Okay, I’ve finally read the entire article. As smart as this guy is, and as “well thought out” his theories are…… He’s a total moron. Chicken little comes to mind.
Cliff notes for those without the time to read all that:
Oil is running out. The oil based economies of the world will collapse under their own weight in the next 20 years. All forms of alternative fuels are worthless in comparison to oil, and they will never be enough to keep us going. We will revert back to the late 18th century of lifestyle. Suburbia will disappear, the south will become engaged in a new civil war, Nevada and Arizona will be ghost towns, and Southern California will pay for it’s lavish lifestyle.
Okay, on to why he’s a moron. He brings up the alternate fuel sources one by one, and tells us how inadequate they all are in comparison to oil. And he is correct. But why does only one system have to keep us afloat? We can use them all at the same time. Hundreds of alternative methods are already here. Every home in America will be equipped with solar panels. Every building will have solar panels and wind turbine generation (like the new building they are building on the Twin Tower sight). Right there you have enough power to keep the information super highway open to everybody. (I can go deeper into how important that is, but that’s for a different discussion).
He states very mater of factly that the farming community will be grossly out of its means to produce enough food for everybody in America. WTF?? Even with the TOTAL loss of all oil products, farming would not collapse. It’s been around for centuries, and even if more has to be done by hand, it can be.
Our road systems will collapse in a matter of a few years: Very interesting thought, but again…. Moronic. There will just be a new tax for the streets. It can even be called a “road tax.” Imagine that.
Nuclear power is not a viable option because of the scale they would have to be produced: Well, that’s not true if every habitat in America could produce over half of it’s own energy supply.
New hydroelectric facilities can be erected in a matter of a few short years. Automobiles are already running off several different fuel sources. Hydrogen can be produced at the nuclear power facilities. Solar power can help further augment the hybrid car technology. Bio lubrications are already developed, and can step in to fill the holes a lack of oil could create.
And I could go on for hours. This guy is going for a gut reaction “let’s see how many people I can scare” paper. The oil resources of the world are not going to disappear overnight as he suggests. They will slow down over a few decades. And look how far mankind can move in a few decades. Most of our parents remember a time when walking on the moon was a silly story based totally outside of reality. Our grandparents saw the first jets, color TV’s, microwaves, X-ray machines, etc etc etc……
It’s true that America is largely dependent on oil, but we’re also in the best position of the advanced nations to deal with its loss. Life will change as it always does, but nothing coming close to the chaos this guy is talking about.
I tried to keep it short, but there was just too much. Sorry. :bla
