Man, this is the most depressing thing I have read all day, and I already read the news.

But there isn't going to be some magical solution, where the exponential growth in consumption and waste that has considered continued for over 200 years will suddenly not even stop but turn around.

Very few people are going to give up their fancy standard of living today in order to prevent catastrophe two generations from now. My wife and I have tried: I have never owned a car, we have no kids, we have a plant-based diet, we don't fly, etc. etc. During that time, a friend of mine on Facebook bought his own plane - he has kids, too.

Don't get me wrong, I am extremely happy to have done some personal degrowth. (My voice recognition tried to convert "degrowth" to "growth", which says a lot.)

I feel each of us has to try, no matter what, because the stakes are so incredibly high. But I do not really believe that it will make a difference.

Hug your family, walk lightly on the earth, and try not to think about the horrors ahead of us too much.