The Gift of the Maya
As we approach the winter solstice and the end of one long count and the beginning of another, our understanding of the Mayan world is rapidly being transformed by new knowledge.
Year: 2012
Five possible energy surprises for 2013
I’ve tried to think of some developments which conventional wisdom has judged rather unlikely and which would therefore significantly alter our lives and perceptions should they occur–precisely because we are not prepared for them. I don’t think any of the following is likely to happen in 2013. But, any one of them would certainly surprise most people and most experts and upset the plans and expectations of many governments, businesses, investors and consumers.
Fiscal Cliff: Nowhere to go But Down
Most folks in Washington and on Wall Street are desperate to avoid the fiscal cliff. That’s because the automatic spending cuts and tax increases that would take effect if we go over the edge would mean an end to recovery and a resumption of economic contraction.
Commentary: ASPO-USA Meets with DOE Officials — Some Things We Learned
On Monday, December 17, representatives of the Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Gas USA (ASPO-USA) met with senior officials of the Energy Information Administration (EIA), including Administrator Adam Sieminski, and staff from other offices within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The meeting was arranged following a letter that ASPO-USA sent to Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Sieminski after his appointment as EIA administrator earlier this year. The letter outlined key questions and concerns regarding oil and gas information that EIA provides.
Peak oil notes – Dec 28
A mid-week update.
EU must drastically reduce its oil imports
The Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet has now, 2012 December 23, published my article "EU must drastically reduce its oil imports". In Swedish, "EU måste skära ner sin oljeimport drastiskt". Michael Lardelli has made a great translation of the article and I have added some relevant photos and graphs. Every week you are around 1000 persons that read my blog and I which you all Merry Christmas and a happy new year.
The Beginning of the World
Last Friday was, as I’m sure most of my readers noticed, an ordinary day. Here in the north central Appalachians, it was chilly but not unseasonably so, with high gray clouds overhead and a lively wind setting the dead leaves aswirl; wrens and sparrows hopped here and there in my garden, poking among the recently turned soil of the beds. No cataclysmic earth changes, alien landings, returning messiahs, or vast leaps of consciousness disturbed their foraging. They neither knew nor cared that one of the great apocalyptic delusions of modern times was reaching its inevitable end around them.
Peak oil review – Dec 24
A weekly update, including: -Oil and the global economy -The Middle East -Troubles in Iraq -Quote of the week -The Briefs
The Outlook for Steady State Economics in 2013
The Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy (CASSE) has been the leading organization in advancing the steady state economy as a policy goal for nearly ten years. Maybe that’s not saying much, because CASSE has been the only organization focused on advancing the steady state economy. But times, they are a-changin’.
Conservation Not Technology will be our Saviour – Chris Martenson – Part 2
We are in the midst of an amazing energy boom, but by sweeping the idea of peak oil under the rug we are ignoring a significant fact: the relationship between hydrocarbon reserves and flow rates are not the same as they used to be—reserves have increased but flow rates are not as high or sustainable.
There’s no such thing as energy independence in our globalized, fossil-fueled world
Anyone who tells you that energy independence can be achieved based on globally traded commodities such as oil, coal and natural gas is either trying to mislead you or doesn’t understand the structure of energy markets. If any country really wants to be truly energy independent, a feasible, durable path is already available. All that country has to do is look away from the false advertising of the fossil fuel industry and look toward the future of energy that is already unfolding before us.
Cultivating sustainable and ethical prosperity with basic income
This paper examines the role of basic income in constructing a dynamic, diverse and democratic social economy. ‘Basic income’ or BI is shorthand for a regular, sufficient and unconditional income, administered by the state and issued to every member of society. BI replaces social welfare payments, child benefit and the state pension as we currently know them. It also extends to all those who currently receive no income from the state. Ideally, a BI would be sufficient for each person to have a frugal but decent lifestyle without supplementary income from paid work.
