[arocoun]

I've said it before: I don't really care what happens to this society, or the people in it. Because whatever happens, they'll likely have earned it. But something actually does bug me, quite a bit.

A few decades from now--probably well within my lifetime--people will be living in a far different society. From what little preparation I'm seeing, it'll probably be a worse one, with a sad standard of living, and a mixture of dictatorships and anarchies (not the good kind). There will probably be some wise folks, knowing more and living better than the rest, but they will probably be the exception. Most everyone else will look back in history, and think, "If it weren't for X, we'd be living much better than this." Unfortunately, X won't be "oil depletion" or "overdependence on nonrenewables." It'll be "terrorists," "price gouging," "muslims," "China," or any number of other scapegoats; no lesson will be learned except an eternal hatred for the wrong people. Or, even worse, they'll blame it on environmentalism, and people investing in alternative energy instead of oil.

I don't know why this bugs me so much. This kind of never-learning-a-lesson idiocy just gets on my nerves. When I think about this, I get the sudden urge to spread the word about peak oil. But when I hear about how the all-powerful They will fix things for us, I feel the urge to shut up again.

What do people here think of this problem? Do you think people will understand the fundamental problem of this society (dependence on depleting nonrenewables, particularly oil) before it's too late to change things? Do you think people in the future will learn ANYTHING from peak oil? Does the widespread ignorance of peak oil and people's refusal to learn anything about it bug the hell out of you, too?

[PenultimateManStanding]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('arocoun', ' ') It'll be "terrorists," "price gouging," "muslims," "China," or any number of other scapegoats; no lesson will be learned except an eternal hatred for the wrong people. Or, even worse, they'll blame it on environmentalism, and people investing in alternative energy instead of oil.

[Grifter]

This problem doesn't bother me as much as it seems to bother you or others.

Like I don't care that some people need to believe in gods, or that the world is so complex it must have been created or that consumerism is somehow desireable.

I do fear a time when some coercive centre of power tries to force me to say I believe something which I do not like it is all the fault of terrorists/environmentalists, but that is fear rather than annoyance.