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Page added on May 28, 2016
Countdown to Extinction
How I quite worrying and learned to love the apocalypse
According to the online website The Death Clock, a man born on my birthdate can be expected to die 20 years from now in 2036. This assumes, however, that the entire human race does not become extinct before the estimated date of my demise.
In a February 9, 2012 post on the blog Arctic News, Malcolm Light writes there will be “Global Extinction within one Human Lifetime as a Result of a Spreading Atmospheric Arctic Methane Heat Wave and Surface Firestorm.” Light predicts “This process of methane release will accelerate exponentially, release huge quantities of methane into the atmosphere and lead to the demise of all life on earth before the middle of this century.” For those interested in more specific dates, Light has done the calculations:
The absolute mean extinction time for the northern hemisphere is 2031.8 and for the southern hemisphere 2047.6 with a final mean extinction time for ¾ of the earth’s surface of 2039.6 which is similar to the extinction time suggested previously from corrrelations between planetary orbital mechanics and the frequency increase of Great and Normal earthquake activity on Earth (Light, 2011). Extinction in the southern hemisphere lags the northern hemisphere by 9 to 29 years.
This certainly sounds scientific, doesn’t it? Light’s blog post is complete with charts and graphs and seemingly-precise figures. But his analysis has not undergone peer review by scientists or publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Not that any of that matters if we’re all about to die!
“If it bleeds, it leads,” the saying among editors goes. Predictions of imminent human extinction by scientists, or people who pretend to be scientists, are sure to be picked up during slow news cycles. “Humans will be extinct in 100 years says eminent scientist” screamed the headline on June 23, 2010 in Phys.Org. Frank Fenner, an emeritus professor of microbiology in Australia who had helped to eliminate smallpox, predicted that the human race would be gone within a century, thanks to climate change and overpopulation.
Fenner told The Australian he tries not to express his pessimism because people are trying to do something, but keep putting it off. He said he believes the situation is irreversible, and it is too late because the effects we have had on Earth since industrialization (a period now known to scientists unofficially as the Anthropocene) rivals any effects of ice ages or comet impacts.
Fenner passed away at the age of 95 in the same year, 2010, in which he made his apocalyptic prediction. But belief in the near-term extinction of the human race is a hardy perennial. “Steven Hawking Warns Humanity Could Destroy Itself in the Next 100 Years,” according to a headline of January 19, 2016. The culprits? The usual suspects —global warming and/or nuclear war — plus, genetically-engineered viruses. On a previous occasion he suggested that intelligent machines “could spell the end of the human race.”
It should come as no surprise that there is a Near Term Human Extinction movement (not to be confused with the anti-natalist Voluntary Human Extinction movement). Among its leaders are a retired natural scientist at the University of Arizona named Guy McPherson, who runs a blog called Nature Bats Last. In an October 4, 2014 blog post McPherson portrayed himself as a spurned prophet:
I abandoned the luxury-filled, high-pay, low-work position I loved as a tenured professor to go back to the land. I led by example. Vanishingly few followed. I’m reminded of the prescient words attributed to American existential psychologist Rollo May: “The opposite of courage in our society is not cowardice, it is conformity.”….I no longer communicate with most of those colleagues, friends, and family. It’s too difficult to justify the occasional conversation.
He is not the first to feel this way:
But Jesus said unto them, a prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house. (Mark 6:4, KJV).
The method of many near term human extinction believers is to take the worst case scenarios from numerous projections, without treating them as low-probability events. In the case of my own extinction, it is possible that I will be killed, as Valerius Maximus reported that the Greek poet and playwright Aeschylus was killed, by a passing eagle that drops a tortoise on my head, but the odds are very low.
The near term human extinction movement has been subjected to devastating criticism by scientists and well-informed journalists, many of whom think climate change is a genuine danger. Critiques are easily found on the Internet and I will leave them as an exercise for the reader.
What I want to focus on here is the psychology of the apocalyptic mind. It is a subject which has fascinated me since my childhood in Texas, where I enjoyed listening to radio broadcasts by evangelical Protestant interpreters of “prophecy.” Every Sunday a preacher could be heard, interpreting current events in light of the Book of Revelation. This or that nation in the European Economic Community, the predecessor of the European Union, was one of the ten horns on the seven heads of the dragon in Revelation. For those who could read the Signs of the Times, it was clear that the latest crisis in the Middle East or in the Cold War proved that the Last Days were about to begin. In the next few years the seven-year Tribulation would begin, complete with the Battle of Armageddon, the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, and the beginning of the Millennial Kingdom of Christ on earth. It was all great fun.
My introduction to the secular environmentalist version of apocalyptic thinking occurred when I, at the age of 10 or so, received a letter from the great marine biologist Jacques Cousteau, whose television program about undersea exploration mesmerized me and countless other young viewers. “Dear Michael,” the great man began. I was very excited until my parents explained that it was a fundraising form letter.
According to Jacques Cousteau, pollution was destroying the world’s environment (this was in the 1970s, before global warming had displaced pollution as the greatest danger to humanity in Green thinking). By 1984 all of the plankton in the oceans would die, the oxygen in the earth’s atmosphere would become extinct, and…well, you know. Disaster might be averted by a tax-deductible contribution to Jacques Cousteau.
I don’t remember whether I sent money or not. But I do recall being extremely anxious on New Year’s Eve, 1983. After the ball dropped in Times Square, I took a deep breath … and discovered that there was still oxygen in the earth’s atmosphere in 1984, notwithstanding the prediction of my childhood scientist-hero.
The structure of apocalyptic predictions is similar, whether they are religious or scientific. Timing is everything. The apocalyptic event, be it the Second Coming or human extinction as a result of nuclear war, Peak Oil or climate change, has to be in the near term future, to generate excitement. Nobody is going to join a sect whose prophet claims that Jesus will return on May 2, 4158 A.D. And no news outlet in search of eyeballs is going to publish this headline: “Scientist predicts human race will become extinct within the next 10 to 20 million years.”
If the apocalypse can be averted or postponed by individual or collective repentance, then you need two futures: the near term future, in which human action can avert the catastrophe, and the medium term future, in which catastrophe is inevitable if human action is inadequate in the near term future. Much environmentalist writing takes this form: If humanity does not act within the next X years, then global disaster will take place in Y years.
Frequently X — the short term period in which action may still be effective — is 10-15 years, while Y is around 30 years. These numbers make psychological sense. Arguing that we must act in the next decade or so can inspire people more than insisting that something must be done in the next half century. And global doom in the next three decades creates a greater sense of urgency than global doom in the next three centuries or the next three millennia or the next three hundred thousand years.
Examples of the 10-year rule and the 30-year rule were provided by Al Gore in 2006, in an interview with the Associated Press accompanying a screening of his documentary An Inconvenient Truth.
First, the 30-year timing, if the apocalypse is not averted (“a few decades”):
If the pace of pollution continues, Gore’s projections for carbon-dioxide levels are off the charts within a few decades.
Among the worst-case consequences: A new ice age in Europe, and massive flooding of regions in India, China and elsewhere that could make refugees of tens of millions of people.
Then, the 10-year rule for effective, short-term action:
And politicians and corporations have been ignoring the issue for decades, to the point that unless drastic measures to reduce greenhouse gases are taken within the next 10 years, the world will reach a point of no return, Gore said.
10 years have now passed since Gore warned that we had only ten years to avert “a true planetary emergency.” Humanity failed to unite and act in time. So I reckon there is nothing to be done, except to reconcile ourselves to the coming global catastrophe “within a few decades.”
Will the human race in the near future be wiped out by a methane-caused firestorm —Malcolm Light’s prediction—or, at least in Europe, by a new ice age, as in Al Gore’s 2006 prophecy? Like Robert Frost, I would prefer the former:
Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But it doesn’t really matter—if you’re extinct, you’re extinct. And extinction may not be as bad as people make it out to be. To quote the humorous verses that Ogden Nash wrote to accompany the section of “The Carnival of the Animals” by Camille Saint-Saens entitled “Fossils”:
Amid the mastodonic wassail
I caught the eye of one small fossil.
“Cheer up, sad world,” he said, and winked—
“It’s kind of fun to be extinct.”
107 Comments on "Countdown to Extinction"
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 10:25 am
Press TV seems to be taking Guy McPherson seriously. What if he was only wrong by half?
Global warming is irreversible now: US scientist
“An American climate scientist says anybody in the position of influence including the US president cannot do anything about global warming now because it is “irreversible” at this point.
Dr. Guy McPherson, professor emeritus of natural resources – ecology – and evolutionary biology at the University of Arizona, made the remarks in a phone interview with Press TV on Friday.
Donald Trump, the US Republican Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, said on Thursday that he would pull America out of the UN global climate accord if elected, spelling potential doom for a treaty many scientists view as a last chance to limit global warming.
“We’re going to cancel the Paris climate agreement,” Trump said at the Williston Basin Petroleum Conference in Bismark, Dakota.”
http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/05/27/467699/Climate-change-irreversible
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 10:36 am
I laughed so fucking hard when I read this last night that I slid off the couch and onto one knee.
Donald Trump Tells Drought-Stricken Californians There Is No Drought
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2016/05/28/3783022/donald-trump-drought/
Trump tells blubber stricken Americans –
“there is no obesity epidemic in the U.S. – It’s a Conspiracy by the Chinese to steal American jobs”
“America is healthy!”
Hurray!!!! crowd of large glassy eyed sheep cheer wildly
onlooker on Sun, 29th May 2016 10:50 am
“Mr. Trump you often ridicule women for being overweight,” asked correspondent Bruce Nolan, “But obesity is a serious medical condition that affects millions of Americans. What would your plan be to fight this epidemic?”
“I would build a nationwide network of weight loss clinics and I would force Rosie O’Donnell to pay for it.” Trump responded emphatically.
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:08 am
Don’t look like the Russians are going to roll over for the neocons.
How Russia Is Preparing for WWIII
“I have recently posted a piece in which I tried to debunk a few popular myths about modern warfare. Judging by many comments which I received in response to this post, I have to say that the myths in question are still alive and well and that I clearly failed to convince many readers. What I propose to do today, is to look at what Russia is really doing in response to the growing threat from the West. But first, I have to set the context or, more accurately, re-set the context in which Russia is operating. Let’s begin by looking at the AngloZionist policies towards Russia.”
http://www.unz.com/tsaker/how-russia-is-preparing-for-wwiii/
Sweden Joins NATO’s Emerging War against Russia
“Russia is increasingly surrounded by an expanding NATO, and that expansion up to Russia’s borders is supposed to be accepted by Russia as if it’s not a very aggressive move against Russia.”
http://www.globalresearch.ca/sweden-joins-natos-emerging-war-against-russia/5527708
Maybe the Russians will think their only chance is to launch in the middle of the night when we’re all sleeping.
What would you do if you were Russia?
Davy on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:16 am
Global research and Saker are clearly extremist sites. The truth is somewhere else further from the extreme. NATO is definitely making some bad decisions but I find it laughable anyone would choose to call the Russian’s victims.
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:34 am
America is the global extremist. Hopefully they will collapse before they nuke someone again, because this time the other guy has nukes too -like 7700 of them and modern delivery systems. The equivalent is like Russia putting missile systems in Canada and Mexico. Funny how retard mericans always seem to forget their onw history when it suits their agenda. Davy google “The Cuban Missile Crisis”. Want to talk about a country freaking out – Holy Fuck. Y’all was ready to start WWIII over it, but 55 years later when the tables are turned you call it “some bad decisions”. Typical American two faced bullshit. I wish you people would just die so we can go extinct peacefully. Scum of the earth.
Looks like Yawhew is helping you along.
4 dead, 2 missing as Texas is hit with torrential rains and flooding
http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-texas-deadly-rains-20160528-snap-story.html
Not fast enough as far as I’m concerned.
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:36 am
It’s not NATO making he decisions either – it’s Washington and you know it – nice try. Mommey and Daddy heavily invested in the
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:37 am
MIC?
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:41 am
Fort McMurray wildfire: More BC firefighters to battle blaze which grows to over 580,000 hectares
http://globalnews.ca/news/2727858/fort-mcmurray-wildfire-more-bc-firefighters-to-battle-blaze-which-grows-to-over-580000-hectares/
GregT on Sun, 29th May 2016 12:12 pm
The summary from that article is worthy of note Mak.
“If the AngloZionist ‘deep state’ is really delusional enough to trigger a war with Russia, in Europe or elsewhere, the narcissistic and hedonistic West, drunk on its own propaganda and hubris, will discover a level of violence and warfare it cannot even imagine and if that only affected those responsible for these reckless and suicidal policies it would be great. But the problem is, of course, that many millions of us, simple, regular people, will suffer and die as a consequence of our collective failure to prevent that outcome.”
Doesn’t get much more clear, and to the point.
Davy on Sun, 29th May 2016 12:14 pm
Extremism and at its best from the Apehole “Typical American two faced bullshit. I wish you people would just die so we can go extinct peacefully. Scum of the earth.”
Glad I am not a Canadian and be lost in a delusional hypocrisy and think somehow I am special and not part of the same shit.
Davy on Sun, 29th May 2016 12:26 pm
The Putin czarist Mafia state is only marginally better than the “AngloZionist ‘deep state”. Delusional hypocritical anti-Americans would just like to think otherwise.
JuanP on Sun, 29th May 2016 2:45 pm
Davy, I completely agree that Russia will suffer very serious consequences from Permafrost melting. I expect that we will see the largest wildfires in human history in Russia this century. I also expect them to have huge problems from all the roads, railways, and buildings built on currently thawing Permafrost. From what I understand that is likely to be one of Russia’s biggest challenges in the coming decades. They will also experience extreme warming, same as all Arctic areas.
GregT on Sun, 29th May 2016 3:55 pm
The Putin czarist Mafia state isn’t hell bent on ruling the world. They have come forward on the international stage asking for global cooperation. The AngloZionist deep state wants total and complete global domination, and they are willing to put the entire world at risk for their insatiable greed.
onlooker on Sun, 29th May 2016 4:32 pm
This same Western imperialism is what kept the Cold War going. All the while knowing that the game was to bankrupt the former Soviet Union and thus eliminate the nearest military competitor. The 20th century is littered with the growing menace of the US acting like a rogue state intent on world domination.
Davy on Sun, 29th May 2016 5:04 pm
Yes, Greg, and it is my hope Trump will take Putin up on the offer. Trump may be many things but he is a pragmatist when it comes to Russia. If Hillary gets in we may see WWIII.
Boat on Sun, 29th May 2016 5:36 pm
AngloZionist?
There is a large German population in the US. The Jewish population is very small. Guys like Greggiet are racist with a hate agenda.
Hillary and WWIII? Depends on whether Putin continues to be an idiot.
Europe de
JuanP on Sun, 29th May 2016 5:36 pm
There are only two things I like about Trump; the fact that he claims he wants a better relationship with Russia and the fact that he is not Hitlery Clinton.
makati1 on Sun, 29th May 2016 5:42 pm
Boat, the German genes is integrated into the rest of the Us population. I am from Germany, 14 generations ago. But Jews are still Jews and is a religion that wants to dominate the rest of the world just like Muslims. Apples and Oranges Boat. Apples And Oranges.
It is people like you that will make hundreds of mushroom clouds over America a very good possibility.
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 5:57 pm
I’m not Canadian – I just shop here.
Boat are you weary? What’s going on in your neighborhood? Has the flood affected you and yours?
More Locally Heavy Rain For Flood-Weary Texas This Week
https://www.wunderground.com/news/flash-flooding-texas-severe-weather-forecast-plains-may27-0
Boat on Sun, 29th May 2016 6:04 pm
mak,
It’s people like you that make the neocons like dick cheney thrive. They would rather have WWIII than give one inch.
Ps. Along with many fine Germans the kkk and other organizations exist that are racist in nature. Their influence has been watered down by immigration.
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 6:13 pm
Forests on fire: ‘no attempt will be made to extinguish 219 million hectares of burning trees’
“These vast tracts of forest have been labelled ‘distant and hard-to-reach territories’, and as such it is officially permitted not to extinguish forest fires if they do not constitute a threat to settlements or if a fire fighting operation is extremely expensive.
At the same time, there is official recognition that some regions in Siberia are underreporting the extent of forest fires for ‘political reasons’, an accusation long made by environmental campaigners.”
http://siberiantimes.com/ecology/others/news/n0688-forests-on-fire-no-attempt-will-be-made-to-extinguish-219-million-hectares-of-burning-trees/
onlooker on Sun, 29th May 2016 6:18 pm
You got that wrong Boat, it is war, the war industry and the threat of war that makes dicks like Dick Cheney thrive. Ever heard of Halliburton
makati1 on Sun, 29th May 2016 6:19 pm
Boat, the KKK does not run the banking system, most of the news outlets, movie studios, corporations, and law offices of the Western world. Jews do or want to.
WW3 is baked into the cake IF the US is not taken down or severely crippled in the near future. Trump is the least likely of the 3 candidates to promote war. Hillary is the most likely. I’m only pointing out the obvious.
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 6:19 pm
Boat watch this 9 min mini doc on white supremacists. Highly informative.
https://youtu.be/CWToJ0TRhxM?t=28
JuanP on Sun, 29th May 2016 6:54 pm
Apneaman, Interesting article on Russian fires. I wouldn’t spend a penny fighting wildfires if it was up to me, not even to protect human lives or property. I would let it all burn. If someone chooses to live in a forest and build a combustible house or barn or whatever, they deserve to burn. If someone wants to live there, which I can understand, they need to learn to protect themselves from fire on their own and by helping each other.
That is like bailing out repeatedly people living in floodplains, earthquake prone areas, or hurricane zones. Fuck them! Fuck me, too! I live in Miami, but if a major hurricane came here I would lose a few thousand dollars in disposable property left behind, which I can afford to lose without blinking. I am not going to go asking for help, I am going to be helping the idiots who lost their life savings and homes to the storm. You can’t fix stupid!
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 6:56 pm
More evidence that the corporate state will go to any lengths to maintain BAU regardless of the risks to the common man. It’s all they know. There is no plan B. Everyone’s disposable. Collateral damage of last stage neo liberal capitalism. Make your own plan.
Top insurer urges US to stop subsidising climate-risk homes
National scheme encourages irresponsible housebuilding on regions exposed to flooding and storms, warns Lloyds
“Lloyd’s, one of the world’s biggest insurance companies, says the US government must stop providing insurance subsidies to homeowners building on flood plains and in coastal areas exposed to mounting risks related to climate change.
According to a report in London’s Financial Times, Lloyd’s says the US government’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which subsidises insurance cover for householders in regions vulnerable to floods and storms, encourages irresponsible house building.
Lloyd’s also says the NFIP subsidy regime is financially unsustainable. Because of claims related to disasters such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and superstorm Sandy in 2012, the NFIP has now run up debts of more than $24 billion.
Insurance companies have been among those at the forefront of analysing the financial implications of climate change and assessing climate-related risk worldwide.”
http://www.climatechangenews.com/2016/05/25/top-insurer-urges-us-to-stop-subsidising-climate-risk-homes/
Homeowners kept in dark about climate change risk to houses, says report
Climate Institute says risk data held by regulators, state and local governments, insurers and banks, but homebuyers and developers do not have access to it
“The risk that houses in some areas of Australia are likely to become uninsurable, dilapidated and uninhabitable due to climate change is kept hidden from those building and buying property along Australia’s coasts and in bushfire zones, a Climate Institute report says.
The report says there is untapped and unshared data held by regulators, state and local governments, insurers and banks on the level of risk, but that most homebuyers and developers are not told about the data and do not have access to it.
The full scale of risk may only be recognised through disaster or damage, or when insurance premiums become unaffordable
Climate Institute report
“Even when public authorities, financial institutions and other stakeholders possess information about current and future risk levels, they are sometimes unwilling, and sometimes unable, to share it with all affected parties,” the report released on Monday says.
“Thus, foreseeable risks are allowed to perpetuate, and even to grow via new housing builds. The full scale of the risk may only be recognised either through disaster or damage, or when insurance premiums become unaffordable. Any of these events can in turn affect housing values.”
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/may/30/homeowners-kept-in-dark-about-climate-change-risk-to-houses-says-report
All them folks in Texas who are fighting a flood right now? – The local PTB knew it was a flood plane and were warned the rains will get bigger due to AGW (and they have), yet they developed it anyway. What you’re seeing is what you’ll get. No one/gov is looking out for any of us – maybe we might still get rescued – for now, but eventually the resources for that will dwindle and the rich will be the only ones getting bailed.
onlooker on Sun, 29th May 2016 7:01 pm
“More evidence that the corporate state will go to any lengths to maintain BAU regardless of the risks to the common man.” Maybe the best way of putting it, is to maintain profits and their power = BAU.
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 8:32 pm
“Me·mo·ri·al Day
noun
noun: Memorial Day
a day on which those who died in active military service are remembered”
If you served and lived……not so much.
Burn Pits: US Government Ignores 60,000 Suffering US War Vets
“These veterans are not the victims of enemy fire. They are suffering from medical ailments associated with the open-air burn pits that were constructed on over 230 military bases across Iraq and Afghanistan. These fiery pits, which were hastily dug in violation of the military’s own health and environmental regulations, were used to dispose of the mountains of trash created by war. Every type of refuse imaginable was thrown into these burn pits, including such toxic materials as plastics, metals, medical waste, batteries, tires, old ordnance and even human body parts.
The open-air burn pits were massive in size — some as large as 10 acres — and many were built in close proximity to where military members were housed. They burned 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with each pit incinerating as much as 50 tons of trash a day. Soldiers stationed on these bases grew accustomed to the black plumes that filled the sky and the clouds of ash that sometimes enveloped them. The noxious pollutants wafted everywhere in these camps. In a desperate effort to block the foul-smelling fallout, some soldiers blocked the vents in their barracks with towels when they went to sleep, waking in the morning to see the once-white towels blackened with soot.”
“The burn pits were built and operated by KBR, which was then a subsidiary of Halliburton…”
http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/36223-burn-pits-us-government-ignores-60-000-us-war-veterans-suffering-from-health-problems
makati1 on Sun, 29th May 2016 9:20 pm
Ap, and the veteran suicide rate continues to climb. $1T for a plane that doesn’t work, ($400,000 just for the helmet for the pilot) but nothing for those wounded in combat … or their psychological injuries.
Memorial Day reading suggestions:
“Our Prospects against the Russians and Chinese in World War III”
“The Legacy of Hiroshima and the Pentagon’s Secret Weapons Agenda: “Privatizing Nuclear War””
““In a Nuclear War the Collateral Damage would be the Life of All Humanity”. Conversations with Fidel Castro: Hiroshima and the Dangers of a Nuclear War”
“How Russia Is Preparing for World War III”
“Close Calls, “What If”: We Were Close to Nuclear Destruction. “Mistakes” Could Trigger World War III”
“False Flags: The Process of “False Flagging” the World towards War. The CIA Weaponizes Hollywood”
“Close Calls: We Were Closer to Nuclear Destruction than We Knew”
“Silencing the United States as It Prepares for War”
“West Could Sleepwalk into a “Doomsday War with Russia” – It’s Time to Wake Up”
http://www.globalresearch.ca/
Did I ruin your holiday Bar-B-Que? LOL
makati1 on Sun, 29th May 2016 9:26 pm
Food for thought:
“It is extraordinary to see the confidence that many Americans place in their military’s ability. After 15 years the US has been unable to defeat a few lightly armed Taliban, and after 13 years the situation in Iraq remains out of control. This is not very reassuring for the prospect of taking on Russia, much less the strategic alliance between Russia and China. The US could not even defeat China, a Third World country at the time, in Korea 60 years ago.
Americans need to pay attention to the fact that “their” government is a collection of crazed stupid fools likely to bring vaporization to the United States and all of Europe. … It is entirely possible that the world is being led to destruction by nothing more than the greed of the US military-security complex. Delighted that the reckless and stupid Obama regime has resurrected the Cold War, thus providing a more convincing “enemy” than the hoax terrorist one, the “Russian threat” has been restored to its 20th century role of providing a justification for bleeding the American taxpayer, social services, and the US economy dry in behalf of profits for armament manufacturers.
However, this time Washington’s rhetoric accompanying the revived Cold War is far more reckless and dangerous, as are Washington’s actions, than during the real Cold War. Previous US presidents worked to defuse tensions. The Obama regime has inflated tensions with lies and reckless provocations, which makes it far more likely that the new Cold War will turn hot. If Killary gains the White House, the world is unlikely to survive her first term.”
Nuff said.
Apneaman on Sun, 29th May 2016 10:23 pm
Mak, what I would like to see is the per capita suicide rate for the general population and compare it to the military rate. Seen many military suicide articles, but never the comparison numbers. Also, is that just combat or people who were deployed or does it include all military. The US department of defense is the single largest employer on the planet. MIC good fer da economy.
Butthurt on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:11 pm
Who cares? Some numbnut over at Harvard created a substance more destructive than a total nuclear war between east and west.
Why? He created a bacterium that eats only carbon dioxide, water and sunlight. That shit gets in the Ocean all of a sudden the entire biosphere shuts down as a result of turning the seas, lakes, and rivers into an alcoholic beverage within one month.
makati1 on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:28 pm
Ap, I will see if I can remember where the articles were that made those statements, but I seem to recall that the veteran suicides are multiples of the regular civilians that never served. Suicide rates are climbing overall for both, due to the financial depression in America these days. America is tearing itself apart. No enemy needed. We are our own worst enemy.
makati1 on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:29 pm
Butthurt, you need a reference for such a stupid claim or the help of a psychiatrist. Or both.
Boat on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:33 pm
“It is extraordinary to see the confidence that many Americans place in their military’s ability. After 15 years the US has been unable to defeat a few lightly armed Taliban, and after 13 years the situation in Iraq remains out of control.”
You don’t understand because your a dumbass. The US military was never asked take out all population, infrastructure and reduce any threat to zero. If that would have been the mission, they have the capability.
Obama has been a peace loving dove compared to a Republican prez. I expect a much higher level whining after the next election by Russia, China and opposition in the middle east.
GregT on Sun, 29th May 2016 11:46 pm
“You don’t understand because your a dumbass.”
Actually Boat, it’s “because you’re a dumbass”. Dumb ass.
Boat on Mon, 30th May 2016 12:53 am
greggiet,
Are you German also or did you become a racist through delusion.
Apneaman on Mon, 30th May 2016 1:16 am
Six dead after record-setting floods in Texas, Kansas
http://www.ktvq.com/story/32090711/six-dead-after-record-setting-floods-in-texas-kansas
GregT on Mon, 30th May 2016 2:00 am
“Are you German also or did you become a racist through delusion”
More nonsense Boat. Grow a brain, or go away.
makati1 on Mon, 30th May 2016 2:05 am
Ap, I thought I posted this a while ago, but it disappeared.
http://www.veteransresources.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/173232-INFO.jpg
Considering that veterans are a small percentage of the population, 22% of ALL suicides last year is a huge percentage.
Billions for weapons that don’t work but not for those who got injured using them.
onlooker on Mon, 30th May 2016 5:47 am
I think the plight of our Veterans is what Military personnel would call “Collateral Damage”
Kenz300 on Mon, 30th May 2016 6:34 am
Too many people……….create too much pollution and demand too many resources….
China made great progress in moving its people out of poverty…….one reason was slowing population growth…..
If you can not provide for yourself you can not provide for a child.
CLIMATE CHANGE, declining fish stocks, droughts, floods, air water and land pollution, poverty, water and food shortages all stem from the worlds worst environmental problem……. OVER POPULATION.
Yet the world adds 80 million more mouths to feed, clothe, house and provide energy and water for every year… this is unsustainable… and is a big part of the Climate Change problem
Birth Control Permanent Methods: Learn About Effectiveness
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/birth_control_permanent_methods/article_em.htm
Apneaman on Mon, 30th May 2016 11:16 am
U.S. Broadcast news coverage of climate change – dwindling as climate change accelerates – graph
https://twitter.com/RBrulle/status/737122730148036608
That’s what I’m here for……lucky you.
Apneaman on Mon, 30th May 2016 12:42 pm
Demand for Air Conditioners Soars on Heat Wave
“Due to the arrival of an early heat wave, electronics makers are stepping up production of air conditioners. Samsung and LG both saw second-quarter operation rates at their plants soar on-year.”
http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2016/05/30/2016053001397.html
AGW jacked heatwaves – good for jacking GDP
Apneaman on Mon, 30th May 2016 12:45 pm
U.S. Drought Monitor –
California
May 24, 2016
http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/Home/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?CA
Apneaman on Mon, 30th May 2016 12:52 pm
Another deluge hits frontpage news, this time in Germany
“Unprecedented, the new norm
At the same time, other parts of Germany experienced the hottest ever temperatures for this time of the year.”
http://climatestate.com/2016/05/30/another-deluge-hits-frontpage-news-this-time-in-germany/
Apneaman on Mon, 30th May 2016 12:55 pm
Houses collapse during severe floods in southern Germany – video
http://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2016/may/30/houses-collapse-severe-floods-southern-germany-video
Apneaman on Mon, 30th May 2016 1:55 pm
Watch Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the US, shrink dramatically over 15 years
“Earlier this week, I wrote about how Lake Mead, America’s largest man-made reservoir, has shrunk to its lowest level ever. It’s a huge deal for the 25 million people in California, Arizona, Nevada, and Mexico who depend on freshwater from this crucial system.
Now NASA’s Earth Observatory has posted two satellite images that show the dramatic decline of Lake Mead between 2000 and 2015. The shrinkage is stunning — the lake has lost more than half its water and is down to just 37 percent capacity:”
http://www.vox.com/2016/5/28/11802608/lake-mead-shrinkage-NASA
Apneaman on Mon, 30th May 2016 7:19 pm
Fort McMurray not only Canadian town facing fire risk: wildfire expert
http://globalnews.ca/news/2730189/fort-mcmurray-not-only-canadian-town-facing-fire-risk-wildfire-expert/