Fossil Fuels

A lot of readers are twanging on me for refraining to castigate President-elect Obama for deeds yet undone. They’re discouraged by the advisors and cabinet sectetaries he’s picked, ostensibly because the crew coming in are Washington “insiders,” meaning they can’t possibly see or do things differently.

My own starting point for this is the belief that in the years just ahead any sociopolitical entity organized at the giant scale will flounder — this includes everything from the federal government to global corporations to factory farms to centralized high schools to national retail chains. So even expecting Mr. Obama’s government to act effectively may be asking too much in a situation that will require mostly local action…