Society

Resistance is fertile

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Even worse for our hopes for mass mobilisation, our current response suggests that, even were we all agreed that our crisis is real and urgent, we in our affluent democracies are not, as we like to imagine, free citizens who will easily resolve to combat an external enemy together. We are much more like nations already under occupation – by an enemy we prefer not to acknowledge but clearly evident all around us. Because the enemy is in our own desire to maintain as long as possible the status quo that is our lives today.

Superbugs in India – April 8

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– Guardian: Superbug gene rife in Delhi water supply
– WSJ: WHO Calls for Action on Superbugs
– India Tribune: Lancet study finds waterbugs in New Delhi
– Antibiotic resistance: Bacteria are winning the war
– Lancet: Dissemination of NDM-1 positive bacteria in the New Delhi environment and its implications for human health

Communications – A new narrative

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How do you tell a downstory? Downstories are hard to find in our culture. There are plenty of upstories that don’t work out that act like scary cautionary tales (if you don’t make it to the ball, you never get out of that fireplace and will always wear rags). But how do you go about telling the story of Transition, of the energy descent we have to make as individuals and as a people? How do you turn the coach back into a pumpkin and the princess back into someone who can tend a fire?

Turning storm water into productive water

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Today, cities face substantial barriers to effective water management due to the sheer extent of non-permeable surfaces such as pavement and concrete. During rain events, the main function of these impervious surfaces is to concentrate and dispose of water as quickly as it arrives, sending it to storm sewers where it inevitably ends up in creeks, rivers, lakes, and oceans. Not only is this poor water management, but unfiltered water can cause major damage to ecosystems!

Breaking news: Priam’s treasure returned to the Berlin Museum

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“Cassandra’s Legacy” is proud to present some breaking news about Priam’s treasure that was found by archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann in the late 1800s while excavating the site of the ancient city of Troy. The Treasure is well known for including such objects as “Helen’s Jewels” and other artifacts coming from the time of the siege of Troy as told by Homer in the Iliad. It had been removed from Berlin by the Red Army in 1945 and kept in Russia ever since. Now, after extended negotiations, we have confirmation that the treasure has been returned to the Berlin museum where it is being examined and studied.

Too much energy?

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Most discussions of energy and society assume without question that energy is subject to the “lottle” principle — if a little is good, a lot’ll be better, and there is no upper limit to the beneficial effect of increasing energy per capita. Maybe it’s time to take a second look at that widespread belief. Climbing aboard a train, the Archdruid gives it a shot.

Some fight back: review of Joe Bageant’s “Rainbow Pie”

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Nobody writes about class in America and about America’s unacknowledged class war like Joe Bageant. Dubbed the “Sartre of Appalachia,” Joe writes about America’s largest, yet invisible to most, class — 60 million poor, undereducated white laborers. These are the folks who as Joe notes are on the other side of “the shower line” — those who pull off their sweaty work clothes and take their showers after their back-breaking day’s physical labor as opposed to those who shower and dress far more finely before heading off to work.

(Joe Bageant died March 26, 2011.)

Tainter’s law: where is the physics?

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Joseph Tainter’s interpretation of the cause of the collapse of civilisations is that social structures generate negative returns when they become too complex (see graph). We could call this relationship as “Tainter’s law”. But what is it exactly that generates this behavior? In this post, I’ll try to make a simple model that explains the law.

How can we help make Transition happen? (Q&A at Skagit Human Rights Festival)

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One of the biggest challenges for Transition groups is to learn the skills of how to work effectively as a group in terms of having efficient meetings that are inclusive, enjoyable, and get a lot accomplished. Learning to work together effectively may be one of the most important things we do to prepare for peak oil, climate change, and economic instability.