12) As I say it is a true cabal. Not one of the fake conspiracy theories. But simply all wealthy, powerful and high status people, who have a lot in common with each other, and very little in common with ordinary people, the public.

13) When people have a lot in common with each other, where they have common interests, and are clearly apart from the rest of society, there is no need for the fictional conspiracies of the conspiracy theorists - they naturally coordinate to protect their self-interest.

14) Football supporters of a team can in their tens of thousands in a stadium, all sing and chant in unison, despite never having attended a rehearsal, and not having a conductor. This analogy illustrates the ability of people of a like mind, to coordinate, without a coordinator.

15) Likewise, the wealthiest, most powerful high status people most benefiting from the current system, business as usual model, coordinate and cooperate in defence of the status quo which gives them this privilege, without a formal conspiracy.

16) Overall, those benefiting the most from the current system, would be painfully aware that if the system changed to address the climate and ecological emergency, they would likely lose their privileged status, and are therefore reluctant to see such change.

17) It doesn't have to be spelled out to them by some shadowy leader of a conspiracy, it is rather obvious to all of them. So they coordinate to ensure only solutions to the climate and ecological crisis are considered, which maintain the status quo and their privilege.

18) By their very nature they control everything and are in a direct relationship with others with similar self and vested-interest. This self-interest links together billionaires, corporate executives, bankers, politicians and media executives etc. It's all self-serving.

19) This is the means by which this straw man misrepresentation of the climate and ecological crisis has been concocted, in which the totally inadequate measures they propose to address the crisis, superficially appear to address the crisis

20) In essence, it is circular logic, a circular argument, where the conclusion supports the premise. Their misrepresentation of the climate and ecological crisis, the conclusion, has been concocted to make their inadequate measures appear adequate.

21) The public have been totally misled by this charade. The climate and the Earth's ecosystems are an unbelievably complex subject, by far the most complex fields of knowledge known to humankind. It's beyond the ability of even the greatest mind to understand it all.

22) Most of the public have no education or knowledge at all about this immensely complex subject, so there is very little personal understanding of the climate and ecological crisis. Therefore the public look to their leadership for guidance.

23) Traditionally, scientists advise government or bureaucracy, often confidentially, and then policy-makers, the government, communicates this to the public. It has generally not been the tradition that scientists communicate directly with the public.

24) However, as we've seen, political leaders are in reality part of this wealthy and powerful self-serving cabal, benefiting from the unsustainable over-exploitation of the Earth's natural systems, which has driven the climate and ecological crisis.

25) Meaning in this instance, it is not in their interests to fully communicate to the public how serious the climate and ecological crisis is, because they know the public would demand action, and this action would effect their status and vested interest.

26) I can already see the counter arguments, the criticisms, the claims that I am engaging in conspiracy theory. However, let us look at the verifiable fact. I make no attempt to say how much of this coordination is conscious or unconscious, only that it exists.

27) Firstly, the recent extreme weather experienced around the world this year, from extreme heat, to extreme flooding, is pretty illustrative of the depth of the problem. It is happening much earlier than envisaged and such extreme weather was predicted by climate science.

28) The continuing decline in biodiversity and evidence for the climate crisis, caused by anthropogenic carbon emissions is all fairly clear cut, and needs irrational denial to deny it.

29) The 1972 UN Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm, it's report, along with the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, and the UN report Our Common Future (1987), make it very clear that this crisis and the need to change direction has been known about for half a century, at least.

30) In the lead up to the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, by far the biggest international summit there has ever been in history, leaders pledged to reduce carbon emissions. Over half the human carbon emissions in the whole of history have been emitted since.
ieep.eu/news/more-than…

31) In other words, after our leaders pledged to reduce emissions, in the next 30 years, there were more cumulative carbon emissions than in the previous 250 years since the start of the industrial revolution.

32) The evidence is crystal clear. Our leadership tells the public not to worry, that they have got the whole problem in hand and sorted, and yet it continues getting much worse for the next 30 years. Not just carbon emissions, but biodiversity decline.
theguardian.com/environment/20…

33) Overall, the facts are all pretty clear. Our leaders have failed to do anything to halt the progress of this dire crisis. They pretend to be organizing a response, and then do nothing, and it gets much, much worse.

34) Our leadership, our governments, our media have fundamentally misled the public by not treating the crisis as the crisis it is. You see, the public think it cannot really be that serious, or the government would be treating it like a real crisis (of course it is real).

35) Despite serious warnings from scientists about the depth of this crisis, how serious it is, and what the consequences could be, neither our governments or the media have ever properly communicated this to the public.

36) It's not uncommon now for the media to report extreme heat and other extreme weather, and to not even mention the climate crisis. Let alone that their is a biodiversity crisis to address, which is just as serious.
un.org/sustainabledev…

37) The public have been misled to believe, by governments and the media that 2C of warming or 1.5C of warming were safe, and we had plenty of time to act. This was a lie, science never considered these levels of warming safe.

https://twitter.com/SteB777/status/1413053789335130114

38) This year alone proves that the current level of warming is not safe. Remember, this extreme weather could have actually been far worse. It wasn't just bad luck as droughts, massive wildfires and massive flooding in previous, but recent years prove.

39) There is currently no coherent plan to address this crisis, despite politicians talking it up, by claiming how they are going to address the crisis. Remember, carbon emissions are still rising, and yet politicians are talking like they have already got the problem beat.

40) Remember again, that after political leaders started talking about reducing carbon emissions 30 years ago, as if they had the problem beat, that historical cumulative emissions, more than doubled.
ieep.eu/news/more-than…

41) Therefore, talking up solutions means absolutely nothing, when both political leaders and business leaders talked up how they had the problem beat nearly 30 years ago at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, and it has just got much worse.

42) There are now far more billionaires in the world, and they have got much, much richer. Recently, we've been subjected to the wealthiest billionaires taking joy rides into space and promoting space tourism.

43) Therefore, if you're going to dismiss what I say as conspiracy theory or hyperbole, at least try to explain why all the objective evidence supports what I say, and entirely contradicts the false narrative peddled by our leaders and the media?

44) What I'm suggesting is a new and simple formulation of the problem i.e. the climate and ecological emergency, and a clear definition of what degree of action is necessary to avert catastrophe.

45) We need these clear authoritative definitions to stop our leaders, the media and vested interests, from misleading the public about how serious the climate and ecological crisis is, and why their promised action is inadequate will not address this crisis in the way implied.

46) Despite politicians talking up their solutions to the climate crisis, they in fact pay massive subsidies to the fossil fuel industry and open up new fossil fuel reserves.
forbes.com/sites/davidcar…

@ClimateHuman @KevinClimate @JKSteinberger @MichaelEMann @GretaThunberg @Luisamneubauer @GeorgeMonbiot

@threadreaderapp Please unroll?

PS. Please note that I'm not trying to demonize any group. There's a continuum of people benefiting from business as usual and their complicity in misrepresenting the depth of the crisis. I'm just trying to highlight the obstacle, which needs to be understood #ProblemSolving

PPS. To solve a problem effectively, you need to understand that problem in a brutally honest way. Yes, political leaders, vested interests might not like being identified as the problem. However, the solution is for them to become part of the solution, not the obstacle.