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Friday, July 12, 2019

Pedophile Priests and Climate Science

Climate scientists are going through something similar to what I went through doing blog about pedophile priests: 'Climate scientists face a distinct dilemma: “They have to deal with the surrealism of knowing what we know and living within a society choosing not to know or willing itself not to know…For them it’s incredibly difficult to find yourself in a role not asked for: ‘I didn’t choose to be suddenly in the midst of a swirl of political and cultural and social trauma.’”' (From Mother Jones article linked below)
(I'm not a scientist but I used to write press releases for scientists and so am going through a similar thing to climate scientists today:)
'So what is it like to be cursed with foreknowledge that others ignore? Peter Kalmus... says. '“Astrophysics... had no implication for the possible collapse of human civilization.” But the unrelenting momentum of climate change does. “I’m always thinking about it,” he says. “That can be a burden. Whenever friends talk about flying off to vacation, I feel compelled to point out the large carbon cost to flying. I’d like to take a vacation from thinking about it. I’m not sure that is psychologically possible.”
'During the recent wildfires in California, where he lives, Kalmus became irritable because the link between natural disasters and climate change was not front and center in media coverage. Like many climate scientists, he is often hit by waves of grief. Kalmus once called his congressional representative to support a piece of climate change legislation. “I was explaining to the staffer why it was urgent, and I started crying,” he says. “For me, the grief comes up unexpectedly.” '
https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/07/weight-of-the-world-climate-change-scientist-grief/

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The distinct burden of being a climate scientist
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