Insight and inspiration in turbulent times.
Kurt Cobb A new report from Earth Scientist David Hughes seriously undermines rosy long-term forecasts made by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) for U.S. oil and natural gas from shale deposits.
In starting to build an economy that prioritizes sustainability and justice, there will be uncountable opportunities to contribute, share, and reconfigure how we go about daily living—and some of those opportunities might just turn out to be deeply fulfilling compared to the rat race of continuous growth.
“Empowerment” is a buzzword for our age. But when does empowerment mean catastrophic societal risk?
Plastic is a beautifully written, intricate mosaic that weaves memoir, poetry, cultural and scientific history, chemistry, biography, etymology, journalistic reportage and self-reflection into a penetrating rumination on humanity’s relationship with plastic.
Some familiar metals just moved to a critical minerals lists in the United States as supply chain difficulties made even nickel and zinc supplies problematic. Will bringing manufacturing “back home” really solve the problem?
Advocates for a Green New Deal are for a collection of admirable goals which it is usually taken for granted can be achieved within a capitalist economy and while the pursuit of economic growth continues. Here is an indication of the main reasons why these assumptions are totally mistaken.
The obsession with mining the Moon strikes me as the kind of fantasy that enters into civilizations when they are faced with huge, seemingly insurmountable problems—climate change and resource depletion come to mind—and they want magical solutions that allow them to forego having actually to face those problems.
Our lavish grocery stores have suddenly become even more like museums, but not in a good way.
Are production and distribution chokepoints becoming the springboard for better working conditions and pay?
Those who say we can continuously grow the world economy without any untoward consequences like to use the canard that those of us concerned about limits have never been right about resources “running out.” But that’s not the real issue.
Law enforcement agencies are increasingly hoovering up data from social media, online shopping sites, and various other online sources to track suspects and to ‘predict’ crime and unrest. The industry providing the software has every incentive to write code that will exaggerate the threats.
Natural gas was supposed to provide a bridge to the renewable energy future. But it doesn’t seem to be working out that way.
