Continued part 2 ... So What?

Question

Sorry Dana, I typo-ed your name.

I am still taking your arguments at face value, and assuming they are on target. I also followed somebody's web link to the place where it says "Deaths from global warming will double in just 25 years -- to 300,000 people a year" and other things.

By that account, global warming would be "killing" about 0.002% of the world population, mostly in the poorest and least developed places on earth.

Relative to the other things that have gone wrong in history (World War I and II) and could go wrong soon (a nuclear bomb in a populated area) I can't see it as a big deal.

In your opinion is a 35-year old upper middle class American living 100 ft above sea level in central North Carolina safe from non-economic effects for the next 100 years?

Answer 1

No, the figure was actually 180 millions.

This can be found in the Stern Report (ex vice president and chief economist of the world bank):

http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/independen...

It can also be found in a study which has once been carried out for "Christian Aid" (British NGO)

Answer 2

That was my link to the WHO study.

If you're going to argue like that, why are you worried about terrorism?  Even after the spike in terrorism deaths after the Iraq War, only 20,000 people are killed yearly due to terrorism.

http://www.pakistantimes.net/2007/05/02/...

That's less than 0.0003% of the population.  And most of them are in poor countries in the Middle East.  So who cares, right?

Besides which, as has been discussed many times in your questions by now, there are many more impacts besides just deaths.  There's relocation of people who lose their homes, decreased crop yields (increased food prices), water shortages, etc. etc.

"In your opinion is a 35-year old upper middle class American living 100 ft above sea level in central North Carolina safe from non-economic effects for the next 100 years?"

Maybe.  Are you in hurricane territory?

Answer 3

Yes, speaking personally, you have nothing to worry about except the economic effects.  There are some far out possibilities (example, a plant goes extinct that would have given you needed medicine) but those are not enough to warrant serious action on your part.

But the economic effects are NOT going to be pleasant for you:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6096...

They are enough to warrant action on your part.  

There is also the possibility that world unrest will affect you.  Desperate poor people fleeing over borders is likely to cause that.  The US military is very concerned.

Answer 4

meow