Hi Tom,

This is a frequent objection to geoengineering - that it will be seen as 
a reason for not curbing emissions.  However, the Royal Society report 
into geoengineering considered this [1].  Their conclusion was the 
opposite: that the consideration of geoengineering would make people 
take emission cuts more seriously.  Also it was pointed out that there 
was at one time a similar objection to adaptation (to climate change) - 
that it might be seen as a reason for not curbing emissions.  This is 
absurd - and so is the objection to geoengineering.

Imagine your car is rapidly approaching a hairpin bend with a cliff 
below.  It is obviously wise to take your foot off the throttle, but 
applying the brakes is common sense.  In fact, if your foot is stuck on 
the throttle, breaking is even more urgent!   One way to look at 
geoengineering is that it buys time while we sort out emissions reductions.

Cheers,

John

[1] http://royalsociety.org/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=10768

---

On 11/01/2011 17:16, Barker, Tom wrote:
> The other danger is that geoengineering will be seen as a way to avoid taking responsible action to curb emissions, i.e. in maintaining an approximation of homeostasis (if it can be made to work), technology will have been seen to have solved the problem, therefore no reason to change the way we do things.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Discussion list for the Crisis Forum [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of John Nissen
> Sent: 11 January 2011 15:47
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Global Economic and Ecological Crisis
>
> Dear Luis,
>
> Thank you for your efforts.  Unfortunately, the Earth System has already
> tipped too far for simple recovery.  A change in human behaviour and
> lifestyle is not going to make much difference on the short timescale we
> have to put the planet back on course.  There is already too much CO2 in
> the atmosphere, the Arctic is warming dramatically, and the Amazon
> rainforest is at risk from drought, die-off and burn.
>
> One can argue that human stupidity has caused us to get into this
> crisis.  But the danger is that human stupidity will prevent the human
> race from getting out of the crisis.  The stupidity I see now is that we
> are not doing the things necessary to keep the planet into a hospitable
> state for enjoyment by future generations.  These necessary things
> include deliberate intervention in the climate system.  Now most
> environmentalists still think of such intervention as "tinkering" or
> "fixing" or even "playing God".  However I'm afraid we have no choice.
> If we'd laid off CO2 emissions 50 years ago, all would be well.  But now
> there is enough CO2 in the atmosphere to cause global warming to
> continue for centuries and ocean acidification to threaten marine life.
> The Arctic summer sea ice could disappear within a few years, allowing
> Arctic temperatures to rise, threatening both the discharge of massive
> quantities of methane from permafrost and the disintegration of the
> Greenland ice sheet.  The only conceivable way of stopping such a
> potential catastrophes is through geoengineering ("solar radiation
> management") to cool the Arctic.
>
> Thus our society has a stark choice: intervene in the climate system or
> risk the future of mankind on this planet.  Will we make the sensible
> decision?  Will we make the sensible decision in time?  I doubt it, if
> we continue to believe that the crisis can be solved without
> geoengineering, or that there isn't a crisis!
>
> Kind regards,
>
> John
>
> ---
>
> On 11/01/2011 01:28, Luis Gutierrez wrote:
>> Relative to the impending ecological crisis, the Pelican Web/Mother
>> Pelican project argues that the root cause of the crisis is human as
>> opposed to economic or technological.
>>
>> Current issue, for your consideration:
>> Mother Pelican - A Journal of Sustainable Human Development
>> Volume 7, Number 1, January 2011
>> Climate Change: A Test Case in Human Development
>> http://www.pelicanweb.org/solisustv07n01page1.html
>>
>> Articles
>>     Page 1. Editorial ~ A Christmas Reflection on Being Human
>>     Page 2. Envisioning a Sustainable World, by Donella H. Meadows
>>     Page 3. The power to create a better world is already ours, by John
>> Bunzl
>>     Page 4. Rare Earths Diplomacy, by Sean Daly
>>     Page 5. A Real Solution to Global Debt Crises, by Julia Dowling
>>     Page 6. Flaws in Human Mentality: A few thoughts on the subject, by
>> Copthorne Macdonald
>>     Page 7. Sustainable Growth Is An Oxymoron, by Rudy M. Baum
>>     Page 8. Faith in service: What has gender got to do with it?, by
>> Mariz Tadros
>>     Page 9. What the New Human Development Index tells us about Africa,
>> by Francisco R. Rodriguez
>>
>> Supplements
>>     Supp1. Advances in Sustainable Development
>>     Supp2. Directory of Sustainable Development Resources
>>     Supp3. Sustainable Development Simulation (SDSIM) Version 1.4
>>     Supp4. Budapest Call for Climate Justice (WCC, November 2010)
>>
>> Please forward this notice to friends and associates who might be
>> interested.  Submission of research papers on sustainable human
>> development is cordially invited.
>>
>> Sincerely,
>> Luis
>>
>> Luis T. Gutiérrez, PhD, PE
>> The Pelican Web ~ http://pelicanweb.org
>> Editor, Mother Pelican: A Journal of Sustainable Human Development
>> A monthly, CC license, free subscription, open access e-journal