Real adaptation is as politically tough as real mitigation, but much more expensive and not as effective in reducing future misery - Rhetorical adaptation, however, is a political winner. Too bad it means preventable suffering for billions.

We basically have three choices: mitigation, adaptation and suffering. We're going to do some of each. The question is what the mix is going to be. The more mitigation we do, the less adaptation will be required and the less suffering there will be.

That's the pithiest expression I've seen on the subject of adaptation, via John Holdren, now science advisor.  Sometimes he uses "misery," rather than "suffering."

I'm going to start a multipart series on adaptation — in honor of the fifth...