Geoengineering can also be unbelievably stupid. The British government is planning to fund high-altitude geoengineering to block sunlight. This is a pet project of some very rich people who consider themselves geniuses, and it is a real thing – I have directly heard their discussions on similar projects from people who can pay for them. It is based on the interesting conviction that while all previous episodes of global warming were due to some natural phenomena, the current one is solely due to the work of man, and that somehow dimming sunlight by setting up a reflective layer in the upper atmosphere is therefore a good thing (i.e. not interfering with nature, but saving it…).

There is irony here. We now have 9 billion people on earth, and have defied all previous predictions of Malthusian catastrophe and starvation, partly because vegetation (i.e., our crops) grows faster and uses water more efficiently than it did 50 or 100 years ago. The reason for this is higher carbon dioxide (CO2). Plants need mainly CO2, sunlight, and water to grow. Whether CO2 is the main cause of global warming is irrelevant here. It is a reasonable theory, but anthropogenic emissions do not explain past warming periods. CO2 has doubled from previously very low levels, but it was much lower in the Middle Ages when the Norse grew crops in Greenland.

So, whether or not sun-blocking will reduce global temperatures, it will certainly reduce sunlight and plant growth. This will reduce harvests, both in yield and in some places in frequency. Mass starvation will be much more likely – all apparently for the greater good. It may even be better for investors in failing fake meat companies and other factory foods, which may explain some interest in sun dimming. A clever commercial approach, but likely to be fairly widely fatal. While the British government is embracing this, it is almost certainly happening already, at least experimentally. There are no rules, just stupidity. //

So, perhaps we should concentrate on the industrial and political stupidity that is endangering us all through stuff that is proven and readily demonstrable. Labeling nature or air travel as evidence of evil will gain likes on social media, but also help the cause of those who would own and control our atmosphere and food supply.