We will soon be extinct

Visit me Tuesday and find out why London will soon be submerged

HUMANITY IS ON course to wipe itself out in the very near future. Some people think of this as a bad thing.

If you can’t make up your mind, help is at hand. The world’s first pedal-powered movie is to be screened in cities across the world this week. I’ll be there.

The Age of Stupid, a sci-fi-style documentary about killer weather, has received rave reviews and inspired the entire British cabinet to sign a written pledge to change its ways. (Abolishing itself might be a good start.)

Film director Franny Armstrong is hoping that Asia and other parts of the world will avoid the catastrophic development mistakes that the West has made. (I wouldn’t count on it.)

The Age of Stupid (the movie’s name is a label for the current era, as seen from the future) has been nicknamed the pedal-powered movie because it was made on ultra-extreme clean-and-green principles.

The film’s UK premiere was powered by solar electricity, the film’s stars ditched their limousines to arrive on bicycles and even the popcorn machine was operated by pedal-power.

 

 

 

Yet despite setting themselves ludicrously high principles, the moviemakers have a huge hit on their hands. The film opened simultaneously on more screens than any film in UK cinema history, beating even Star Wars. It opens this week in more than 60 countries. (Find your nearest screening through www.ageofstupid.net.)

If you are reading this in Hong Kong folk, click here to find out about the one and only local showing, which is on Tuesday evening. 

It’s funny – in New York, they’ve invited Kofi Annon, former UN boss to introduce the film. In Hong Kong, humble old me will be doing the job. Come and say hello.

Made without help from the normal film industry, the whole fact that this movie exists is a miracle.

But to me, the most amazing thing about this movie is that it was made by my niece (pictured above), who I still think of as a small sticky child in nappies, although she has probably no longer needs diapers (except possibly at the bar on Friday nights).

 

This sci-fi style epic shows what the world is set to look like in 2055: there's no snow on the Alps, London is flooded, Australia is burning, and coastal cities such as Hong Kong and Singapore are submerged.

The main character is a historian who explains how the world ended up in such a state. He traces it back to a series of opportunities missed by the population of the planet in or around 2009. That’s right: it’s really about us, here, now.

Franny, who was born in the 1970s, said: “We were part of the MTV generation who were bombarded with advertisements telling us that the point of our existence was to shop more.”

She was suspicious about this. It seemed a bit easy compared to the important tasks previous generations had to do, such as saving the human race from tragic errors such as fascism, communism, and the wearing of platform shoes, wide ties, etc.

Then she visited a glacier and noticed that it was disappearing before her eyes. Suddenly she realized that her generation had a mission. “I feel quite relieved that it turns out that we DO have something important to do,” she said. “The people who came before us didn't know about climate change and the ones who come after will be powerless to stop it. So it's down to us.”

When she started filming, scientists worried that she was too pessimistic. Now they say she was not pessimistic enough. Humanity is set to make itself extinct in the very near future. As I say, some people think this may be a bad thing.

Comments

[Leo]

I guess most of us think that extinction of humanity is better for the whole world (considering the damage humanity has dealt throughout the years...it's practically IRREVERSIBLE anyway, so why not ending it sooner?)

Saving our environment? All we can do is slowing down the process, it's just like an AIDS patient on the edge of death and yet we keep him/her alive by drugging him/her...prolongs life, extends the suffering to a whole new level.

But, at least 1 thing I can be sure, Mother Nature can tolerate any kinds of sufferings, I guess giving her a hand and extending her execution day is worthy (though OUR HONG KONG GOVERNMENT ENJOYS killing it faster; somehow, I don't see the government is working hard enough to protect it).

[Jason]

We can do our part to help. The International Coastal Cleanup kicked off on Saturday, but people can still sign up or join a team for the next month and pick up the mountains of trash littering our beaches...

http://www.hkcoastalcleanup.org

[Newbie]

I don't like all the panic-mongering that climate change people engage in, or at least I used to not like it, but i've change my ways a bit recently. people even in my community, which is an incredinly wasteful one, do take much more care than they used to, they take their own bags to the supermarket, they debate landfills and incinerators, they campaign against new factories in greenbelt areas, et c etc. So all the drum beating is having a good effect. Even if the climate change people are wrong, the changes they are bringing into our communites are good ones.
I realy like the idea of livig in a city where the air is clean and the sky is blue and people tootle around in non-polluting vehicles,

[TS]

I wouldn't worry too much about humanity, it will survive. But it sure will be sad to see civilisation go.

[Samson]

I love stories like this, in which a young person with a camera goes out and then beats Star Wars at the box office. this is really the age of democracy. If you are smart and capable you can move mountains. Or perhaps I should say this is the age of the smart citizen. Everytime I read reports about the how the traditional media is suffering because of the internet etc, I feel sorry for real journos, but I feel good that rupert murdoch is suffering!
big guys, we don;t need you any more. This is the age of the smart, independent, wired citizen taking on the rupert murdochs and winning!

[Ellen]

If Franny Armstrong is your niece, you obviously come from a very creative family, mr jam

[Nury]

It's funny, no members of my immediate family have any genetic connection with me.

My kids I adopted, my wife I met at a museum, my niece I acquired through marriage.

I think I prefer this new definition of family, which is people who have chosen to align themselves with each other.

In which case you, Ellen (and Angela and leo and fardel and TS and Sej and farah etc) are my family

[sabrina]

"coastal cities are submerged"?!

Gosh. I can't imagine what would Indonesia look like if that really happened.

[fardel]

In the 50 s, there was a lot of commotion about the Bermuda triangle;
A few years ago, witnesses have seen a boat being swallowed by the sea in this area.
The cause?
Methane hydrates , found in huge quantities in the deep bottom of the ocean;
A gas which is ice frozen ,looks like ice block , but is lighter than air after it has melted, setting airplanes on fire.
If the depth of the ocean is warmed by 3 ° Celsius , this gas is freed , and will burn instantly , taking a lot of oxygene with it;
The process will stop only when oxygen stops feeding the fire;
When the fires stop, the planet cools down ;life will start again from sea creatures , saved by the water, like before;
If whales could speak, we would know that it has happened before;

Earth starts a new cycle starts again , without its parasites.

Old civilizations were respecting Earth, Sun, Moon like gods:
Those planets are ruling our lives.
But we destroyed the concept for more profitable gods.
Looks where we are now.

<< An archeologist , looking back 1000 years on our times which left no more trace than old concrete towers will write:
The civilization which disappeared circa 2000 was not smarter than the dinosaurs which disappeared before them.
Could build high towers but did not leave any testimony of the way they lived.we could not find any written trace of this period.>>

The good news ?
It will not last long,and we shall go together, all of us, the rich the poor the crooks and the saints in a giant barbecue
The bad news,?
the guy in the movie;

It's me

[fardel]

Nury
You seemed like a smart guy to me;
Didn't your mother teach you that , in order to have children of your own , you had to marry the girl she chose for you,
And here you go , picking up a wax woman in a museum?!?
Humm!

Anyway , they are your family, and thanks for including us in your family.

I have a proposal for our big family:
What about organizing a giant barbecue?

[auto loan rates]

Great post and should apprecaite your effort by fans.

[Samson]

Can I be considered part of your family too?

Thanks.

Now, dad, where's my pocket money for this month?

[farah]

awesome post Mr. Jam. i think it's really down to us to aware others of this climate change. i guess they dont realize that it's already on the move. we got more rains, it's hot in winter and winter is not too cold etc etc. respect to your niece for taking such a giant step.

thank you for considering me and all of us a part of your family. :)

[Leo]

Samson, you might want to regard him as "sugar papa", perhaps it'll be easier to get your pocket money!!!

Here something I hope for:
Sigh...ever since the climate changed...I found out I've developed a supersense in detecting little lifeforms around me (especially insects like moths, cockroaches, etc...)...I always find them first, giving me the chance to move away from those little creepy crawlies...

Perhaps all of us have developed something special under this extreme climatic changes? Maybe this is how Nautre has planned, granting us supernatural powers?

lol, if we do get some sort of super power, I guess we can all save the world by then? But at this point, human are powerless in saving the world...we've committed too many murders in the Nature...

I repent for my sins and crimes, but I wish not to go to heaven (Space), I rather rest in hell (Earth). If one day the world would end, human civilization will end, at least, let the animals have peace.

[Christy]

Leo, about heaven and hell -- now that reminds me of a book by Dean Koontz called The Taking.

The plot is another end-of-the-world-disaster and all these crazy alien creatures are plucking people from their homes and so on. The protagonists thought it was an alien invasion. On the story goes, and the interesting thing is, in the end, it was revealed that what happened was actually Judgement Day! Apparently a line in the Bible goes, Hell will come *unto* you, and it gave Dean Koontz an idea that Hell might not be below as we always visualize it is, but above!

[Harry]

"HUMANITY IS ON course to wipe itself out in the very near future. Some people think of this as a bad thing."
I don't think this a bad thing. Humans are one of the few species of living things whose disappearance from Earth would be a net benefit.
Unfortunately, it is not our planet to dispose of and we would not be alone in our extinction. The destruction of those with whom we share this planet would be a tragedy, the greatest in the known history of Earth. This prospect fills me with despair. And with disgust when I regard the insouciance with which people pollute, destroy and kill, or purchase the products of killing.
This, Nury, is not your usual, amusing subject. But thank you for bringing it up. One can only hope. I fear there may be little else left.

[Vince A]

What would it be like if we were becoming extinct?

- Sept 23, 2052. You've been checking diligently everyday, but Nury's site has had no new article for 43 years. You'll check again tomorrow.

- Also, no new comments have been posted for decades, so you re-read and re-read fardel's last comment: "Enjoying being station manager of airport in the sunny Himalayas".

- You follow the last remaining Tweeter left on earth - a monk who tweets only once every 7 years. (Latest post: "Noticed something very odd.")

- You blog. No one visits your blog. Yet Alexa ranks it as the top website on earth in terms of traffic.

- You even wish your anti-virus would say 'New virus found!' or 'New update found!'

- No one corrects your Wikipedia entries anymore.

[Christy]

Vince your posts are usually really witty but this one makes me feel like crying

[Leo]

Christy, thanks for the book review!

I don't know, if being abducted by aliens is like hell, I don't mind being taken...too cruel anywhere on earth...

how many people must die till peace will come? I dare not to imagine...

How many years will come before we all unite and save earth? Seems to be never...

Sigh...the world is falling apart and yet human can't unite and face it together as whole...Extinction seems to be the righteous judgement, fair and square...

Well, I think the very first sign that this world will be saved is that when China Government ceases spying and regulating the freedom of press and media...and the 2nd sign is that China Government will setup something like ICAC to fight against corruption (The only reason I could think of that will explain why no China Governor would dare to set ICAC in China up, is that ALL THE CHINA GOVERNORs have been corrupted with briberies all the time...which indicate that China will never have a righteous government).

[May]

I agree with Fardel's suggestion to organise a giant BBQ

Nury, girl's point of view is that, men with :-
kindness = handsome
hardworking = charming
sense of humor + creative mind = knowledgeable
AND you seem to possess all the above characters. Congratulation to your wife and your kids having such a husband and dad with good genes!!! and your kids, with your good family education, will soon become a Beauty Queen...

[sej]

Uncle, a very sobering article today. And a very big congratulations to your niece.

I would however like to point out what I feel is a very significant failing with a very large number of people’s thinking.

How can we think ourselves apart from nature? We are I believe a very fundamental component.

As we cannot separate ourselves from nature, any damage we are doing to it, we are doing to ourselves. The entities of both nature and ourselves are so tightly intertwined if you remove one you fundamentally change the other – whether for better or for worse is irrelevant.

Hence, all these groups trying to clean up the world, I feel, are all fighting a losing battle, unless there is a major paradigm shift.

[Paul]

Nury - enjoyed the post - and amazing the movie will be shown in HK only once! Could we arrange another viewing at the PolyU theatre? Also a bit of publicity would be useful for the film.

[Another "kid"]

I'm an 80's kid and I've only one thing to say about this: Hypocrites.

in the 80's there were already reports on the hole in the ozone layer, and nobody did anything. Neither did they care.

Scientists had already foreseen all these based on melt rates of the polar icecaps. But like the tsunami, what did corporate and political powers care about raving bookworm nerds?

I think I saw a documentary about somewhere in Central Park, there's a line on a sign that says "Sea level will reach this line in 2041" and still nobody cared.

Forget it, I'm just another "kid" what do I know? So says the older folks until it's too late. And my future generations will blame them.

[Another "kid"]

Few zillion years ago:
the planet was created

Few trillion years ago:
life on earth

few million years ago:
Dinosaurs

Few thousand years ago:
Civilization

2,000 yrs ago:
advancement of science, religion

100 yrs ago:
Industrial age

30 yrs ago:
Hole in the Ozone layer, polar icecaps melting

20yrs ago:
Global Warming, El Nina, El Nino

10yrs ago:
Glacier meltdowns

few years ago:
Hurricane Katrina, Tsunami, Earthquakes.

look at how fast we're killing ourselves.

[TS]

Another "kid",
Already in the seventies it was realised that the CFCs, used in aerosols and refrigeration, had the potential to break down the ozone layer. In consequence CFCs was banned in aerosols in by US, Canada and Norway 1978.

In 1985 a report revealed a thinning of ozone layer at polar caps, the response was to phase out all use of CFCs and similar compounds, a process that was completed in 1996.

Only the mass media was caught up in climate change relating to the depletion of the ozone layer. Climate change would be minimal compared to the real problem, which was the devastating effects of increased UV radiation that can damage crops, animals and humans.

The problem was recognised and acted upon.

I don't approve of scaremongering, but climate change is a serious threat to human civilisation (yes, I see the irony in a civilisation being threatened by itself).

You should have some trust in humans, the problems are evident and people are coming around to change their lifestyles.
Despite all the laws a government can pass, it's still up the the general population to pick up the ball and keep it in the air.

[climate change and energy efficiency]

Stop pollution and save human life. Control global warming tips very effective so really I regard you thanks

[Modelle milano]

Very informative and useful book, nice concept about the global warming and its related terms, Thanks for giving this descriptive blog.