Let's not forget the very real phenomenon in 1999 of many assuming the world ends in 2000 (some shadow of that again in 2012 with the Mayan calendar). It did not happen. In fact, whatever happens, life finds a way...
In 1999 and 2012, the more research you did the more obvious it was there was nothing to worry about. Now, the more research I do the more worried I get.
I'm not a climate scientist but I majored in physics and like to think I'm not completely ignorant. The IPCC reports have a lot of systemic nudges towards underplaying risks, as part of attaining consensus.
Yeah, this is a real problem. Scientists closest to studying climate change phenomenon are falling into despair. IPCC reports also systematically shy away from considering potential feedback loops like Arctic methane. Plotting IPCC predictions against reality for the past few decades, we've been consistently hitting the high end of the predictions.
20 years ago there was room for doubt. I was out there in the trenches arguing against global warming, because I was, in retrospect, a denialist. Now, frankly, I'm terrified. We are in real trouble.
