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The full on doom and gloom topic.

R

rob666

TS Member
As mentioned recently in the climate change topic, the world seems to have become a far more dangerous place in recent years.
The dark fear of other nations becoming nuclear weapon holders, especially in "turbulent times".
Climate change...another hottest year ever, a massive spread of wildfires, and the holiday market having to adapt to heat...but air flight use grows and grows...worsening the problem.
Huge increase in cybercrime and massive corporations being held to ransom, crippling some electronic transaction systems.
My local supermarket becoming cash only, twice, for an hour, in the space of a month.
The simple fact that there are too many non productive citizens, being supported by fewer and fewer supporting tax payers due to demographic change...we are getting older, and sicker...mentioned in the Politics topic, we can't afford to stay where we are anymore.
Then the worrying risks with greater divisions between the rich and poor causing civil unrest.

One of the papers recently ran a review on some Oxford boffins new book...an assessment of future risks to civilisation, he thinks we have a one in six chance of total civilisation collapse within the next twenty five years...Russian Roulette with the year 2050.
Others have reported similar risks, and accelerating change, that is increasing unchecked.
Too late to make effective change apparently.

So, are we going to hell in a handcart, downhill fast with no brakes?
Or is Rob just being the harbinger of doom...again.
 
"Too late to make effective change". I think this is right, and I don't see the point in doubling everyone's energy bills in a quest for clean energy that'll probably make little difference by this point. Yeah, lets make everyone's lives a bit more miserable by making them poorer on the way to the collapse of civilization.

But yeah, everything's screwed.

But also, I always was a bit of a pessimist.
 
Glad to see that positivity @rob666 😄

I think you have to factor in the way we consume news and information these days, compared to just 20 years ago.

Everything is available at the touch of your fingertips , and news - real or fake - reaches millions of people almost instantly, from just about anywhere in the world.

I am sure that most of the doom and gloom of today would not reach the majority of people if the only source you had was the news at 10 and whatever they decided to print in the morning papers.

It was very much doom and gloom in the 70s and 80s , power cuts, the threat of nuclear war , endless strikes causing mayhem, mass unemployment.

We often look to the past with rose tinted spectacles, me included, and todays world definitely has many challenges ahead of it.

But I remain mostly optimistic that the human race will manage to not destroy the planet.

Although lets face it, todays music is absolute **** compared to the 80s 😄
 
I am of the opinion we are much much not on the path to civilisation collapsing in the next 25 years.

What would be the realistic cause?

1. Disease.

We've had several global pandemics in the past 100 years or so and none have resulted in this. As the last one has shown, humanity can respond faster than ever with co-operative technology to combat things and mitigates risks. Uneven global health infrastructure could amplify regional impacts but not to collapse-level.

2. Weather events.

These tend to be localised. Yes things like fires and hurricanes are increasing but the death counts are lower than ever due to improvements in technology. As these are localised, they are not likely to result in civilisation collapsing. Cascading effects of climate migration could strain global stability but i don't think this is on the cards in the next 25 years and remain optimistic of adaptation.

Even major events like a massive earthquake, whilst they will cause a massive tragedy, will not cause civilisation to collapse. The only true event would be a gigantic meteor collision and even with that we are in an unprecedented era of detection and response so it's not necessarily a wipeout. Either way it's unrelated to activity on Earth so not one to worry about imo.

3. War.

Again, we've had multiple global wars and none of these have resulted in collapse. The notion of another one isn't realistic due to nuclear weapons so the stalemate will continue to remain in place imo. A cyberattack such as wiping out banking systems or energy grids is arguably the thing to fear most but i think this would be temporary, even if it did result in some significant.... unpleasantness. War has always been a concern for humanity but as ever is very much dependent on where you are as opposed to causing collapse at a global level.

4. Resources.

Basically food and water. Food production is higher than ever. Once again any problems will likely be regional. Freshwater distribution is the biggest issue and the knock on effect of migration. The world may face some unpalatable decisions in this regard but the distribution of wealth and resource suggest to me that a collapse is not on the cards. I'm also optimistic technology will catch up to aid those who need it most though the current trajectory suggests more research and investment is needed in that regard.

Humans are adaptable, living in an era of unprecedented quality of life and longevity. While risks can compound, I don’t see a realistic path to collapse in 25 years, more like variations of manageable challenges we’ve faced before but with better tools.
 
Global climate change wiping out massive swathes of tropical areas that were once temperate perhaps, as is already happening in the areas of France and the Med?

Good old international trade and single product economies are at a far greater risk of collapse from agricultural climate issues...cocoa is a fine example...cost increases to trade of around five hundred percent in five years...and our national cereal harvest this year is likely to be one of the worst in a hundred years.
All down to it getting a bit warmer...

AI hasn't been mentioned either, at least two of the "future boffins" at Oxbridge Poly have suggested that is the greatest threat of societal collapse.
Ransomware of big companies is likely to increase over time...as we get more and more dependant on electronic online purchase.

Twenty eight times we have had human civilisation fail in large geographic areas, there is a great deal of concern by a great many scientists that we are walking straight into number 29 on a global scale.
 
GooseOnTheLoose said:
Agadoo, Shaddap You Face, Star Trekkin', Orville's Song and Ebony and Ivory have clearly been wiped from your memory banks, just to name a few.
Click to expand...

That just shows the variety of music around in the 80s and I would take any of those over 95% of todays charts. Although i will draw the line at St Winifred's School Choir !!!

rob666 said:
You leave our nice Mr Stevens alone there matey...

He still gets off on the Blakes 7 theme music.
Click to expand...

I do indeed 😂
 
Like many others on this forum, I was born in the 1970s, and never thought I'd see the world as dark as this. For some reason though, I have always been an optimist.

You never know, we could be living in a genuine utopia in two years' time. Amazing things that we can't even imagine might be possible. Maybe we are already more powerful than we realise? Maybe evil forces will be overthrown? You really don't know!

Climate Change is one that bugs me because I've never even flown in a plane. There really is not much I can do about it. They fly about, burning copious amounts of jet fuel, whilst lecturing the rest of us.

Yes, there is turmoil, but many are beginning to question who runs the world, and how much of what we've been told is actually true. Many people consider this to be the Great Awakening. Think about it: How much of what you believe is true is because you've actually experienced it yourself, and how much of it is just received wisdom? Not much help if you're stuck in a war, I admit, but they couldn't even do that if no one did it for them. Easier said than done, it's true.

All I know is that you have to fight on. We can't prevent all suffering, but I believe our job is to be as good as possible to each other - reject the dark things such as horror, violence and cruelty, and embrace the good such as love, courage and kindness. I believe we all have to come to this conclusion ourselves, but you know what? If we do that, I have a funny feeling that everything will work out eventually.

1980s music is the best though!
 
Nice to see that the WHO has included anti vaccers as one of the top threats to civilisation overall.
No vaccination, more needless spread of diseases, and then the antibiotics that are already struggling to work fail completely.
 
For years I denied climate change. Was adamant I was right.

In 2010, a book came out called "global warming and other ********." Read the chapter on the the falseness of global warming. Put the book down. Had a think, came to the conclusion that I and the book was wrong.

That chapter, read like any post online, talking about conspiracy's, Far right views. Banging on about particles of pollution in ice. Christ.
 
Unfortunately, the melting of many glaciers has been accelerated by the dark taint of polluted air, less reflected light, more warmth absorbed, more icemelt.
Rising water levels...might make a top ten risks, could start a poll.
 
To be honest I’ve not got a lot to say here other than we’re all screwed.

It feels like a very drawn out death. Wish things would hurry up to be honest.

Can’t see anything getting better anytime sooner. The richer you get (earnings) the poor you seem to become.

To many people, not many nutters.

It’s all terrible.
 
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I think it's inevitable that in 20-30 years time they'll be means-testing state pension and entitlement to free prescriptions and stuff like that. If your private pension is too good or you have savings they'll reduce your entitlements. The country will just not have the money to give to everyone.

I buy a few bits and pieces occasionally that I can put away for when/if I retire so that it doesn't show up in my accounts but I'll be able to sell them piecemeal when the time comes as a bit of extra monthly income that prying eyes can't see.
 
OK...time for the occasional update, following yesterdays evil events in the middle east...

IN at ten...starting with what I consider the "least" most likely cause of death of western civilisation...

10. Invaders from space...
9. Meteoric event
8. World human viral/bacterial event...another, nastier covid.
7. Sunspot flares/polar switching knocking out all aviation/communication.
6. Economic collapse and mass starvation caused by ageing population.
5. Volcanic winter caused by multiple major eruptions blocking out the sun.
4. Major fault earthquake and tsunami wiping out economies in whole nations, triggering world economic collapse.
3. Nuclear war.
2. Climate change.
1. The terror twins, Trump and Netanyahu

See what happens when you let the orange fool start the Department for War.
 
Thank you for this critical update Rob. It's hard to pick a favourite out of all of them. For some reason I'm becoming probably irrationally worried about clean water becoming harder to procure in future due to the needs of data centres and Ai. Might or might not be one for the list if one of your hitlist doesn't get us first.
 
Oops, I honestly did that off cuff, and I forgot AI, sorry.
Lump the outer space ones together, and add AI near the top, together with cybercrime as a separate entity.

Feel free to add your own top ten, and remember, some very qualified profs at oxbridge poly have already given us a 20% chance of the end within thirty years!
 
The clown world marches on. The Israeli President is coming to the UK this week for a cozy-up with 2-tier Keir and his lackies, this despite the ICC (International Criminal Court) having arrest warrants out for Netanyahu and his cronies for war crimes. We are one of the nations signed up to the ICC but we're apparently happy to welcome their nations leaders here?

What we're basically saying is that we use the ICC as a convenient weapon to use against people or nations when it suits us. If we don't like a verdict because it doesn't suit us at any given time, we will just ignore it. It makes a mockery of us as a serious country and of the whole idea of the ICC. If it's not respected by its member states then it should be disbanded.
 
BarryZola said:
The clown world marches on. The Israeli President is coming to the UK this week for a cozy-up with 2-tier Keir and his lackies, this despite the ICC (International Criminal Court) having arrest warrants out for Netanyahu and his cronies for war crimes. We are one of the nations signed up to the ICC but we're apparently happy to welcome their nations leaders here?

What we're basically saying is that we use the ICC as a convenient weapon to use against people or nations when it suits us. If we don't like a verdict because it doesn't suit us at any given time, we will just ignore it. It makes a mockery of us as a serious country and of the whole idea of the ICC. If it's not respected by its member states then it should be disbanded.
Click to expand...
Slight fact check on this one, there is not an arrest warrant out for the Israeli President, Isaac Herzog. There is one out for the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Presidential role is primarily ceremonial, actual executive power is vested in the cabinet led by the prime minister.

Whilst some lawyers have called for the President to be arrested, and have cited precedence to remove the immunity usually offered to head of state, there still isn't a warrant out for his arrest from the ICC.
 
GooseOnTheLoose said:
Slight fact check on this one, there is not an arrest warrant out for the Israeli President, Isaac Herzog. There is one out for the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Presidential role is primarily ceremonial, actual executive power is vested in the cabinet led by the prime minister.

Whilst some lawyers have called for the President to be arrested, and have cited precedence to remove the immunity usually offered to head of state, there still isn't a warrant out for his arrest from the ICC.
Click to expand...
I didn't say the President should be arrested ;) :)

My over-arching point was that we shouldn't be entertaining anyone who is anywhere around the corridors of power in Israel at the moment, which the President either is or at least would appear to be to the average guy on the street. It would be like us inviting Slobodan Milosevic's deputy over for a knees up whilst he's wanted for murdering Bosnians.
 
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