Category Archives: 2) Overshoot

The polycrisis/overshoot, collapse of the financial system, breakdown of supply chains, blackouts, end of being able to make computer chips, and so on are symptoms of the underlying cause: peak energy and peak everything, especially peak diesel since trucks, rail, and ships make this one-time only fossil fueled civilization possible. Wind, solar, nuclear, and so on also need fossil fuels for every single step of their life cycle, so that is a dead end. It is back to before the 15th century — wood world. Whether the house of cards collapses from chokepoints in the middle east such as the Suez canal, the financial shock of a natural disaster or from debt and corruption, Export Land Model, or nuclear war — there is certain to be a series of dislocations that ultimately bring population down to 400 million (population before fossil fuels) or less (due to overshoot factors such as top soil erosion, pollution, etc) Let’s hope there are some islands of sanity and that you are living on one of them!

CCS plants leak, catch on fire, explode, corrode, and contaminate water

Source: Center for Progressive reform (2024) Carbon Dioxide Leak in Decatur, IL, Demonstrates Dangerous Failure of Carbon Capture Storage and Sequestration Preface. Clearly it is not worth spending billions of dollars to sequester CO2 “permanently” if it may leak. It’s … Continue reading

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Chemical industrial farming does not work: Pests evolve immunity quickly

Pesticides, herbicides, and insecticides destroy soil and ecosystems. Yet a third of crops are lost to pests just as in the many millennia of farming before chemicals Preface. This is a book review of Dyer’s “Chasing the Red Queen”, and … Continue reading

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Telling others about peak oil and limits to growth

Preface. Obviously the planet is finite.  World crude oil production peaked in 2018, and been on a plateau since 2008.  Other resources, such as food, are peaking while the polycrisis depletes fisheries, forests, groundwater and more. Yet this reality is … Continue reading

Posted in Critical Thinking, Limits To Growth, Peak Oil | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Failed Nations

Preface.  This is the Fund for Peace Fragile States Index. The “Download data in excel” column has years 2006 to 2023. In 2007, there were 17 nations, of 180, more stable than the USA, in 2023, 38 states more stable.

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Escape to Mars after we’ve trashed the Earth?

Preface. The idea that we can go to Mars is touted by NASA, Elon Musk, and so many others that this dream seems just around the corner.  If we destroy our planet with climate change, pollution, biodiversity loss, soil erosion, … Continue reading

Posted in Climate Change, Extinction, Far Out, Hopium, Human Nature, Planetary Boundaries, Where to Be or Not to Be | Tagged , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Who Killed the Electric Car & more importantly, the Electric Truck?

Preface. Who cares about electric cars? Civilization ends when trucks stop running. Trucks can’t run on batteries because they’re too heavy, with 63 times less energy density than diesel. If all U.S. transportation were to be electrified, the existing electric … Continue reading

Posted in Automobiles, Batteries, Critical Thinking, Electric & Hydrogen trucks impossible, Electrification, Transportation, Transportation Infrastructure | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Who Killed the Electric Car & more importantly, the Electric Truck?

Why towns have a hard time adding EV, solar, heat pumps

Preface.  This article from IEEE does a good job of explaining how and why it is incredibly expensive for cities to cope with with L2 chargers, EV, solar, and heat pumps by zeroing in on Palo Alto, where there are … Continue reading

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Building a national super grid in America

Preface. Renewables are not evenly distributed.  Just 10 states have 80% of hydropower (Homeland Security 2011), 10 states produce 75% of wind power (EIA 2017), and 10 states produce 79% of solar power (CE 2020). With a national grid, instead … Continue reading

Posted in Blackouts Electric Grid, Electric Grid, Electric Grid & EMP Electromagnetic Pulse, Electricity Infrastructure, National Super Grid, Solar, Vaclav Smil, Wind | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

The conveyor belt may be slowing down — Yikes!

Preface. The conveyor belt (AMOC: Atlantic meridional overturning circulation) may be slowing down. If it stops, floods, increased sea level rise, and disturbed weather systems. Until recently the IPCC and other scientists didn’t think this might happen until 2300 or … Continue reading

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New war and energy alliances over next resource wars

Preface. My greatest fear is nuclear war over the remaining resources on earth, since that has the potential of driving us extinct.  But with the end of oil and endless growth capitalism depends on, the world will return resource wars … Continue reading

Posted in Middle East, Over Oil | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments