[Terrapreta] Soil test and CEC

[lou gold]

Kevin and Shawn,

I should not do this but I will. I will because the argument between you is
the official and massively promulgated argument. It requires only the taking
a familiar and comfortable position. Read the editorials of the NYT and WSJ
(or whatever) and decide where you stand and buttress your stance with all
that has firmed your opinions across the years.

But the Master Golfer said, "keep your eye on the hole and not on the ball."
It's not whether global warming is or is not unique in history (including
pre-human history). It's that 6 billion humans trying to cope with it truly
is absolutely unique. That is the problem that we are facing. No, I am not
ticking the population bomb. I am saying that we have reached the critical
mass for emerging into a new way. That requires an openess that must not get
filled with our familiar biases, whatever they are. The debaters are in the
deck chairs on the Titanic.

And the doers? Well, we are the doers. Let's just keep doing everything we
can.

OK, that's the lecture that I give to myself. No arrogance or offense
intended.

hugs,

lou



On Nov 7, 2007 6:47 PM, Kevin Chisholm <kchisholm at ca.inter.net> wrote:

> Dear Sean
>
> You indicate below:
> "There are 1500+ scientists, global climatologists, having done
> thousands of research projects and written thousands of peer reviewed
> articles where they are in COMPLETE CONSENSUS that global warming is
> caused primarily by humans."
>
> "Consensus Science" is an oxymoron. If it is science, it does not need
> "consensus." If it is Science, then it is proven or disproven by facts.
> The fact that there is a need for "consensus" suggests that  at the very
> best, it is a "work in progress."
>
> The mere fact that there is a need for "consensus Science" is proof that
> the statements and conclusions are not scientific fact. If it can't be
> proven or disproven, then it is not Science. It is still at the level of
> "belief" or "conjecture."
>
> I would therefore suggest it could be that  our present situation of
> Global Warming was NOT caused by Man, industrialization, and fossil fuel
> use, and that it could indeed be a natural phenomenon, which Man is
> powerless to stop or reverse.
>
> The World has had global warming in the past, long before
> Industrialization, and it certainly was not caused by Man.
>
> The issue of "Global Warming" is a complex matter. It may very well be
> that the Scientists have not found the right hypothesis, or that if they
> have, perhaps they simply do not have enough data to prove or disprove
> the hypothesis in an absolute and Scientific manner. Given the
> importance of the issue, that does not stop Man from taking some sort of
> action. I personally favour a "No regrets" policy, where action is taken
> to support a belief, BUT where these actions have merit on their own,
> and provide a known real benefit.
>
> For example, insulating ones home reduces the need for heating fuel, and
> therefore reduces the impact of heating fuel on Global Warming. Most
> people could accept that. However, when someone suggests raising the
> price of gasoline to reduce use, many people scream bloody murder.
> Cheney was wrong... the American Way of Life IS negotiable. If a "new
> view" on gasoline pricing and use is not developed soon in an orderly
> manner,  reality will force the ugly truth  upon us, in a way that is
> much less than orderly and convenient.
>
> Terra Preta seems to be such a "No Regrets" option. It presently seems
> to be "close" to being economically advantageous for agricultural
> reasons alone. How close it is to economic soundness based on
> agricultural benefits is certainly open to discussion, in that the
> Science and technology is not yet here to permit proving or disproving
> its economic worth. To me, however, it appears that there are already
> certain "niche circumstances" where TP would be very attractive for
> Agricultural benefit alone, and that there are other circumstances where
> TP would be a waste of good money.
>
> I would suggest that the best interests of the Terra Preta Community are
> served if we work toward understanding how it works, how to make it, and
> where to use it.
>
> Best wishes,
>
> Kevin
>
> Sean K. Barry wrote:
> > Hi Jim,
> >
> > Wow!?  Human are causing air pollution?  Is that what you are saying?
> >
> > Green House Gases are the bulk of that air pollution you speak of and
> > they have a greater impact on temperatures in the troposphere than any
> > other mechanism, including current and historical solar activity and
> > cosmic rays (which are completely unaffected by solar activity).  The
> > resulting climatic changes, including global warming, increased
> > incidence and severity of droughts, 3 category 5 hurricanes in one
> > annual seasons, are a direct result of human activities which
> > introduce ~6 billion tons of new carbon into the atmosphere each
> > year.   This is not an issue which politicians seem willing to address
> > (unfortunately).
> >
> > There are 1500+ scientists, global climatologists, having done
> > thousands of research projects and written thousands of peer reviewed
> > articles where they are in COMPLETE CONSENSUS that global warming is
> > caused primarily by humans.  There has never ANY CRITICISM of even one
> > peer reviewed article, written by any scientists in the past ten
> > years, which stated that global warming was caused by humans.   This
> > is no longer conjecture.  It has not been conjecture in the scientific
> > community for a very long time.
> >
> > We humans must BEAR the cost of fixing this or we will suffer the
> > consequences.  We are the only living beings that can do ANYTHING to
> > change the world.  Even if we do something to mitigate the problems in
> > our environment, we will have to adapt.  The ball is already rolling.
> > It's a big ball with lots of inertia.  The hysteresis lag in the
> > response of the environment to activities that we do is on the order
> > of a 100 years.  We are now seeing the effects of what we did 100
> > years ago.  In 100 years more we will still be seeing the effects of
> > what we are doing now, even if we try to make amends for it.  We will
> > absolutely be required to adapt before then!
> >
> > Regards,
> >
> > SKB
> >
> >     ----- Original Message -----
> >     *From:* Jim Joyner <mailto:jimstoytn at yahoo.com>
> >     *To:* terrapreta at bioenergylists.org
> >     <mailto:terrapreta at bioenergylists.org>
> >     *Sent:* Wednesday, November 07, 2007 10:40 AM
> >     *Subject:* Re: [Terrapreta] Soil test and CEC
> >
> >     From: Sean K. Barry <sean.barry at juno.com <mailto:sean.barry at juno.com
> >>
> >
> >     I would like to mention again  . . .
> >
> >     Sean,
> >
> >     While I think carbon sequestration is probably a good bet,
> >     anthropogenic causes are still something of a conjecture (I
> >     realize I may be somewhat politically incorrect here). While
> >     global climate change may be a given, there are more better and
> >     reasons to believe climate change is due to solar activity and
> >     their effect on cosmic rays.
> >
> >     I bring this up, not to start an argument about climate change and
> >     causes but to point out that carbon sequestration will have an
> >     attendant cost and someone will have to bare it. The reason why I
> >     think carbon sequestration is still a good bet is because much the
> >     expense for it can be borne by the cost of cleaning up the Earth's
> >     air of pollution -- we know who is causing that and roughly who
> >     should pay for it.
> >
> >     My other concern is that if humans are not causing climate change,
> >     we have an even bigger problem: adapting. We will need disparately
> >     to find better ways to feed people in a changing environment. We
> >     need to grow crops with better moisture and nutrient retention.
> >     So, I would put soil improvement on at least an equal footing with
> >     carbon sequestration if not a higher priority.
> >
> >     Jim
> >
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-- 
http://lougold.blogspot.com/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/visionshare/sets/
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