
How Is Today’s Warming Different from the Past? - randomgyatwork
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/GlobalWarming/page3.php
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randomgyatwork
People always talk about the last 100,000 years as though that is a good scale
to talk about this issue. Reality is, current global warming is part of a
cycle that has existed way longer than us. Our real problem is that we are
speeding up a process, not creating it.

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WorldMaker
Whereas reaching to greater than 100,000 year cycles is a giant red herring at
this point as well. We're dealing with an unprecedented rise within less than
a 100 year period, regardless of whether or not this is some "ancient cycle",
it's a very frightening thing and we should very much be doing something about
it. Playing a blame game at this point about who "created it" versus "sped it
up" seems a bit like playing hot potato with a live grenade.

Edit to clarify: unprecedented - in our species' history, in our species'
survival to date. That's a part of the focus on the last 100,000 years.

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randomgyatwork
That could be part of it, though there is the potential that we couldn't stop
it even if we tried.

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WorldMaker
We might have to at least try, won't we? What's the other option, roll over
and accept mass extinction?

