Monthly Archives: April 2014

Credit Default Swaps & CDO’s

Posted on April 4, 2014 by

Why Wall St. Needed Credit Default Swaps http://seekingalpha.com/article/73060-why-wall-st-needed-credit-default-swaps Take a CDO with a 50 basis point spread over US Treasures. Banks will buy credit default swaps costing them 20 basis points, but by doing so, even they seem to make … Continue reading →

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2nd largest oil field in the world, Mexico’s Cantarell, declining rapidly

Posted on April 4, 2014 by

Mexican oil exports: start saying adios! by Martin Payne, 19 Mar 2008. Energy Bulletin. 1)      This story illustrates the problem of RATE of production – you might have a lot of oil, but if you can only produce it at … Continue reading →

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Richard Heinberg We need 50 million farmers

Posted on April 4, 2014 by

Fifty Million Farmers by Richard Heinberg, originally published by Energy Bulletin  | Nov 17, 2006 (Note: This is the abbreviated text of a lecture by Richard Heinberg delivered to the E. F. Schumacher Society in Stockbridge, Massachusetts on October 28, … Continue reading →

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We’ll need more Farmers

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Energy Descent and Agricultural Population Jason Bradford on March 11, 2009 Some excerpts of this article below: Among the cadre of folks who think about food systems and sustainability in the U.S., there’s a concern about the number of farmers … Continue reading →

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Softer landing if we can keep the Combines going

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Save it for the Combine August 24, 2010. Jason Bradford Excerpts from this article: The combine performs tasks that replace an enormous amount of labor in a reliable and timely fashion.  It cuts the stalks of seed crops, threshes the … Continue reading →

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Energy in the Food System uses 19% of all energy consumed in the USA. Pimentel 2008

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Preface.  There are many ways to calculate how much energy is used in the food system  This first paper estimates 19%, the paper below 14%. It all depends on how much you include, and whether it is just the farm … Continue reading →

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Articles about the Stages of Collapse

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Complexity, Problem Solving, and Sustainable Societies 1996. Joseph A. Tainter from GETTING DOWN TO EARTH: Practical Applications of Ecological Economics, Island Press, 1996; ISBN 1-55963-503-7 http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1559635037 OVERVIEW   Historical knowledge is essential to practical applications of ecological economics. Systems of problem … Continue reading →

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What is “our” oil doing in their economy? — Saudi oil consumption trends

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What is “our” oil doing in their economy? — Saudi oil consumption trends April 8, 2011. Jonathan Callahan Oil importing nations have long treated Saudi Arabia as an infinitely deep well of crude oil supplies. In 2005, Matt Simmon’s book … Continue reading →

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Grow Nut Trees in your backyard

Posted on April 4, 2014 by

Woody Agriculture – On the Road to a New Paradigm July 27, 2012.  Philip A. Rutter et. al. [snipped and some paraphrasing – do read the whole long article at the link above if you are interested in planting nut … Continue reading →

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Oil Reserve Estimates are WAY too high

Posted on April 3, 2014 by

Old Math Casts Doubt on Accuracy of Oil Reserve Estimates Asjylyn Loder. april 3, 2014. Bloomberg News Jan Arps is the most influential oilman you’ve never heard of. In 1945, Arps, then a 33-year-old petroleum engineer for British-American Oil Producing … Continue reading →

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