Re:My take on the study from MIT that predicts “societal col...
by nemo44x on Thursday July 15, 2021 @08:49PM
(#27851921)
Rome didn’t really collapse but rather wither away slowly over hundreds of years. Even still the most useful parts lived on five without the empire aspect which didn’t matter for most people.
In the end I think we overestimate the effects collapse. Look at much of Europe over the 19th and 20th centuries. Unbelievable levels of suffering and many millions needlessly died over those 200 years. But for most life just went on.
Re:My take on the study from MIT that predicts “societal col...
by TheOtherHobbes on Thursday July 15, 2021 @08:52PM
(#27851934)
Of course it's foolish not to take an obvious concern like climate change seriously.
The consequences are predictable, and they should be avoidable and unnecessary.
For most of the population there is no downside in avoiding them, any more than there was in mitigating Y2K or making seatbelts compulsory.
This isn't mythology we're talking about, but science.
And there’s value in questioning our (often unexamined) beliefs. But taking it too seriously, thinking that you’ve got it figured out and that others are fools for not listening to you — well… Maybe you would have predicted the meteor to the dinosaurs, and maybe they would’ve been fools for not listening, but there was also very little any of them could have done to change the outcome.
Pick your favorite civilization collapse story. What would you have done, at that time, to change it?
One could argue “at least I would’ve seen it coming.” That’s true; be informed. But I object to the idea that everyone is generally foolish for not taking these concerns seriously. The concerns are mistaken far more than they’re correct.