Society

History, meaning, and choice

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New Year’s Eve reflections by the Archdruid on the way that so many attempts to make sense of the predicament of industrial society start by accepting the modern world’s belief in its own historical importance. Does an alternative view provide a more useful basis for constructive action?

Why buy the cow when I’m giving milk away for free? The problem of newspapers

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May I speak for those who do things not for payment, but simply because they love them, or they are fascinated with them, or infuriated by them? Speaking as one of many people who began blogging not to compete with anyone, but because they simply care deeply about a subject, deeply enough that even the boring bits are fascinating, I can honestly say that there are things that no payday can ever fuel.

Transport – Dec 26

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Rail takes back seat as states target Obama stimulus for roads
Need a ride? Check your iPhone
Cheap seats, danger meet on illegal Manila trolleys
Rail efficiencies (much more is possible)

The moment of darkness

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I am a father, and I want my daughter to have a decent life in a strange time. I am in my 30s now, but I knew five of my great-grandparents, all born in the 19th century, and my daughter, if she is lucky, may live to see the 22nd. Her life might span humanity’s most important decades, and before she is even an adult, the world could grow much more difficult – energy shortages, food shortages, economic collapses and a Malthusian crush. I want her to be able to realize what is happening, and not to be bewildered by a domino line of solitary unthinkables.

Why dissensus matters

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What we think we can know about the future determines how we prepare for it. The speculative bubbles that have left rubble across the economic landscape offer a useful lesson about the difference between knowing what won’t happen, knowing what will happen, and knowing the kind of things that will happen.