there is no doubt earth is a complex system and any variety of brakes and so on likely exist ... although the word "brakes" in this application seems a bit value laden or at least anthrocentric.
In other words, what is the norm to which one breaks against?
There does seem to be some dampeners to change, but the geological record is pretty clear that the planet tends towards significant change, usually slow, occasionally rapid and that dampeners are easily amplification circuits when the mood so strikes.
Given that the oceans in many ways underpin life, what happens there is of consequence (duh). Acidification certainly kills many things. More atmospheric CO2 is more ocean CO2 (carbonic acid, kinda) and more CO2 (not really CO2 at this point but carbonate, bicarbonate and carbonate salts often precipitate by life e.g. oyster shells, diatoms etc) ... so acidification is a big concern. But on that there is a "brake" it seems the Revelle effect, equiliibrium between carbonate, bicarbonate etc has a push back effect driving back against net solubility CO2 such that dumping it into the air does not follow a linear dumping it into the ocean result. But, if one gets warmer at the same time, thermoclines become more stable, deep ocean sinking goes off, presumably raising surface levels, but that would increase the Revell effect giving for more push back, and so while some argue the ocean is a sink that will buffer temp changes, the ocean will push back, temp will exacerbate thermocline stratification, around and around ...
its easier to come up with runaway trains than it is to come up with well regulated trains,and the geological record seems to support the notion that the earth is perfectly happy to run away in any direction a rather unpleasant amount.
It seems to me a person has to do something with their time before they die, and it seems perfectly sensible that coming up with new cool energy sources is as fulfilling as maniacal wealth accumulation, spreading a religion of ones choosing, or re-reading Dickens. I can't see how it would be the end of human fun as we know it to give it a break on the fossil fuels and play in a different direction.
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