> [People think we] couldn’t possibly know what the consequences would be.

> It’s not true, though. We have quite a precise understanding of what happens

Ah, man, the hubris to see a long history of human interventions with unexpected knock on consequences, and think, “but this time we know.” It’s comical, even. We’re talking about an intervention large enough to reverse decades of climate change, of course there will be unintended consequences.

In the end, however, we will likely have to do something, and this might be the solution with the best-mapped consequences (and thus fewest unforeseen consequences).

Yep at this point we just have to do whatever seems least risky. It's not like we have a pristine planet. We have to balance the unknown consequences of phytoplankton (and other mitigations) against the known and unknown consequences of a >50% higher CO2 level and >1.4C higher global temperature.

I look forward to the time when we do something, because it will change the psychological landscape from a quagmire of guilt, hopelessness, and discouragement, into a wide open tundra of shapeless fear and tension, where anything seems possible.