Science Greta Thunberg Megathread - Dax Herrera says he wouldn't have a day ago (I somewhat doubt that)

Why is Greta Thunberg so triggering? How can a 16-year-old girl in plaits, who has dedicated herself to the not-exactly sinister, authoritarian plot of trying to save the planet from extinction, inspire such incandescent rage?

Last week, she tweeted that she had arrived into New York after her two week transatlantic voyage: “Finally here. Thank you everyone who came to see me off in Plymouth, and everyone who welcomed me in New York! Now I’m going to rest for a few days, and on Friday I’m going to participate in the strike outside the UN”, before promptly giving a press conference in English. Yes, her second language.

Her remarks were immediately greeted with a barrage of jibes about virtue signalling, and snide remarks about the three crew members who will have to fly out to take the yacht home.

This shouldn’t need to be spelled out, but as some people don’t seem to have grasped it yet, we’ll give it a lash: Thunberg’s trip was an act of protest, not a sacred commandment or an instruction manual for the rest of us. Like all acts of protest, it was designed to be symbolic and provocative. For those who missed the point – and oh, how they missed the point – she retweeted someone else’s “friendly reminder” that: “You don’t need to spend two weeks on a boat to do your part to avert our climate emergency. You just need to do everything you can, with everyone you can, to change everything you can.”

Part of the reason she inspires such rage, of course, is blindingly obvious. Climate change is terrifying. The Amazon is burning. So too is the Savannah. Parts of the Arctic are on fire. Sea levels are rising. There are more vicious storms and wildfires and droughts and floods. Denial is easier than confronting the terrifying truth.

Then there’s the fact that we don’t like being made to feel bad about our life choices. That’s human nature. It’s why we sneer at vegans. It’s why we’re suspicious of sober people at parties. And if anything is likely to make you feel bad about your life choices -- as you jet back home after your third Ryanair European minibreak this season – it’ll be the sight of small-boned child subjecting herself to a fortnight being tossed about on the Atlantic, with only a bucket bearing a “Poo Only Please” sign by way of luxury, in order to make a point about climate change.

But that’s not virtue signalling, which anyone can indulge in. As Meghan Markle, Prince Harry, and their-four-private-jets-in-11-days found recently, virtue practising is a lot harder.

Even for someone who spends a lot of time on Twitter, some of the criticism levelled at Thunberg is astonishing. It is, simultaneously, the most vicious and the most fatuous kind of playground bullying. The Australian conservative climate change denier Andrew Bolt called her “deeply disturbed” and “freakishly influential” (the use of “freakish”, we can assume, was not incidental.) The former UKIP funder, Arron Banks, tweeted “Freaking yacht accidents do happen in August” (as above.) Brendan O’Neill of Spiked called her a “millenarian weirdo” (nope, still not incidental) in a piece that referred nastily to her “monotone voice” and “the look of apocalyptic dread in her eyes”.

But who’s the real freak – the activist whose determination has single-handedly started a powerful global movement for change, or the middle-aged man taunting a child with Asperger syndrome from behind the safety of their computer screens?

And that, of course, is the real reason why Greta Thunberg is so triggering. They can’t admit it even to themselves, so they ridicule her instead. But the truth is that they’re afraid of her. The poor dears are terrified of her as an individual, and of what she stands for – youth, determination, change.

She is part of a generation who won’t be cowed. She isn’t about to be shamed into submission by trolls. That’s not actually a look of apocalyptic dread in her eyes. It’s a look that says “you’re not relevant”.

The reason they taunt her with childish insults is because that’s all they’ve got. They’re out of ideas. They can’t dismantle her arguments, because she has science – and David Attenborough – on her side. They can’t win the debate with the persuasive force of their arguments, because these bargain bin cranks trade in jaded cynicism, not youthful passion. They can harangue her with snide tweets and hot take blogposts, but they won’t get a reaction because, frankly, she has bigger worries on her mind.

That’s not to say that we should accept everything Thunberg says without question. She is an idealist who is young enough to see the world in black and white. We need voices like hers. We should listen to what she has to say, without tuning the more moderate voices of dissent out.

Why is Greta Thunberg so triggering? Because of what she represents. In an age when democracy is under assault, she hints at the emergency of new kind of power, a convergence of youth, popular protest and irrefutable science. And for her loudest detractors, she also represents something else: the sight of their impending obsolescence hurtling towards them.

joconnell@irishtimes.com
https://twitter.com/jenoconnell

https://web.archive.org/web/2019090...certain-men-1.4002264?localLinksEnabled=false
Found this thought-provoking indeed.

 

[JambledUpWords]

Very true. When you're a sperg, it can be easy to become obsessed to the point where you don't care much about anything else, and in Greta's case, she happens to be surrounded by adults (including her parents) who just can't help themselves but take advantage of that, I mean encourage her and also have the resources to do so. I suspect she's going to have a new breakdown sooner or later because of all the pressure (and it's not just because of the 'tism, it's not good for any sixteen-year-old to face so much pressure for a long period of time)

Once all the attention goes away and people start ignoring her again, she’ll probably be due for another massive meltdown. This level of fame is not sustainable. Another thing I predict is Greta going into a massive depression after the fawning from media and celebrities dries up. Autists are known for being resistant to change and this is no different (it will just be publicized instead of left a secret). If you think her mental state is questionable now, wait until people stop talking about her and her cause. She has autism, selective mutism, ADHD and is a vegan. She’s a ticking time bomb and it’s sad that instead of getting the intervention and care she needs, she’s being paraded around like a prized pig at a county fair.

 

[That Chris Guy]

So listening to naïve, handicapped kids is the future direction for combatting climate change now? For fuck's sake...

It's bad enough that society kid-gloves people with autism into believing they're real life fucking X-Men, but now you have empty-headed members of government propping her into a stance that goes far beyond her station, acting like she's the high priestess that will reveal the next Mayan Apocalypse. What a sad fucking joke.

 

[Recoil]

If you drank your kid into retardation before she was even born, why would you be so eager to parade her in front of the media?

 

[TowinKarz]

Guilty conscious?

 

[Claude Speed]

So listening to naïve, handicapped kids is the future direction for combatting climate change now? For fuck's sake...

It's bad enough that society kid-gloves people with autism into believing they're real life fucking X-Men, but now you have empty-headed members of government propping her into a stance that goes far beyond her station, acting like she's the high priestess that will reveal the next Mayan Apocalypse. What a sad fucking joke.

Apparently science says she is right, science also says there 100000 genders, science says being gay could save a species, science says it is right to act like a communist.....
....but the question is......When does science say it is possible to replace my hands with wolf paws and have three dicks instead of one???? Come on, have I asked for too much.

 

[Webby's Boyfriend]

Musk is a big post-scarcity believer. He calls himself an anarchist but he supports Socialist policies because like most anarchists he's too stupid to understand the difference.

Most anarchists don't understand anything, they're edgy teens (anarcho-communists) or basement-dwelling neckbeards (anarcho-capitalists) who like the cool symbol.

I read on her twitter page that she is aspie. She never smiles, she is young, yet looks like she is 30 and she has a mental disorder? She is the perfect avatar for the Left.

WTF looks like 30? If any, she looks like 13 or 10, or at least not remotely like a usual 16 year old lass.

 

[Rupin]

Most anarchists don't understand anything, they're edgy teens (anarcho-communists) or basement-dwelling neckbeards (anarcho-capitalists) who like the cool symbol.


WTF looks like 30? If any, she looks like 13 or 10, or at least not remotely like a usual 16 year old lass.

OK so we can agree that she does not look her age. But 10 or 13? Nah.

Let's let the forum decide though.


Here is Greta..

Now here is a 10 year old.

Here is a 13 year old...

Finally, we have a 30 year old...

Which one do you think she looks closest to, folks?

 

[Product Intervention]

OK so we can agree that she does not look her age. But 10 or 13? Nah.

Let's let the forum decide though.


Here is Greta.. View attachment 946470

Now here is a 10 year old.
View attachment 946472

Here is a 13 year old...
View attachment 946473

Finally, we have a 30 year old...
View attachment 946476


Which one do you think she looks closest to, folks?

How many pictures of ten, thirteen, and sixteen year old girls do you have on your hard drive?

 

[Rupin]

How many pictures of ten, thirteen, and sixteen year old girls do you have on your hard drive?

None, I got these off of google. Nice try though.

 

[Webby's Boyfriend]

None, I got these off of google. Nice try though.

Keep telling that yourself...

 

[Rupin]

Keep telling that yourself...

Grammar much?

 

[Webby's Boyfriend]

Grammar much?

Yo momma much, if she sees your image folder.

 

[ColtWalker1847]

I guess the real story here is how much environmentalists have pissed away their credibility, especially if they have to resort to hiding behind a child throwing an autistic tantrum. That and the seductive nature of post-truth.

I remember hearing about "peak oil" back in the 80s, and it hasn't happened yet. And yeah, maybe me reusing a few shopping bags won't amount to a fart in the wind. Fair enough. I'm still going to keep doing it, but I'm not going to look down my nose at people who don't either.

Unfortunately that's what the environmental movement is nowadays. All of the major items on the To Do list have been done (in the western world) and now it is just advancing unrelated political agendas and navel gazing.

I mean really, what does Greta Thunberg want me, Dynastier, to do? She cares so much about the environment, people are paying more attention to her than her message, well tell me her message. Is it "Raise awareness"? "Donate money?" "Vote democrat"? "Implement a carbon tax"?

Please, tell me, the science has been settled for decades, or so I'm told. So what do we do?

It's a solution (control over society via energy production and consumption) in search of a problem. GCC fits it perfectly.

Science doesn't tell you what to do. No amount of settling it will tell us what to do next. That is a value judgement and not something science can point you in one direction or another. Which is why them using "settled science" to push these initiatives is so off-putting. Shit like cheap plentiful energy being necessary to modern society and mitigating as we renew our infrastructure over the next 100 years isn't even entertained by these people. They want their solution and only their solution implemented. That their solution is a unworkable pipe dream with no hope of working for larger society and is going to create significant amounts of problems wrt trade, agriculture, and manufacturing. But that don't matter. They made a chart that says ambiguous scary thing might happen. Also, they will be the beneficiaries of that shit going down in flames (one of the privileges of being a wealthy upper-middle class first-worlder) so they don't care. They can buy their way out of problems as one of Earth's Self-Appointed Spokespeople. The middle class and lower class that will bear the burden, fuck them. They ruined the earth and had it coming. Those darn no-good capitalist consumers.

 

[Rupin]

Yo momma much, if she sees your image folder.

Ok, I’m gonna back out of this sperg slapfight because I have no need for any more private messages on my profile about your collection of toon pictures featuring an 11 year old duck girl. But um... you have fun with that.

 

[US Marine Hyde]

Either way, she doesn’t look like you would expect a 16 year old girl to look. Her face draws the eye because there’s something “off” about it.
She seems like an insufferable kid born to insufferable rich (alcoholic) parents, but I still feel bad for her that she’s being propped up as the figurehead for a meaningless “movement” that doesn’t seem to have any attainable goals beyond “help us, government” and getting kids and exceptionals a day off of school/work. Nobody’s going to remember her in a few years and who knows if she’s going to accomplish anything. Probably not anything good or productive, since she’s not organizing any kind of positive community movements that could do something concrete to help the environment. No picking up litter or carpooling here!

 

[Freddy Freaker]

Once all the attention goes away and people start ignoring her again, she’ll probably be due for another massive meltdown. This level of fame is not sustainable. Another thing I predict is Greta going into a massive depression after the fawning from media and celebrities dries up. Autists are known for being resistant to change and this is no different (it will just be publicized instead of left a secret). If you think her mental state is questionable now, wait until people stop talking about her and her cause. She has autism, selective mutism, ADHD and is a vegan. She’s a ticking time bomb and it’s sad that instead of getting the intervention and care she needs, she’s being paraded around like a prized pig at a county fair.

Calling it now. She'll commit suicide after the fame goes away and the suicide note they find, which will totally 100% have been written by her, will say she did it because we still haven't adopted the green new deal and therefore we're doomed unless we immediately switch to solar powered sea trains that serve the impossible burger. Then she'll really be the green Joan of Arc

 

[Spicy Tacos]

Once all the attention goes away and people start ignoring her again, she’ll probably be due for another massive meltdown. This level of fame is not sustainable. Another thing I predict is Greta going into a massive depression after the fawning from media and celebrities dries up. Autists are known for being resistant to change and this is no different (it will just be publicized instead of left a secret). If you think her mental state is questionable now, wait until people stop talking about her and her cause. She has autism, selective mutism, ADHD and is a vegan. She’s a ticking time bomb and it’s sad that instead of getting the intervention and care she needs, she’s being paraded around like a prized pig at a county fair.

Hasn’t she also attempted suicide already and had to spend some time in a hospital?

 

[Rupin]

Hasn’t she also attempted suicide already and had to spend some time in a hospital?

Where did you read about that?

 

[Jason "Qriist" Close]

So listening to naïve, handicapped kids is the future direction for combatting climate change now? For fuck's sake...

It's bad enough that society kid-gloves people with autism into believing they're real life fucking X-Men, but now you have empty-headed members of government propping her into a stance that goes far beyond her station, acting like she's the high priestess that will reveal the next Mayan Apocalypse. What a sad fucking joke.

When you are a 16 year old girl that's a bit different
AND have a religion forming around you
AND have Forbes writing an article saying that you have superpowers + are smarter than the seasoned adults around you, it's a little difficult to not join the X-Men, okay?

No One Seemed To Notice Greta Thunberg’s Critique Of The Green New Deal

"We cannot make 'deals' with physics," the Swedish teen activist said.

www.forbes.com

Apparently science says she is right, science also says there 100000 genders, science says being gay could save a species, science says it is right to act like a communist.....
....but the question is......When does science say it is possible to replace my hands with wolf paws and have three dicks instead of one???? Come on, have I asked for too much.

Juuuust in case you were being straight with the wolf paws comment: https://kiwifarms.net/threads/furry-fandom-and-drama-general.1102/post-5226576

 

[Spicy Tacos]

I was looking for a reference of Greta’s previous self harm when I noticed all this discussion on Reddit.

The top rated comments are about killing politicians and executives as well as destroying infrastructure.

As long as doing that saves the future, it’s ok. Bravo Greta and Company. /sneed

r/worldnews - Greta Thunberg warns world leaders that 'we will not let you get away with this' | Addressing the UN climate summit in NYC, she said: "This is all wrong. I shouldn't be up here. I should be back in school on the other side of the ocean. Yet you all come to us young people for hope. How dare you?"

91,062 votes and 13,649 comments so far on Reddit

www.reddit.com