Letters to the Editor
Hermit
Published Letters: 27
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Prediction & Control
[Read the article: Stop your sobbing]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]After studying scientific research in undergrad and grad school 40 years ago I am still amazed that so many people, including scientists, think science is about "truth" or "reality" or "understanding" or "awe." But actually, scientists form explanatory models from observations of phenomena and then refine the predictions based on those models to where they are useful to make and control things like i-pods, drugs, GM seeds, airplanes and educational tools. If it doesn't predict anything it's not a useful theory or law.
This article's predictions don't handicap the bets on the environment very well and leave me with a losing wager on my own life. Whether humans are causing climate change or not sounds like a Jr. High School level argument. We need to predict and control what is happening rather than look for who to blame. In fact, it would be better if we are responsible because it means that we have a handle on climate rather than that we are helpless. But we may be helpless anyway because we have done the most insane and dangerous thing I can think of by doubling the population of America and tripling the population of the rest of the world in my short lifetime. This happened for irrational religious reasons and malevolent economic ones. Now any climate changes are more damaging and much harder to fix, and and getting harder still as the human numbers keep climbing without much concern shown in the media, including science magazines.
I am very pessimistic about the future and articles like this one make me want to bet on cars, guns, fast food and drugs in my retirement portfolio. The worse things get, the more we live like short-timers, further accelerating our own demise. But, unfortunately, that is the way to bet.
Ask any biologist, "What's the most important single piece of information about any species?" I bet he or she will answer, "Population." I wish the authors had noticed the overage of humans that killed Easter Islanders is now global.
-Hermit
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A Problem Poorly Defined is a Problem Poorly Solved
[Read the article: Give Newt a chance]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I'm no Newt fan and find him a pernicious influence in politics. However, I can't blame him any more for the earth's environmental tailspin than most well meaning liberals.
Both sides are trying to solve environmental problems with environmental solutions like recycling or using bio-fuels (both good ideas.) But we're killing biodiversity and raising global temperatures because we're overpopulated with humans and American style consumerism is spreading around the world. We aren't willing to drive less, we just want cheaper, non-polluting fuels! Since American-style conspicuous consumerism, and the wealthy class it generates, rely on increasing populations I don't see these problems getting solved at all, but rather exacerbated.
How we are living is not sustainable. While the reasonable, conserving and "green" lifestyle habits are things we need to do to make it sustainable, they won't make enough difference if there are too many of us, as I think there already are.
The Republicans and Democrats both want lots of money, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, with Liberty and Justice for All their friends. This makes them both loath to rock the economic boat they and their friends are in, even though it will eventually sink because there are too many in it.
We can never get a real handle on environmental or social problems when we are always off balance trying to accommodate increasing numbers of us. Catch 22: Keeping things off balance with more and more people is where the big money is and that gets votes by promising a cut of the riches to the rest of us.
Bad deal and dumb deal.
Hermit
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ID is Neither Silly Nor Benign
[Read the article: The evolution of creationism]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The ID movement is not a goofy sidebar in our culture but rather an infectious bully-cult bent on dominating America and the rest of the world. Thinking their attempts are silly and not a serious threat is like ignoring the bully on the playground who makes smaller kids eat earthworms and tortures cats in private. What will he do when he gets bigger?
These people are as dangerous as any raider, slaver culture or other predatory group in history. Science gives us predictions about the natural world with which we can make good bets to control our world. ID gives us no predictions at all but the good bet is they will use this superstitious, irrational claim to control both other gullible Americans as well as the rest of us.
They are very sick and very dangerous.
-Hermit