Discussions related to the physiological and psychological effects of peak oil on our members and future generations.
by roccman » Thu 15 Nov 2007, 00:14:05
Economic and planetary collapse: Is it a therapeutic issue? $this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Angry Subtypes:
Rhett-Butlerist Features - “Peak Oil? Planetary Collapse? Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.”
Aggressive denial of information not in keeping with one’s world view.
Kill the Messenger Redirection : “Why are you telling me this? What kind of sicko focuses on these kinds of facts? You need help!” The belief that those who bring bad news are doing it for malevolent reasons.
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Religious Subtypes:
Religiousity : “God/The Planet/Mother Nature loves humans. He/She/It would never permit massive die-off.” Or “If that happens, I just put my faith in my Savior.”
Neoliberal Econo-manic Tendencies : “The market will sort it out.” A belief that market forces control all--- including geological realities.
Nascarian Features : “People love their automobiles. A solution will have to be found to keep us driving.”
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Subtypes with Delusional or Magical Thinking:Meglomatic Features :“This simply won’t happen to me.” A belief in one’s specialness, which will save them from the consequences affecting those around them.
Paternalistic Features : "The government/corporations will sort it out." A belief in the infallibility of organizational structures to resolve problems they aren’t willing to even acknowledge.
Doubting Thomas Features : “Peak Oil is a scam by the Oil Companies to raise prices!” Minimizing the possibility of the crisis by the belief that some one or some group has ultimate control over its happening.
Pure Cornucopian Features : “The more we need, the more they’ll be.” A belief that continued progress and provision of material items for mankind can be met by advances in technology.
The Flinestonian : “The stone-age didn’t end because they ran out of stones.” A belief that modern innovation is eternal.
Frank Zappa-ism : “As soon as things get really bad, they’ll come up with something.” A belief that necessity is the mother of invention.
Magical Thinking : “Don’t worry, we can build a car that can run on air!” Proposes solutions that are clearly outside the realm of physics.
McGiveristic Features - A belief that massive planetary problems can be solved with ordinary/common items found readily at hand. Eg.: “Pig dung will be the next fossil fuel.” Or “Coke Cans can be turned into solar panels.”
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Psychological ‘Cure’We've become a society of "discontents," looking for satisfaction. We turn both inward and gaze backward in our attempt to find a ‘cure.’ Our view is fixed, frozen, and reified. It is both suffocating and reassuring. We don’t seek to participate in the world, because the world is to blame as the source of our troubles. "Lifestyle" is what we start to search for, as a trade for being stuck with a "life." We cling to our professional identities because they provide us with a sense of self. We project a "professional image" because image becomes more important than who we actually are.
We read books to assure ourselves that “bad things happen to good people,” because these “bad things” appear somehow to be an undeserved punishment that someone else has inflicted on us, instead of just “what happens.” We attempt to distract ourselves from feeling anxiety and discomfort, with television, movies, music and internet. Cybersex and 'mind fucks' take the place of messy entanglements. We seek out those that will match us in our values, social class, religious beliefs, our fashion sense, our views, and we scorn those who fail to mirror us. We get married hoping to find someone who will "really know us," and we divorce when they actually start to, and have the nerve to tell us what they see. We look for a community to worship that is equally "fitting" of us and what we need and expect our spiritual leaders and our God to be sympathetic and undemanding. If not, we keep looking.
We are freed from the constrictions of being born in a particular place, during a particular time, in a particular climate, growing particular foodstuffs, surrounded by a set of particular people. We are free to be You and Me, and we get to mold it, as if we are the creative force itself. We no longer have to believe in a creator, because WE are IT.