Ice Age 2: Electric Bugaloo

So, we're here in Tokyo, and I am stuck in the hotel doing some school work for a couple of hours, and I'm watching The History Channel. A show comes on called "MegaDisasters: Mega Freeze," and I am immediately cynical; Aren't we supposed to be preparing for global warming? I better check it out- after all, it is "Violent Earth Week."
In the first ten minutes, I am BLOWN AWAY by what a hyperbolic "The Day After Tomorrow" piece of promotion work this show is. Apparently, it's going to get about 15-20 degrees colder "in the blink of an eye," changing our climate "like a light switch," resulting in a Northeastern U.S. and Western Europe that will be "a relic of what it once was." They use the uber-technical term "rapid climate change" to describe this, and list a "chain reaction of calamities" including Black Death, the American and French revolutions, canibalism, volcanic erruptions, the economic collapse of European countries (not named specifically, sorry), and more, all due to the weather dropping "a few degrees." Holy S!
Thankfully, we might only experience a temperature drop of only a few degrees- but with greater disasters! The graphic they show looks like the Sherwin-Williams logo, but with a can of "Decorator White" spilling over the top of the globe. Don't think you are safe in the south- you'll get floods, famine, hurricanes, and more. Get that boating license now, because this will all happen in "our lifetime," of course.
On a serious note, ahem... I am so frustrated by the climate change discussion. Which is it, we have brought ourselves to the brink of climate disaster, or we can change it by making minor lifestyle changes like driving hybrids? I just don't see how both are possible. Either we made a huge mess and need to make major changes accross the world to correct it, or it's not that big of a deal and we can affect the changes we do make with minor, simple changes like recycling and deciding what we want from the fride door before opening the door (an actual item from an Earth Day brouchure from our power company last year).
So, let's just clear up the confusion here, OK? I'm sure this blog attracts physicists, climate change experts, geologists, right? I'll take a Marine Biologist, if that's all we've got...anyone??