People like this used to be given vast amounts of medication and involuntarily committed as dangers to themselves, if not shunned as raving nutballs. Now, their insanity is mainstream (via Tim Blair)
Understanding grief can help us adapt to climate change
Grief is a natural response to the loss of something cherished – a loved one, a place, a memory, an icon, a way of life.
As people adapt to the increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events, and to a changing environment, researchers are starting to realise the role grief can play in how well people are able to cope with climate change.
Even with concerted efforts to reduce greenhouse gases, some climate change cannot be avoided, with many changes such as increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events to 2040 being locked in, regardless of action we take. These changes are already happening now and will continue into the foreseeable future.
30 years ago, people simply said “meh, weather happens”. Perhaps cried with rage over loss from weather that has always happened. Or they jumped for joy. They coped. Kids were delighted by lots and lots of snow. Now, everyone is supposed to freak out with uber anxiety over what might possibly could maybe happen in the future.
Does climate change cause grief?
A variety of losses can be experienced. People may grieve due to the perceived future loss of something; for example, the type of grief often expressed via social media over the potential loss of the Great Barrier Reef. Individuals and communities may grieve for the loss of a loved landscape damaged by drought, fire or flood.
Because weather never changed before, and weather never changed the landscape.
In a normal and healthy grieving process, individuals move through the process of grief and continue with their lives. How well a person copes during this process depends on their experience, context and external circumstances.
These people are anything but normal, and their “grieving process” requires the Government to take control of our lives, businesses, and money.
So how can we help people and communities work through the climate grieving process?
How about tamping down your insanity and doomsday cult rhetoric? That would be a good start. Oh, and practice what you preach.
Another way to help people accept these changes is through cultural activities that support the expression of grief. In Australia, local government, community, and the arts sector have led in this area. Storytelling is often used as it provides a structured and often empowering way of expressing difficult emotions.
No, I’d go with “practice what you preach, give up your own use of fossil fuels and make your lives carbon neutral”. Also, I’d recommend that Climastrologers never have children (kids are bad for “climate change”, you know!), which would reduced the spread of their insanity.
Read: Climastrologers Are Concerned With The Climate Grieving Process »
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