Review: The Long Descent by John Michael Greer

The Internet writings of John Michael Greer—beyond any doubt the greatest peak oil historian in the English language—have finally made their way into print. Greer’s searingly perceptive blog entries on peak oil, which for the past several years have enjoyed a robust online following, have now been incorporated into a single bound volume from New Society Publishers titled The Long Descent.

The Long Descent (excerpts from new book)

The Stories We Tell Ourselves: “One of the things that makes our culture’s reliance on the utopian myths of progress and apocalypse so problematic as we approach the end of the age of cheap energy is that both narratives claim to explain the entire universe.”
Tools for the Transition: “One of the most hopeful features of this side of our predicament is that the revitalization of old technologies can be done successfully by individuals working on their own. It’s precisely those technologies that can be built, maintained, and used by individuals that formed the mainstay of the economy in the days before cheap, abundant energy…” (paean to the slide rule)

Renewables & efficiency – July 11

Congress must pass renewable energy tax incentives
Swords into plowshares: Lockheed Martin’s work in efficiency sector (video and transcript
Jeremy Legget: A low carbon diet
‘Extreme Makeover’ family, NTUA dispute power credits
Ken Bossong at SEC on July 31, 2008 Congressional Green Expo

United States & Canada – July 9

Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens wants to supplant oil with wind
Is it safe now to admit Jimmy Carter was right?
Oilsands image fight targets U.S. politicians
Labour’s plan for dealing with high energy prices
Ex-EPA aide tells of White House censorship
In energy, there are no easy answers