# Something for Conservatives **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 15, 2018, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671 "2018-01-15T08:05:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/61 "2018-01-16T16:35:59Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Being smart is like being handsome - if you have to tell people you are, you ain’t. Then why does he keep telling people he’s old? Is he hoping someone will say; “Oh you’re not _that_ old!” ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/62 "2018-01-16T16:46:16Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > I’m old and I’m smart. Deal with it. cite please ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/63 "2018-01-16T16:48:56Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > cite please His post is his cite. Worthless though it may be. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/64 "2018-01-16T16:50:22Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > I’m old and I’m smart. Deal with it. Is that really you, Mr. President? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/65 "2018-01-16T17:32:15Z")
> [@anomalous1](#): > > Hey, I have an opinion just as you do. Lay off with the insults, please. By acting/typing that way you are becoming no better than your interpretation of me. Thanks. You’re laboring under the misapprehension that all opinions are created equal. Allow me to disabuse you of that notion. Reasonable people can disagree about reasonable things, but in this case your opinion is wrong and you should feel bad for having a wrong opinion. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/66 "2018-01-16T17:38:53Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > I’m old and I’m smart. Deal with it. I’m older and smarter. Deal with it. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/67 "2018-01-16T17:39:21Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > I’m old and I’m smart. Deal with it. Assumes facts not in evidence. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/68 "2018-01-16T17:50:50Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Assumes facts not in evidence. I’m sure he’s old. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/69 "2018-01-16T17:51:20Z")
So…reading all the cutesy-poo, five year old mentality posts to me in this thread…is there any doubt why I laugh at you people? Why do you find it so astounding that I do so, when you people post they way you do? You may now continue with your regularly scheduled childish behavior. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/70 "2018-01-16T17:52:27Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Half right. > [@Gyrate](#): > > Being smart is like being handsome - if you have to tell people you are, you ain’t. > [@Morgenstern](#): > > cite please > [@El\_Kabong](#): > > I’m older and smarter. Deal with it. > [@silenus](#): > > Assumes facts not in evidence. You can’t chisel your way through C’hump cement. It’s the dumbest substance known to man. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/71 "2018-01-16T17:53:07Z")
Clothy, keep leading with your chin. It’s good style. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/72 "2018-01-16T17:53:43Z")
> [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](#): > > Yeah, my wife almost doesn’t want to fuck him anymore. Well, somebody’s got to do it… ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/73 "2018-01-16T17:55:33Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Being smart is like being handsome - if you have to tell people you are, you ain’t. If you have to tell _yourself_, then you’re not smart enough even to know how not-smart you are. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/74 "2018-01-16T18:06:00Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > So…reading all the cutesy-poo, five year old mentality posts to me in this thread…is there any doubt why I laugh at you people? Why do you find it so astounding that I do so, when you people post they way you do? > > You may now continue with your regularly scheduled childish behavior. Some yo-yo on the Internet claims to be laughing at me for poorly-articulated reasons. Yeah, that really keeps me up at night. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/75 "2018-01-16T18:08:18Z")
> [@anomalous1](#): > > The argument I hear a lot (ad nauseum) is something along the lines of this; > > “200 some odd years of heavy industry and massive fossil fuel use, out of 4.5 Billion, and it is going to have that much of an effect?” > > I don’t really agree or disagree with it, it is just one I’ve seen quite a bit. > > What is your opinion of that argument? I would turn it around to say, 360 million years of carbon sequestration substantially undone over a period of just 200 years. How can that not have a huge effect? ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/76 "2018-01-16T18:19:43Z")
> [@anomalous1](#): > > A > The argument I hear a lot (ad nauseum) is something along the lines of this; > > “200 some odd years of heavy industry and massive fossil fuel use, out of 4.5 Billion, and it is going to have that much of an effect?” Quick events can have a massive effect. There have been at least 5 mass extinctions in the last 450 million years (probably more before that, but we didn’t have fossils from before the cambrian explosion 540 million years ago, I don’t think). In the last 450 million years, we’ve had a mass extinction event roughly every 100 million years. Right now we are in a sixth due to human activity. On earth’s history, it is probably a reasonable assumption to say that every ~100 million years or so, an event happens that kills virtually all life on earth. We may not know about the events before 450 million years ago because there were no fossils, or because bacteria are more resilient. But thats the universe we live in. A gamma ray can hit the earth and totally change it. A meteor can hit the earth. A supervolcano can explode. Lots of things can happen that will totally change the climate in just one day. Our 200 years of industry has altered the earth, but far less than it would be altered by one supervolcano or one meteor hitting the planet. That doesn’t mean our industry isn’t changing things. Some dramatic changes have happened too, but they took decades or centuries. Catastrophic methane release. Also yes the earth has existed for 4.5 billion years. But its climate has changed dramatically at times. There were times when the earth was literally hell (everything was on fire) and times when the entire earth was covered in ice. Times when there were giant insects and times when there were only tiny insects. Life has only been possible on the land for the last billion years due to the sun’s activity. In another billion years, life on land won’t be possible again and the only life will be in the oceans. As I mentioned, in the last 450 million years we’ve undergone 6 mass extinction events. Each time anywhere from 70-95% of all species on earth die. There are at least a dozen potential causes. > **[Extinction event](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extinction_event)** > > An extinction event (also known as a mass extinction or biotic crisis) is a widespread and rapid decrease in the biodiversity on Earth. Such an event is identified by a sharp fall in the diversity and abundance of multicellular organisms. It occurs when the rate of extinction increases with respect to the background extinction rate and the rate of speciation. Estimates of the number of major mass extinctions in the last 540 million years range from as few as five to more than twenty. These di In... Life is fragile. It can change in an instant due to a meteor attack, gamma ray burst, nearby star going supernova or supevolcano. Or it can change over decades and centuries due to methane release. Or it can change over eons due to single celled organisms giving off gases that change the atmosphere. Basically if you look at life’s history on earth, there are lots of examples where things can change quickly. The earth didn’t always look the way it does not, and mass extinctions are common in our history. Climate and the environment can change dramatically. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/77 "2018-01-16T18:33:51Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > So…reading all the cutesy-poo, five year old mentality posts to me in this thread…is there any doubt why I laugh at you people? Why do you find it so astounding that I do so, when you people post they way you do? > > You may now continue with your regularly scheduled childish behavior. My cats have coughed up things that could best you in a battle of wits. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/78 "2018-01-16T18:55:53Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Is that really you, Mr. President? That would explain a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/79 "2018-01-16T19:01:35Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > My cats have coughed up things that could best you in a battle of wits. I wish your cat could vote. It’s clearly more qualified than Clothy. ---
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2018, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671/80 "2018-01-16T20:26:56Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > I’m old and I’m smart. Deal with it. Whine shouldn’t be left out so long. It goes bad. You’re pretty much stupid vinegar at this point. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/something-for-conservatives/806671.md?page=5)