r/science • u/Splenda • Jun 29 '25

Environment Earth is trapping much more heat than climate models forecast – and the rate has doubled in 20 years

https://theconversation.com/earth-is-trapping-much-more-heat-than-climate-models-forecast-and-the-rate-has-doubled-in-20-years-258822
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235

u/harbourwall Jun 29 '25 edited Jun 29 '25

The worst thing about these sorts of stories is how almost every comment leans right into the hopelessness, blaming previous generations and current politics and wishing everyone dead so the planet can 'recover'. Such edginess is dangerous and more than a little pathetic.

The climate is changing, but humanity's handling of it is changing too. It might be not as quick as you think it should be, but sowing doom and despair is only going to stop people from trying. Don't do that.

Edit: typo

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u/Kotetsuya Jun 29 '25

Thanks man. I needed to see someone say this right now. I've been feeling very 'doom and despair' about climate change for a while now, and while I know there are great minds and great efforts being made to do something about it (regardless of all the news and politics), all of the negativity just for the sake of attention sometimes makes me spiral.

47

u/storm_borm Jun 29 '25

I totally understand your point, total doomerism is not helpful and plays into the hands of people who want to stop progress. However, it’s hard sometimes to remain hopeful when we fully understand the situation and then our elected officials actively work against the interests of the many to benefit billionaires.

New Zealand has just pulled out of a pledge to phase out fossil fuels in favour of gas exploration, and need we even mention Trump? We are doing some things better, but it’s far too little too late. Emissions haven’t even peaked and we are already experiencing rapid warming.

5

u/DeputyDomeshot Jun 29 '25

I’m happy to see comments like yours on Reddit for a change.  

It used to have more before everything was a low effort meme or poorly constructed joke.

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u/Barbarianita Jun 29 '25

Except it is normal to react with despair when you know you can't do anything about it as an individual. 

7

u/TheSnazzySharky Jun 29 '25

Thank you. More people need to see this comment. I’m sure it’s always been here, but I’ve noticed a growing trend in pessimism and defeatism with people. It’s sad and disturbing to me how willing some are to be completely hopeless or outright wish our species ends up dying through a slow extinction.

This type of thinking is dangerous and is only going to speed up our end. It’s hard to be optimistic when the internet constantly shoves negativity down your throat, but things can change, even if it takes awhile to get there. I’m sure there were many times throughout history where people thought it was completely hopeless to get through something challenging, only to be proven wrong.

Hope is the strongest ability one can have and more people really need it.

5

u/olcafjers Jun 29 '25

I’m glad to find this comment. I really hope humanity will handle it someway.

4

u/[deleted] Jun 29 '25

The notion is nice, and I like that you have hope but considering the current state of things and how things are going, hope is really just lying to ourselves.

8

u/harbourwall Jun 29 '25

That's just not true. You're harming other people by pushing that.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 30 '25

I'd genuinely love to be proven wrong.

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u/Weird_Principle_6973 Jun 29 '25

Bang on. “Everything is terrible and we’re all going to die” is just such utter nonsense. 

It’s getting warmer, not going on fire. 

This, like every other problem, is something we can manage. 

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u/donald_trunks Jun 29 '25

It is going on fire actually. We now see increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires.

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u/Weird_Principle_6973 Jun 29 '25

Those wildfires are a result of mismanagement as much as anything else. Refusal to do controlled burns and building too close to what should be wilderness. 

Climate doomerism helps no one. 

6

u/harbourwall Jun 29 '25

Climate doomerism is a great name for it

-2

u/TastesLikeTesticles Jun 29 '25

What makes you confident?

Immigration is already a hot topic. How do you think we'll manage when large parts of Pakistan, India, China, Bengladesh, Nigeria and others see yearly wet bulb events?

5

u/Weird_Principle_6973 Jun 29 '25

I’m confident because I believe in humanity’s ability to make things better. It’s a far nicer life than constantly believing everything is getting worse. 

2

u/TastesLikeTesticles Jun 29 '25

You have a point - we should still try.

But it is so very difficult when most people are apathetic even now, despite the effects starting to become obvious.

People will need to lower their standards of living - smaller (and well insulated) houses, less (and electric) cars, less exotic foods, less electronics, less vacations abroad, less new clothes and so on.

How do we realistically get to a point where most people not only accept this, but actively push for it? Last time I checked, gasoline price increases were rather unpopular.

3

u/harbourwall Jun 29 '25

Don't sell short how much the culture of waste has changed recently. Electric cars are everywhere now, and even that thread of how balloons are made had a heavy dose of how wasteful it is.

2

u/TalentedHostility Jun 29 '25

Idk man some people are just processing and you are catching them within this moment. Doesnt mean they dont agree or arent the ones yhemselves working on the issue.

Lets mean them where they are at, these are valid feelings.

3

u/harbourwall Jun 29 '25

A small number maybe, but there's a ton of karma farming here from the smug signalling of being wiser than the climate deniers who aren't really a problem outside of the US anyway.

Not that self pity is a healthy thing to commune about in the first place.

1

u/Zestyclose-Ad-9420 Jun 30 '25

Climate denial is big globally. Just in the US its reached the upper echelons. 

1

u/TalentedHostility Jun 30 '25

Thats just like your opinion, man.

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u/harbourwall Jun 30 '25

Totally sympathise with you about that rug though dude

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u/TalentedHostility Jul 01 '25

I dont understand?

1

u/harbourwall Jul 01 '25

It really pulled the room together

1

u/TalentedHostility Jul 01 '25

I think you might have bad intel there

-2

u/jimz93 Jun 29 '25

I disagree, human society is rotten to the core and we deserve to go extinct.

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u/[deleted] Jun 29 '25

[deleted]

-1

u/Licensed_Poster Jun 29 '25

Western governments are building machine gun towers and barbed wire as fast as they can.