Originally posted by gouldy
And nothing of value was lost.
Somebody's clearly never been to Yellowstone. It is one of the most beautiful places on Earth.
Also, in the wake of this disaster, it is likely that most of the world's roller coasters would be shut down for months, or even years.
Air travel would be nearly impossible anywhere in the world.
Finally, average global temperatures would fall about 10 degrees, and take up to a decade to return to normal. Here is what a 1.3 degree drop can cause:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_Without_a_Summer
So, if that little drop caused famine worldwide, imagine a 10 degree drop. You cannot comprehend the scale of this disaster. Nothing like it has occurred in recorded history. The best analogy is a nuclear war, just without the radiation. The last eruption like this is believed to have killed more than half of all humans alive at the time.
In modern times, famines resulting from the eruption would likely collapse governments and lead to riots and wars, and most people in the developed world would not have the skills to survive as hunter-gatherers. I would guess that the final death toll from a Yellowstone eruption would lie somewhere in the billions.
Any questions?