http://ecocentric.blogs.time.com/201...ars/?hpt=hp_c2

How do the tangible effects of global warming affect you & your desire to travel and fly and run mileage runs?

For my own part, I devote a lot of time and energy to researching climate change & its causes & effects, but I am unwilling to let my concern for the world I live in prevent me from seeing it. Granted, I'll try to do the most environmentally friendly method, i.e. trains in Europe, I'll rent a smaller-displacement car, drive eco-friendly, etc. (We DO have a Nissan Leaf electric car at home in Texas, though In addition, we garden heavily and have planted many, many trees on our property here. Drought-resistant trees, as well, so don't claim I'm sucking up precious water. A vegetable garden so we don't have to waste energy (gasoline OR electricity) going to the grocery store. It's not much joule savings, but it's something.

But I'm never going to NOT travel. The world's just too interesting not to.

What about you? What are your thoughts?

The effects of technology- the arts, science, music, litrature, education, medicine, communications, and more - can't help but improve the standard of living and length of the life of mankind on earth.

You don't have to make any apology for contributing to, or benefiting from, the blessings of human technology that make man's condition better. After all, it's what separates man from the beasts

Quite right. Technology is improving all the time. The oil era has lasted barely 100 years and will be over in another 50 to 75 -- a blip in geologic time. It takes some hubris to believe it's enough to permanently wreck the planet. And while the climate is indubitably changing, it has always been thus, and the extent to which latter-day technology is affecting current patterns is very much up for debate. Advancing the human condition means (A) putting these factors in perspective and (B) not retreating to 18th-century norms.

Certainly the environment is a consideration when travelling. imho, I think the global warming is setting moreso an urgency to see the world now, as you never know in the future with an environmental crisis if travel will become increasingly cost prohibitive and inaccessible.

Uhhh...take a look at history...we are the beasts.

But it is the beast's nature not to want to acknowledge his own dark side...for most anyway....

In the VERY VERY big picture...global warming is NOT important...but that picture has yet to be revealed - as a matter of speaking.

We are doing a damn fine job of destroying our planet/home/house though...plastic in the oceans, plastic in our food chain (Making us gay by the way - by altering our hormonal balance - endocrine system)...wiping out all ocean life....the list goes on...day of reckoning coming soon....it's already here for some...but those at the "top of the food chain" often prefer to be blind...

Uh ... really?

Do you have any cites for this?

I don't know if we're hearing from Al Gore or Rick Santorum.

It any event, this needs to be on the political board as Global Warmism is a political ideology, and one which I do not happen to believe in, BTW.

IMHO, the current President of the Czech Republic, Dr. Vaclav Klaus, hit the mail on the head when he called Global Warmism ''a budding totalitarian ideology that is the greatest threat to freedom, democracy, and prosperity in the world today''. President Klaus has a great book on the subject out, Blue Planet in Green Shackles - What is in Jeopardy, Climate or Freedom? which has been translated from Czech and reprinted in at least seven other languages, including English.

Mods - please move this thread to the appropriate board.

I don't understand why we are still using oil or natural gas to generate electricity instead of nuclear power, which is cheaper and cleaner. It's like someone using whale oil to light the home because they're afraid of what to do with an incandescent light bulb when it goes out.

Bingo. Global warming has not vindicated by science and is nothing more than a concept pushed upon the gullible sheep by those with an agenda for financial gain.

Totally agree with your opinion about global warming, and this being the wrong forum for this discussion. Also, thanks for the book recommendation.

The risks and dangers have prevented Alberta from implementing Nuclear power smack dab in the middle of oilsands country. A friend of mine, his dad was heading up the nuclear initiative, but no longer is carrying the torch.. I think he sold the idea.

Combination of political headwinds and high capital cost. I agree that if we're to cut down on CO2 emissions, we need (at this point in our technological evolution) to embrace nuclear power. But people are scared of it, and because of that, the US gov't at least is hesitant to embrace it. Even France, which gets about 75% of its power from nukes, seems to be backing off.

Nuclear power was billed in the 1950s and 60s as a panacea of cheap, modern, clean electricity. While it's certainly the latter two, it hasn't proved as cheap as they thought. The breakeven power price for a nuke plant is heavily dependent on capital cost. I don't think there's been a nuke plant built in the US that came in at or under budget. But I do hear that the South Koreans are really good at building nuclear plants on time and on budget, so maybe we could stand to learn something from them.


I'm not sure which "science" you're citing, but virtually all the peer-reviewed research is pretty clear that the planet is warming and anthropogenic emissions are the cause.

Thanks to RussianTexan for raising this issue.
The TravelBuzz Moderators have given careful thought as to the best venue for this topic. We have decided that the most appropriate Forum is OMNI. Unfortunately, the OP and others are not OMNI-enabled, due to the post requirement rules.
Therefore, in fairness to the OP, the TravelBuzz Moderators have decided to close this thread
Thanks for your understanding and cooperation...
Obscure2k
TravelBuzz Moderator