Irony Alert: “Outlawing” Recession Has Made a Monster Recession Inevitable
Irony Alert: “Outlawing” Recession Has Made a Monster Recession Inevitable Those who came of age after 1982 have never experienced a real recession, and so they’re unprepared for anything other than guarantees of rescue and permanent expansion. The mainstream view is that recession is caused by economic-financial factors. The mainstream view is wrong, for recession […]
Major Gas Pipeline Explosion In Iran Deemed ‘Terrorist Sabotage’
Major Gas Pipeline Explosion In Iran Deemed ‘Terrorist Sabotage’ In the overnight hours reports emerged of two explosions along Iran’s main south-north gas pipeline network. At least one of the massive fires that resulted was caught on video, which widely circulated, leading to speculation over whether it was an accident or attack. Iran’s Oil Minister Javad Owji later […]
What Everyone Is Missing About the Putin/Carlson Talk
What Everyone Is Missing About the Putin/Carlson Talk “The Vorlons say, understanding is a three-edged sword: your side, their side, and the truth” — John Sheridan, Babylon 5 The biggest media story of 2024 so far has come and gone. Tucker Carlson interviewed Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin last week. Everyone, even the Davos/UK dominated media, […]
Don’t Just Hope For Adequate Emergency Response
Don’t Just Hope For Adequate Emergency Response Lessons from the Oregon Ice Storm of 2024 Last month, I, along with many fellow Oregonians (and others in the Pacific Northwest), faced the chilling grip of a devastating ice storm. At work, I experienced the test of a power outage. The storm’s fury was evident in the […]
‘Safe’ Food Additive May Have Consequences for Gut Microbiome
‘Safe’ Food Additive May Have Consequences for Gut Microbiome The antimicrobial nisin used to keep foods safe from pathogens appears to be responsible for harming commensal gut microbes. A naturally derived antibiotic that helps preserve food by killing any threatening pathogens has kept our food safe for decades. The World Health Organization and even watchdog […]
AI and the new kind of propagandaSome dystopian nightmare fuel
AI and the new kind of propaganda Some dystopian nightmare fuel Do you remember how the unconstitutional, pastel-authoritarian and totally batshit insane “Disinformation Governance Board” – with its Mary Poppins-cosplaying, Monty Python level of unintentional self-satirizing department head – was rolled out two years ago like a half-joke, half-beta-test of a version of the 1984 […]
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh CLXXVII–Despite Warnings We Have Continued Business-As-Usual and Doubled-Down On Our Avoidance Behaviours
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh CLXXVII Rome, Italy (1984). Photo by author. Despite Warnings We Have Continued Business-As-Usual and Doubled-Down On Our Avoidance Behaviours The following is my comment on The Honest Sorcerer’s latest piece that highlights the impossibility of bypassing thermodynamic laws (especially Entropy) in our quest for the Holy Grail of a sustainable civilisation; in this […]
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh LXII–Magical Thinking About the Energy Transition
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh LXII July 31, 2022 (original posting date) Athens, Greece (1984). Photo by author. Magical Thinking About the Energy Transition A really short contemplation prompted by an article posted in Resilience.org from The Rapid Transition Alliance regarding sustaining long-distance trade via electric ships. The entire narrative around ‘electrifying’ everything is primarily about the marketing […]
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh LXI–Peak Oil: Not Ready For Mainstream Consumption
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh LXI July 29, 2022 (original posting date) Athens, Greece (1984). Photo taken by author. Peak Oil: Not Ready For Mainstream Consumption Today’s contemplation is based upon a post in a Peak Oil Facebook Group I belong to and the suggestion that the idea of Peak Oil is catching on more broadly and making […]
How De-Dollarization is Likely to Play Out
How De-Dollarization is Likely to Play Out Much has been written in recent years about “De-dollarization” — the shift from the use of the US dollar as the “international reserve currency” in favour of more diverse bi-lateral and multi-lateral currency agreements and transactions. The current system has a long and complicated history, but its most […]
The Arrow of Time
The Arrow of Time Photo by Brandon Molitwenik on Unsplash The circular economy and an endless recycling of materials is an absurd proposal, and not only from a technical perspective; the very idea of a “sustainable” high tech society is in a direct conflict with the laws of physics. After reviewing the technical reasons behind energy & resource cannibalism, as well as […]
NATO Chief Shocks With Prediction Of ‘Decades-Long Confrontation’ With Russia
NATO Chief Shocks With Prediction Of ‘Decades-Long Confrontation’ With Russia NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg issued some shocking words over the weekend which the Kremlin will likely take as a threat. “NATO is not looking for war with Russia. But we have to prepare ourselves for a confrontation that could last decades,” he told German daily Welt am Sonntag on […]
Net-Zero Is Pulling the Plug on America’s Electrical ‘Life Support System,’ New Documentary Says
Net-Zero Is Pulling the Plug on America’s Electrical ‘Life Support System,’ New Documentary Says ‘We are seeing the grid’s reliability, resilience and affordability all declining,’ filmmaker Robert Bryce said. Electricity is among the most essential sources of America’s unparalleled prosperity and productivity; it is also the greatest vulnerability. The United States has become so utterly […]
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh CLXXVI–Confessions Of A Fossil Fuel Shill
Today’s Contemplation: Collapse Cometh CLXXVI Tulum, Mexico (1986). Photo by author. Confessions Of A Fossil Fuel Shill For anyone who has been following my writing over the past couple of years, you will know that I have been critical of non-renewable, renewable energy-harvesting technologies (aka ‘renewables’) and the ‘marketing’ that surrounds them[1]. My critiques are usually focused upon […]
We Are Not Mining with Renewable Energy
We Are Not Mining with Renewable Energy …and when we do, shit is going to get real The way we like to think of “renewables”. No smoke, just green fields and a clear blue sky… Photo by Serge Le Strat on Unsplash There are no “renewables” without mining, an unsustainable practice turbocharged by burning fossil fuels. Yet, advocates […]
