Today In History: Environmental Predictions made for 1970 Earth Day

Gaius · 2018-04-22T17:37:17.040Z

Noting my earlier post in this thread.

Here’s the kind of thing I found EASY to do. Looks like it would still be easy.

Below are

A screen capture from the most recent IPCC report on sea level change predictions. (It’s titled “IPCC Fifth Assessment Report, WGI Chapter 13: Sea Level change (2014)” if you wanna google it.), and
a screen capture I get on my phone when I do a GoogleNews search for “sea level rise predictions.”

The ACTUAL IPCC report reads in part “For the period 2081–2100, compared to
1986–2005, global mean sea level rise is likely … range of projections from process-based models, which give 0.26 to 0.55 m”

IOW by the year 2100 global sea levels will likely rise “0.26 to 0.55 m” or 8 to 18 inches, and THAT is almost a hundred years from now.

But the media reportage, is mostly scary scenarios. Presumably the MSM is balanced so I guess the articles balance between people to the left of science and people far far far to the left of science.

Some things never change.

Capture%20_2018-04-22-13-01-57738×516 115 KB

And 2.

Capture%20_2018-04-22-13-07-19720×1199 252 KB

Call_me_Ishmael · 2018-04-22T17:37:37.390Z

It likely did not involve you. Apparently, others here were watching and protecting us.

1920×1200 313 KB

BlueTex · 2018-04-22T17:41:21.169Z

Thank goodness congress took these predictions seriously and enacted the Clean Air Act of 1970 and established the EPA in the same year. Thanks for reminding us of the responsible policies and politicians.

Gaius · 2018-04-22T17:50:17.342Z

BlueTex:

Thank goodness congress took these predictions seriously and enacted the Clean Air Act of 1970 and established the EPA in the same year. Thanks for reminding us of the responsible policies and politicians.

What? No credit to President Nixon?

Gas masks would have been necessary? All the fish in surface water would have died? Overpopulation and mass starvation?

Thank God the fish are still alive in Pakistan. Way to go US Congress! Way to go President Nixon! Way to go God.

You saved us!

gooddad409 · 2018-04-22T17:57:07.151Z

acsirip:

CaughtInTheMiddle:

acsirip:

the nitpicked predictions above have not come true also because changes were made to prevent them.

after Y2K a ton of people said it was a hoax. it pissed me off for one specific reason.

i had tasked staff to take decommissioned equipment (we sell expensive stuff) and bring them up to date (just like a lot of the stuff still in the field) and test them with future dates. they found major issues and reported back to me. we addressed those issues, came up with solutions and by the time the clocked ticked to the problem “second”, we had already addressed everything. worked our asses off and idiots (who had no idea of the actual details) were saying it was all a conspiracy (not unlike what Alex Jones does these days).

people can be dumb. its a fact of life.

True. Al Gore and the 1970 forecasters come to mind.

acsirip · 2018-04-22T17:58:49.644Z

gooddad409:

True. Al Gore and the 1970 forecasters come to mind.

at least you learned today that millions still die annually from pollution.

Gaius · 2018-04-22T18:05:30.501Z

acsirip:

at least you learned today that millions still die annually from pollution.

And that Congress, during whomever’s presidency, saved India from starvation and protected the fish everywhere in the world.

Yay President Whomever and his party!

gooddad409 · 2018-04-22T18:13:08.692Z

acsirip:

gooddad409:

True. Al Gore and the 1970 forecasters come to mind.

at least you learned today that millions still die annually from pollution.

When did that happen?

acsirip · 2018-04-22T18:19:33.827Z

gooddad409:

acsirip:

gooddad409:

True. Al Gore and the 1970 forecasters come to mind.

at least you learned today that millions still die annually from pollution.

When did that happen?

i linked above. heres another link if the FT link is not working for you.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/10/19/pollution-kills-9-million-people-each-year-new-study-finds/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.b476da96f20c

Tilly_jow · 2018-04-22T18:28:16.894Z

This is a thread it seems that the oil industry pays its stooges to start in all new political sites. IMHO.

WuWei · 2018-04-22T18:31:49.010Z

I always find it amusing how impressed humans are with themselves.

Especially secular puritans.

Cratic3947 · 2018-04-23T17:53:56.626Z

Yes, growing up in the 1970’s, everything in the the world was going suck, “By the year 2000…”, “brawk”…

Gaius · 2018-04-23T19:43:16.980Z

Cratic3947:

Yes, growing up in the 1970’s, everything in the the world was going suck, “By the year 2000…”, “brawk”…

Well…how do you like today’s music?

Grimalken · 2018-04-23T19:51:29.110Z

Gaius:

Earth day

Today marks the anniversary of the first Earth Day (originally taking place in 1970).

The following somewhat alarming predictions were made, to swat public opinion and to justify a perveived need to roll back free markets, increase spending, laws and regulations.

Life magazine reported, “Scientists have solid experimental and theoretical evidence to support…the following predictions: In a decade, urban dwellers will have to wear gas masks to survive air pollution…by 1985 air pollution will have reduced the amount of sunlight reaching earth by one half….”

Barry Commoner predicted that decaying organic pollutants would use up all of the oxygen in America’s rivers, causing freshwater fish to suffocate.

Paul Ehrlich chimed in, predicting in his 1970 that “air pollution…is certainly going to take hundreds of thousands of lives in the next few years alone.” Ehrlich sketched a scenario in which 200,000 Americans would die in 1973 during “smog disasters” in New York and Los Angeles. {snip}

I thought it was commonly known, that back in 1985, Marty McFly changed the outcome of the future. Otherwise all of those predictions would have come to pass.

Grimalken · 2018-04-23T19:55:27.716Z

acsirip:

i linked above. heres another link if the FT link is not working for you.

Hmmm, and they know this, how, exactly? Did they perform an autopsy, and these people had a toxicity level in their blood, that exceeded the upper limits for humans to survive?

Cratic3947 · 2018-04-23T22:31:24.910Z

Ya, got me there… Auto tune is all the proof you need of no talent musicians … It takes well educated people to make good music.

gooddad409 · 2018-04-23T22:43:07.017Z

Gaius:

Cratic3947:

Yes, growing up in the 1970’s, everything in the the world was going suck, “By the year 2000…”, “brawk”…

Well…how do you like today’s music?

Not much. Hasn’t been the same since the 60’s music.

Gaius · 2018-04-24T04:29:00.937Z

Grimalken:

acsirip:

i linked above. heres another link if the FT link is not working for you.

Hmmm, and they know this, how, exactly? Did they perform an autopsy, and these people had a toxicity level in their blood, that exceeded the upper limits for humans to survive?

9 million a year is not hard to believe. A LOT of people in China are smokers or ex smokers. That weakens their lungs and Chinese air pollution takes care of the rest.
Every DAY 8.9 million people die from something.

Then there’s India.

India, China or elsewhere, pneumonia is the final cause of death for a lot of elderly, terminally ill from from sorts of a non-pollution-related ailments. Almost any form of respiratory arrest runs a close second.

Cancer of just about any body part usually ends in pneumonia-death. Ditto with AIDS.

Any number of those respiratory deaths could be attributed to not living in a plastic bubble.

Grimalken · 2018-04-25T13:40:19.541Z

Gaius:

9 million a year is not hard to believe. A LOT of people in China are smokers or ex smokers. That weakens their lungs and Chinese air pollution takes care of the rest.

Every DAY 8.9 million people die from something.

Then there’s India.

India, China or elsewhere, pneumonia is the final cause of death for a lot of elderly, terminally ill from from sorts of a non-pollution-related ailments. Almost any form of respiratory arrest runs a close second.

Cancer of just about any body part usually ends in pneumonia-death. Ditto with AIDS.

Any number of those respiratory deaths could be attributed to not living in a plastic bubble.

They did not die “from pollution.” The cause of death would have been cardiovascular disease, cancer, pneumonia, hepatitis, AIDS, tuberculosis. Even poor working conditions are a huge contributor to an early death in developing nations, where the employees breath in toxic fumes or dusts. For what it’s worth, smoking is also popular in India.

I’m not saying polluted air is not a contributing factor, but crowded, impoverished, third world countries have a lot of issues that all contribute to diminished health.

Gaius · 2018-04-25T15:08:27.775Z

True.

Standard of living could be blamed as much as pollution. So could big government.