I Like This Guy

[peristaltor]

And not just because he seems to know his numbers and base his conclusions on them.

In Burning the Future, Richard Heinberg gives a fascinating analysis of the fuel everyone has been touting as (once again) The Next Big Thing, coal. Though long, it is a fascinating read.

Of course, whatever response society eventually arrives at to fossil fuel shortages will consist of a cobbled-together mix of the available alternative energy sources plus a heaping helping of energy conservation (efficiency and curtailment). (emphasis mine. -P.)

I mentioned this with emphasis because it harkens back to a post I made over two years ago (one that, sadly, led to enormous familiar strife -- but I digress). Heinberg continues:

I use the word response rather than solution because the latter term implies an outcome in which present societal patterns of industrial production and consumption are maintained. But this may not be possible. Planned, strategic curtailment of energy use will of necessity be the primary adaptation strategy. This has enormous implications for every aspect of modern economies.

That passage also jives well with my observations just two posts ago in Culture as a Sign of the Past.



A sobering read, from a link provided by beachofdreams.