Originally Posted by
Roody
It very well may already be too late. From what I've come to believe, there may be a lag of a few generations in the effects of greenhouse gases. So if we cut emissions to zero now (impossible to do that or close to it) we could be living with more traumatic climate change for another hundred years and then who knows how long if ever for the effects to reverse themselves.
Melt the polar ice caps, and now they don't reflect as much radiation. Then the melted water is helping the rest of it to melt. It has a snow ball effect. Reducing to CO2 then doesn't undo that. You might need to wait twenty thousand years for an ice age.
Global warming is in a class of problems humans are not well designed for. We're pretty good at watching out for problems that are just about to nip us in the ass. Farmers have the foresight to have contingencies for a bad growing season or two. But problems that won't be upon us for a generation or two? Obfuscation and arguments and procrastination are more than enough to shutdown preventive measures until nothing can be done.