Comments 1 to 4:

1. nigelj at 07:08 AM on 19 September, 2018

   Yes some problems like climate change create serious dangers for humanity,  which naturally leads to fear, anger and guilt. This is how humans are constructed, and its utterly normal. It's to impel us to make a response, because it creates a state of worry and tension that is very uncomfortable, and this can only be resolved by making a decision. Psychology 101.

   Some people make the decision that we need action to reduce emissions, some people decide there is no problem (denial), some seek to rationalise the problem away. There are almost infinite ridiculous, flawed ways of rationalising the problem away.

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2. Alexandre at 22:03 PM on 19 September, 2018

   This emotional part is huge. We care a lot about the environment, we know this is important to our well being way before we do the math. Even those anti-environmentalists think bad news about the environment are depressing. Even those guys care. A while ago I (unsuccessfully) tried to write something about how this should be harnessed to mobilize people for mitigation - we just love nature, and it's just too sad to see what's happening.  It's great to have the science to back you up, but sometimes I feel as if the details of all those scientific papers make us miss the big picture of what's happening. Maybe it's another way of seeking safety?

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3. ubrew12 at 04:28 AM on 20 September, 2018

   When the social contract is broken by those in power, the reaction by those out of power is dissociation.  Society falls apart.  Large parts of society are no longer engaged in it: they've opted out and have drugs, television, video games.  I used to feel rage toward people like the Koch Brothers funding a lie that will hurt the Earth and probably kill millions of people.  Now I just feel numb.  Everything we were taught as children about the rightness of America has been a lie, currently epitomized by the sitting President.

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4. Doug_C at 16:11 PM on 23 September, 2018

   What's going on with climate change alone is like a diagnosis of a terminal illness... for everyone.

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