It’s been postulated by some that the Internet is “the great equalizer” in the world today - allowing anyone (with access) to articulate their opinion for the world to see.  The result has been an medium that is growing, offers a wide diversity of viewpoints, and comes with, like most things in life, good and bad.

We’ve been nothing short of amazed at the commentary running across the web related to the recent report from the University of Utah regarding the recent fluctuations in the Yellowstone caldera’a floor.  Issues related to our environment tend to draw comments out of some of the more “unique” individuals out there - here are some stunning insights from this new breed of “earth science specialist”……

As Bush deficits, peak oil, and global warming are all hoaxes perpetuated by the effeminette liberal elite so that they can raise our taxes, I’m going to have to assume that all this talk of “Calderas” and “Yellowstone National Park” and “The Associated Press” is a bunch of made-up hoowie used to sell more of Al Gore’s movie tickets and books.  Nice try, John. But we’re all a little smarter than that around here.

Just check out Super Volcano or Mega Volcano or whatever it was on Mega Disasters. This is something I’ve been following for a while especially once I learned that one of our largest national parks is pretty much a giant gash in the earth that is presently scarred over so to speak. That and the fact that if it did decide to go it would take most of the country with it followed by the rest of the world, albeit more slowly.

I’m glad I got to visit Yellowstone before it became a molten lake of fire.

No. Prevailing winds would make the midwest uninhabitable in short order. The Pacific Northwest would actually be the last place on the globe affected by it.

Supposedly when Yellowstone goes everything for about 800 miles radius from the center will be instantly vaporized, and the plume of ash covers the entire planet for around 100 years. Few multicellular organisms survive this 100 year cooling period. Lucky for me I am only about 90 miles from the caldera so my death will be quick and painless. Oh and everyone in the US would be killed instantly by the shockwave caused by the rapidly expanding air, ie hot magma hitting cold air.

Three states would basically look post-nuclear, the midwest would probably end up buried under a thick layer of white-hot debris and flaming ash would rain on the rest of the eastern US. Stratospheric debris would come down pretty much wherever, and the global particulate load would make Krakatoa look like a chili fart. I’m not sure who would win the greenhouse warming vs. particulate cooling contest, but even a stalemate won’t do us any favors.  At least that’s how I understand it.

Models predict Yellowstone would dwarf Krakatoa and that everything you just said pretty much would occur. The amount of matter ejected into the atmosphere by the initial eruption would be enough to cloud, and thus cool the earth into a mini-ice age. Further the resultant ash would be on the order of several feet thick, very fine but very heavy. The blast itself would wipe out most of the states in the surrounding area and have immediate effects within several hundred miles.

Food production would indeed be halted in the midwest as the ground would be covered in ash, the sulfur in the atmosphere mixing in condensation would result in acid rain further killing crops. The death of plant life would immediately affect the food chain all the way up and this would, within months, affect the entire world.

It would also take a very large chunk of the human population of the world with it. Needless to say Katrina, by comparisson, was a spring shower and Humanity is not equipped to deal with a disaster of Yellowstone proportions.

I have only one suggestion for those of you left behind after Yellowstone does its thing, though: footie jammies. The nights are going to be profanely cold for a few years…

Can we pump the magma and have it power our cars? Some Montana politician is sitting on a corn ethanol-like goldmine.

I hope that people who camp in Yellowstone are really careful about where they hammer in their tent pegs.

For what it’s worth, I’ve been hearing about the bubble beneath Yellowstone for at least five years.

OMG! FIVE YEARS CLOSER TO DOOMSDAY! RUN! RUUUUUUN

yes, he did blame the volcano on george bush.

It would take a team of striking Hollywood script writers weeks to write this kind of commentary - just another sample of great minds at work out there…..

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