[onlooker]

I tell them that Guy McPherson is an optimist and it is time to go camping.

At least, the latter part, I am truthful.

Didn't you mean to say he is a pessimist.

[dohboi]

I want to emphasize T's point above: "Getting from here to there is going to cause massive changes in weather patterns which will cause crop failures in many if not most places. That will kill many more of the 8 Billion humans on the planet than the wet bulb temperature problem in my estimation"

I agree that massive crop failure will hit first and hardest. The above35Cwbt thing, while it will start killing people soon in some places (and of course you don't have to get fully to 35wbt to get a pretty good death toll) will not kick in in earnest till probably the second half of the century at the earliest. What I consider conservative estimates have ag crashing well below sustainable levels before 2050 and that will indeed wipe out a good portion of the planet's human population (and probably lots of other animals and plants, as more and more humans 'head to the hills' to get as much food and fuel as they can get in whatever form it takes).

....

On another side of this cheery topic, perhaps we can just tell them that the Singularity that is soon upon us will solve everything, one way or another?

"Fully functional quantum computing will be practicable in about twelve years. This will have a major impact on both AI and society":

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2979731/ ... earch.html

"A fully functioning quantum computer is still twelve years off, according to Intel, but the company is already plowing research funding into the field."

(Thanks to ASLR at neven's site for this link and text.)