--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It has become very difficult for anyone…" description: "\"It has become very difficult for anyone to argue that observed global warming is natural variability. We have good reason for being able to say that th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/james-hansen-7143_able_it-has-become-very-difficult-for-anyone_1778457.jpg" --- # It has become very difficult for anyone to argue that… ![“It has become very difficult for anyone to argue that observed global warming is natural variability. We have good reason for being able to say that the world will be warmer by about a quarter of a degree in the next decade. It's the same reason we had 10 years ago when we said that the 1990s…” quote by James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/james-hansen-7143_able_it-has-become-very-difficult-for-anyone_1778457.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/james-hansen-7143_able_it-has-become-very-difficult-for-anyone_1778457.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22c/james-hansen-7143_able_it-has-become-very-difficult-for-anyone_1778457.jpg) > “It has become very difficult for anyone to argue that observed global warming is natural variability. We have good reason for being able to say that the world will be warmer by about a quarter of a degree in the next decade. It's the same reason we had 10 years ago when we said that the 1990s would be warmer than the 1980s: The planet is out of equilibrium.” [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human activities are driving climate change, making the planet warmer beyond natural cycles. **In simple terms:** Human-caused warming is real and measurable. Key Takeaway Recognize and act on climate risks. Themes climate change science policy environment Mood concerned urgent Type scientific policy When to use this quote - government policy - public awareness - business planning - education - personal lifestyle choices Key Concepts anthropogenic warming equilibrium disruption temperature trends Questions to Reflect On - How can societies reduce emissions quickly? - What policies best protect vulnerable populations? A Different Perspective Political opposition may downplay urgency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Able](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/able/) [Arguing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arguing/) [Climate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate/) [Decades](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decades/) [Degrees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/degrees/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Equilibrium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/equilibrium/) [Global warming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/global-warming/) [Natural](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural/) [Natural Variability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural-variability-1840659/) [Next](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next/) [Planets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/planets/) [Quarters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quarters/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Variability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/variability/) [Warmer 1980S](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warmer-1980s-1840660/) [Warming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warming/) [Warming Natural](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warming-natural-1840658/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Would be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would-be/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Years ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-ago/) ## Related quotes > [What I think is this: Man is responsible for a PART of global warming. MOST of it is still natural.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-kukla/what-i-think-is-this-man-is-responsible-for-a-part-of-global-warming/) [George Kukla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-kukla/) > [Based on the laws of physics, the effect on temperature of man's contribution to atmospheric CO2 levels is minuscule and indiscernible from the natural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-scotto/based-on-the-laws-of-physics-the-effect-on-temperature-of-man-s/) [Robert L Scotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-l-scotto/) > [Global warming is part of natural cycle and there's nothing we can actually do to stop these cycles. The world is now facing spending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bellamy/global-warming-is-part-of-natural-cycle-and-there-s-nothing-we-can/) [David Bellamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bellamy/) > [Our analysis shows that, for the extreme hot weather of the recent past, there is virtually no explanation other than climate change. The deadly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/our-analysis-shows-that-for-the-extreme-hot-weather-of-the-recent/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [The five-year mean global temperature has been flat for the last decade, which we interpret as a combination of natural variability and a slow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/the-five-year-mean-global-temperature-has-been-flat-for-the-last-2/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [Global warming has already triggered a sea level rise that could reach from 6 metres (19.69 ft) to 25 metres (27.34 yards).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/global-warming-has-already-triggered-a-sea-level-rise-that-could/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [Global warming isn't a prediction. It is happening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/global-warming-isn-t-a-prediction-it-is-happening/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [Scientists will say we can't blame global warming for any single event. In a sense that's right, but the fact that the frequency and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/scientists-will-say-we-can-t-blame-global-warming-for-any-single/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [“Perception can be one-sided or variant: "Glass half empty or half full." There usually is more than one way of perceiving. Thoroughly check your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-f-hodge/perception-can-be-one-sided-or-variant-glass-half-empty-or-half-full/) [T.F. Hodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-f-hodge/) > [Never, never, never think - that's one lesson you should have in life. Never think that lack of variability is stability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/never-never-never-think-that-s-one-lesson-you-should-have-in-life/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [There are various non-statistical tools that have been typically developed by lean companies, notably by Toyota for minimizing variability in production, such as standardization,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masaaki-imai/there-are-various-non-statistical-tools-that-have-been-typically/) [Masaaki Imai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masaaki-imai/) > [“Experiences with finite variability become less engaging because they eventually become predictable. Businesses with finite variability are not inferior per se, they just operate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nir-eyal/experiences-with-finite-variability-become-less-engaging-because-they/) [Nir Eyal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nir-eyal/) > [The modern joint stock firm is the outcome of innumerable decisions made by individual entrepreneurs, owners and managers. For these decision makers the choices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-d-chandler-jr/the-modern-joint-stock-firm-is-the-outcome-of-innumerable-decisions/) [Alfred D. Chandler, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-d-chandler-jr/) > [The facts of variability, of the struggle for existence, of adaptation to conditions, were notorious enough; but none of us had suspected that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-facts-of-variability-of-the-struggle-for-existence-of-adaptation/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Nature will eventually do what nature has always done. It will respond in a self-stabilizing manner over the long term with moderate variability over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-h-sununu/nature-will-eventually-do-what-nature-has-always-done-it-will-respond/) [John H. Sununu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-h-sununu/) ## More by James Hansen > [Talking nice about sun and wind and green jobs is just greenwash.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/talking-nice-about-sun-and-wind-and-green-jobs-is-just-greenwash/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [What is frustrating people, me included, is that democratic action affects elections but what we get then from political leaders is greenwash.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/what-is-frustrating-people-me-included-is-that-democratic-action/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [The five-year mean global temperature has been flat for the last decade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/the-five-year-mean-global-temperature-has-been-flat-for-the-last/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [What makes tar sands particularly odious is that the energy you get out in the end, per unit carbon dioxide, is poor. It's equivalent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/what-makes-tar-sands-particularly-odious-is-that-the-energy-you-get/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [We are on the precipice of climate system tipping points beyond which there is no redemption.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/we-are-on-the-precipice-of-climate-system-tipping-points-beyond-which/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [Jail threats did not dissuade Martin Luther King - and intergenerational justice is a moral issue of comparable magnitude to civil rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/jail-threats-did-not-dissuade-martin-luther-king-and/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [The United States did not sign Kyoto, yet its emissions are not that different from the countries that did sign it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/the-united-states-did-not-sign-kyoto-yet-its-emissions-are-not-that/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [The five-year mean global temperature has been flat for the last decade, which we interpret as a combination of natural variability and a slow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/the-five-year-mean-global-temperature-has-been-flat-for-the-last-2/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [Rising carbon price is essential to 'decarbonize' the economy - to remove the nation towards the era beyond fossil fuels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/rising-carbon-price-is-essential-to-decarbonize-the-economy-to-remove/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [Policy decisions on climate change are being deliberated every day by those without full knowledge of the science, and often with intentional misinformation spawned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/policy-decisions-on-climate-change-are-being-deliberated-every-day-by/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [ Imagine a giant asteroid on a direct collision course with Earth. That is the equivalent of what we face now \[with climate change\], yet… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/imagine-a-giant-asteroid-on-a-direct-collision-course-with-earth-that/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [The most difficult task, phase-out over the next 20-25 years of coal use that does not capture COâ‚‚, is Herculean, yet feasible when compared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/the-most-difficult-task-phase-out-over-the-next-20-25-years-of-coal/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [As species are exterminated by shifting climate zones, ecosystems can collapse, destroying more species.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/as-species-are-exterminated-by-shifting-climate-zones-ecosystems-can/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [I think we have a very brief window of opportunity to deal with climate change... no longer than a decade, at the most.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/i-think-we-have-a-very-brief-window-of-opportunity-to-deal-with/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) > [The climate system is being pushed hard enough that change will become obvious to the man in the street in the next decade.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hansen/the-climate-system-is-being-pushed-hard-enough-that-change-will/) [James Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) [Explore all 94 James Hansen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hansen/) ## More Able quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. 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I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. 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