What will the consequences be if the AGW theory is absolutely proved invalid?

Question

Look how far it's come. It's everywhere. What, if any kind of accountability will there be? -wasted money- causing a mass panic. will there even be a public apology from anyone?

Answer 1

It will certainly take more than a few snowflakes in Ohio to disprove it.  Actually you are right a lot of money and effort has been put into research, education about it and the early stages of building up an effort to combat it.  Clearly there would be a lot of questions asked were AGW to be disproved.  I don't think though there has ever been a precedent where such resources have been thrown at something backed by science which has been built on a false premise.  This alone should give you comfort that the effort is well directed.

Answer 2

I think to answer that we have to also ask (and I am not taking sides here) is "what will the consequences be if the AGW theory is absolutely proved valid? look how far we haven't come, what can we do now that it's to late? global market failures, million displaced, wars for resources, etc..."

The answer to your question then is that the consequences will be far less detrimental, in every way, then the opposite situation. So what type of stakes would you have to be offered to wager some currency (which I think is probably offset by new jobs in green markets and the incalculable value of the benefits- ex: smog may or may not cook the earth and s***w us all, but it without a doubt unpleasant and a health concern) versus an avoidable global catastrophy?

Even if the odds were 100 to 1 against AGW being legitimate I would prefer playing it safe, making a culture of sustainability, clean up our environment, and safeguarding any possible threat to the stability of life on this planet- which is the only one we have at the moment.

Answer 3

The proof will be ignored.  And Al Gore will continue to make millions spreading his lies.

Answer 4

Unlikely as I believe that will be, the question remains interesting. Your question seems to be aimed at scapegoating someone for the money spent, however, to date very little has been spent in the US compared to elsewhere. It remains an interesting question because of the potential damage to any economy inactivity could be having! I see no evidence that big business has looked at the medium to long term effects of being so far behind the rest of the developed world in terms of the energy & materials base upon which every economy is built. The move to greater renewable sources and non-carbon based sources in many economies will bring about greater fuel security at a lower unit cost. Citizens of those countries will suffer from less fuel poverty, will have adapted their lifestyles to greater reuse & recycling combined with sourcing from renewable assets and in general are likely to have a more fulfilling environment in which to live. These things will in turn reduce the base costs of some materials as well as reducing wage demands and will likely create a generally more productive workforce.

I happen to believe that regardless of the driving force this widespread adoption of new technologies, new processes and lifestyles etc will benefit the economies that implement them and seriously disadvantage those that don't. The money won't have been wasted it will have been invested in radical change and "opting out" will be a recipe for future economic failure.

Answer 5

If it was found that AGW is an error, the ice will re accumulate in the polar and high mountains zones, storms in the Caribbean will subside, the warmer climate in the UK will vanish, killing heat in Europe will become and old wives tale, etc.

But that is very little chance of that, is there?

Answer 6

Remember the anti-nuke movement in the 1980s?   Remember people marching to the streets with those Reagan masks on, insisting that the way he was standing up to the Soviets wouldn't work, couldn't work, would only result in everyone's destruction?   Remember "better red than dead?"

Has a single person who marched on those streets, spoke out, raised Cain, EVER even admitted that he or she was wrong?

No - they supposedly meant well so they get off.   Or they insist that "Reagan just got lucky" and that Gorbachev was their guy who actually ended the Cold War their way - rather than being forced into a corner by virtue of the very policies that they opposed.

Answer 7

The question should be "when" not "if".  Considering most nations and politicians have bought the snake oil hook, line, and sinker, who is going to hold the scientists accountable?  The sad fact is that Algore will make millions through his investments in carbon offset companies and poor saps like you and me will have paid for them through higher prices.

The only benefit is that Algore will look like a fool and hopefully leave the American political scene forever.

Answer 8

AGW will never be proved wrong.  It will just fade from the headlines.

Every year the believers will tell us how much the ice caps will melt, how many hurricanes we should get, how much warmer it will be.  But when none of their predictions come true, as none have to date, they will slowly fall into the abyss of irrelevancy.

In just a few years, the believers will be just like those who were proclaiming that planes would fall from the sky, banks would fail, toasters wouldn't work after the stroke of midnight, Jan 1 2000.