Staff

Hope in a cold season

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A great many of those who insist that we can afford to ignore the head-on collision between industrial civilization and the limits of a finite planet justify that claim by talking about hope. As millions of people turn their eyes heavenward, waiting for the end of the Mayan calendar or some other prophesied event to bail humanity out from the consequences of three centuries of our own mistakes, it’s arguably time to ask whether everything that gets labeled “hope” deserves the name.

The future needs an attitude adjustment

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Our expectations tend to be outsized with respect to the physical limitations at hand. We quickly dash up against ideological articles of faith, so that many are unable to acknowledge that there is an energy/resource problem at all. The Spock in me wants to raise an eyebrow and say “fascinating.” The human in me is distressed by the implications to our collective rationality. The adult in me wants less whining, fewer temper tantrums, realistic expectations, a willingness to sacrifice where needed, the maturity to talk of the possibility of collapse and the need to step off the growth train, and adoption of a selfless attitude that we owe future generations a livable world where we can live rich and fulfilling lives with another click of the ratchet. Otherwise we deserve a spanking—sorry—attitude adjustment. And nature is happy to oblige.

Economics – Dec 28

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– Half of America In Poverty? The Facts Say It’s True
– Financial apocalypse 2012
– Petras: A Doomsday View of 2012
– Steiglitz: US must shift its economy or risk a tragic replay of 80 years ago.

As economic growth fails, how do we live? Part II: Out with the old

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We cannot “set things right” in the sense of restoring things to the way they once were, but we must begin now to adapt to the new realities if we are to reduce suffering and continue an advanced culture. Today’s article, “Out With the Old”, discusses ending seven unsustainable practices.

Identity crisis

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Thirty months into a new life devoid of regular interaction with inmates and honors students, I’m having the sort of identity crisis described by Dmitry Orlov in his excellent book, Reinventing Collapse. According to Orlov, middle-aged men — specifically those aged 45 to 55, nicely bracketing the age I departed the ivory tower (49) and my current age (51) — experienced the highest rate of mortality as the Soviet Union collapsed.

Keystone XL – on front line of oil debate

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– Protests seen as stand against fossil fuels
– U.S. Congress hands energy industry historic victory
– Oil lobby lagging reality
– The politics of pipe: Keystone’s troubled route
– If You Care About Keystone and Climate Change, Occupy Exxon
– Official White House Response to Reject the Keystone XL Pipeline