Calculating Port Dangers - 2

rightward view of a manfolk

There are short works and long works that get into the knowledge of the beginnings of seaports around the world.

But, since the context of this Dredd Blog series is not when they began in ancient times, instead the context is when, according to their age, they must be considered to be endangered.

That contextual beginning in this sense starts with the Industrial Revolution circa 1750, so I am using 1800 as the beginning year of global warming induced climate change because it gives a 50 year span of time for coal burning  to begin to make changes.

While there are tide gauge stations that began to measure sea level prior to 1800 at a few locations, I chose that 1800 date for this series as the earliest beginning date for tide gauge monitoring.

One reason for such considerations, especially on a scale we can now consider much more broadly, is:

"Men have brought their powers of subduing the forces of nature
to such a pitch that by using them they could now very easily exterminate one another to the last man. They know this——hence arises a great part of their current unrest, their dejection, their mood of apprehension. [p. 39]"

(MOMCOM's Mass Suicide & Murder Pact - 5, quoting Sigmund Freud, founder of psychoanalysis). In other words, this is a series about a global disorder caused by the mental impact of global warming induced climate change.

But not just that alone, it is also the concept of a therapy from beginning to cure,  which Sigmund Freud back then said needed to be developed:

"If the evolution of civilization has such a far reaching similarity with the development of an individual, and if the same methods are employed in both, would not the diagnosis be justified that many systems of civilization——or epochs of it——possibly even the whole of humanity——have become neurotic under the pressure of the civilizing trends? To analytic dissection of these neuroses, therapeutic recommendations might follow which could claim a great practical interest. I would not say that such an attempt to apply psychoanalysis to civilized society would be fanciful or doomed to fruitlessness. But it behooves us to be very careful, not to forget that after all we are dealing only with analogies, and that it is dangerous, not only with men but also with concepts, to drag them out of the region where they originated and have matured. The diagnosis of collective neuroses, moreover, will be confronted by a special difficulty. In the neurosis of an individual we can use as a starting point the contrast presented to us between the patient and his environment which we assume to be normal. No such background as this would be available for any society similarly affected; it would have to be supplied in some other way. And with regard to any therapeutic application of our knowledge, what would be the use of the most acute analysis of social neuroses, since no one possesses power to compel the community to adopt the therapy? In spite of all these difficulties, we may expect that one day someone will venture upon this research into the pathology of civilized communities. [p. 39]"

(ibid, emphasis added;  cf. Global Mental Disorders; NIH). So, let's move on the the considerations of two types of reactions to 'analytic dissection of these neuroses, therapeutic recommendations ... which could claim a great practical interest'.

Regarding seaports, 'practical interest' means efficient ways to deal with the sea level change dangers to their activities. 

As with all neuroses one reaction is 'denial' :

"Denial is a type of defense mechanism that involves ignoring the reality of a situation to avoid anxiety. Defense mechanisms are strategies that people use to cope with distressing feelings. In the case of denial, it can involve not acknowledging reality or denying the consequences of that reality ... Denial was first described by the famed psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, who described it as refusing to acknowledge upsetting facts about external events and internal ones, including memories, thoughts, and feelings."

(Denial as a Defense Mechanism, emphasis added). This version of potential reactions comes in at least two varieties: partial denial and complete denial.

Although there is some complete denial out there (We're #1, Denial Quarters), at this time the most popular form as it relates to seaports is partial denial (U.S. Supreme Court Strikes Down Chevron Doctrine—What You Need to Know).

Closing Comments

The list of 'largest' or 'busiest'  seaport changes from year to year is because the tonnage of annual shipments changes for various reasons (List of busiest ports by cargo tonnage).

The most prominent country in the list of top seaports is consistently China.

So, today's post let's take a look at the tide gauge data from China.

The appendix contains tide gauge data from each major port in China both individually and combined (Appendix China).

The indications are that Chinese ports are not in as much danger as some other countries because they have more ports in the top 10 or 20 than any other country (cf. Top 50 Ports).

So, while one Chinese port is going through a major upgrade as a reaction to sea level change, the other Chinese ports can absorb some of the volume from that port which is being upgraded.

The next post in this series is here, the previous post in this series is here.

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