Time to call it what it is: climate breakdown

[PaulaFarrell]

Climate change sounds benign, global warming sounds almost so. From now on, I'm calling it what it is, climate breakdown.

[Copperred]

1. That;s a good term...thanks

CLIMATE BREAKDOWN


i like it

[MuseRider]

2. Good one

and I agree that is exactly what appears to be happening.

I will use it from now on.

[ananda]

3. and..

It's not only the climate that's breaking down.

The whole ecological balance.. whole political
and economic systems.. families.. schools and
school systems (mine is a prime example, it's
truly nuts trying to teach to a test).

Sue

[hatrack]

4. Hey! You stole my idea!!!!

I still like it, though!

:toast:

[PaulaFarrell]

7. your posts inspired me

keep them up (even though they may be contributing to my low-level depression) :)

[hatrack]

8. Oh, I'll never quit - I find the illusion of control I get satisfying

That, and of course, lots of :beer:

[SmokingJacket]

5. That's really, really smart.

And accurate, I think. What I've noticed more than just warming or cooling, is that established weather patterns have become more chaotic.

:thumbsup:

Meme of the Week Award for you!

[LunaC]

6. Good point - it's ALL in the semantics!

I'll jump on your bandwagon..."climate breakdown" is an accurate description of what's occuring and has a greater impact on the psyche.

[Taxloss]

9. A climate can't break down.

Earth will always have a climate, it just might have one that humans can't live in. Venus has a climate. It's lovely if you don't mind no oxygen, acid rain, perpetual storms and stifling heat.

But I agree about "climate change". A useless phrase. The climate is always changing. That's what it does.

Global meltdown might be better.

[PaulaFarrell]

10. the current climate system can break down

admittedly, something will replace it, but the systems that are now in place, like the trade winds, the Gulf stream, those can all break down.

[Taxloss]

12. I still feel "breakdown" is the wrong word.

All Earth's climate does is distribute heat around a damp planet. There is no established climatic "system" - it's in a state of permanent and sometimes extreme flux. It only looks stable viewed through our pathetically short lifespans. Thanks to Earth's axial tilt, and its lively core, the various variables involved are so staggeringly numerous that stability is impossible. The climate is pure chaos.

[PaulaFarrell]

14. one of the things that could break down is the distribution of heat

from the tropics to the polar regions. There are climatic systems in existence - they are not 100% reliable but they're not pure chaos either. If they were there wouldn't be seasons.

[smitty]

11. Climates don't breakdown, cars breakdown

A breakdown means a failure to function. Earth's climate will function as it has for the past 4.5 billion years---change is a constant in Earth's climate (the "Little Ice Age" for example). But climate can change for the worse, so a better choice of words might be "climate trauma". Just a thought.

[PaulaFarrell]

13. that's not necessarily a given

Our climate is a pretty intricate balance. There is no guarantee that with enough 'trauma' what we recognise as climate will continue to exist - unless you agree that Mars has a 'climate'. In any event, I guess I am referring to the climactic systems that we know and love, which may well break down entirely.

[smitty]

15. The climatic systems "we know and love" are not constant.

During the Little Ice Age (c. 12th to 19th centuries) our climate was quite different. The difference was even greater during the major Ice Ages when, for example, Wisconsin (where I live) had major glaciation and an Arctic climate. But, whether you term it "breakdown" or "trauma" the end result can be disastrous.