I oppose the death penalty and have voted against its reinstitution in Massachusetts The death penalty wouldn’t make Massachusetts one bit safer. People who commit awful crimes are uniformly people who have little regard for the consequences of their actions — they will not be deterred by the threat of death. Also, as an experienced …
Author Archives: Will Brownsberger
Alewife traffic issues
Six months ago, I shared with you some thoughts about traffic in the Alewife area. Here’s an update.
What is the carbon level we need to stabilize at?
To stop making the problem worse, we need to stabilize CO2 levels in the atmosphere — we need to stop putting out more CO2 than can be absorbed naturally. Global warming is driven by the cumulative total amount of CO2 we have put into the atmosphere less cumulative natural absorption.
What risk levels are associated with different levels of global warming?
2.0 degrees from pre-industrial levels — 1 to 1.5 from todays level — is a ceiling that some world organizations have viewed as troubling, but livable.
How do emissions breakdown by country?
On a straight carbon dioxide emission basis, the United States accounted for 24.0% of emissions, highest in the world, and was 5th highest per capita in 2000 (only exceeded by Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Bahrain).
How well are the European nations doing at reducing carbon?
European nations have suceeded in achieving a slight reduction in carbon emissions by switching from coal to gas for power generation. Overall, their energy use is actually increasing.