[emersonbiggins]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('AgentR', 'B')ut its still so unbelievably cheap in the car. Rails are mostly gone now, and are better at moving really heavy cargo anyway, but busses would be an entirely reasonable adaptation for $20/gal gas.

[AgentR]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('emersonbiggins', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('AgentR', 'B')ut its still so unbelievably cheap in the car. Rails are mostly gone now, and are better at moving really heavy cargo anyway, but busses would be an entirely reasonable adaptation for $20/gal gas.

[emersonbiggins]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('AgentR', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('emersonbiggins', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('AgentR', 'B')ut its still so unbelievably cheap in the car. Rails are mostly gone now, and are better at moving really heavy cargo anyway, but busses would be an entirely reasonable adaptation for $20/gal gas.

[TheTurtle]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('emersonbiggins', 'A')s for laying rail, I'd eat up the inside two lanes of most interstates and just have at it.

[emersonbiggins]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('TheTurtle', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('emersonbiggins', 'A')s for laying rail, I'd eat up the inside two lanes of most interstates and just have at it.

[drew]

I feel soooooo much better now that I watched that!

Thanks!

I was wondering if anyone realized just how much energy it takes to make concrete. It must be considerable being limestone is first mined then heated for 24 hours in a lime kiln, then shipped to market etc. Of course natural gas seems to be the choice for fuel, although old tires are used too. I bet it is a whole lot per ton of finished concrete.

Also, it dawned on me that our asphalt roads are essentially ribbons of hydrocarbon mixed with rocks. Locally, the newspaper said that asphalt had doubled in price to 500 a ton in the past year.

We could mine and burn our roads if need be, right?
Of course if the aggregate was limestone we'd be using most of the heat to make lime as opposed to sustaining combustion. Would the stuff even burn?

Drew

[mekrob]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '
')We could mine and burn our roads if need be, right?

[Denny]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('drew', '
')
Also, it dawned on me that our asphalt roads are essentially ribbons of hydrocarbon mixed with rocks. Locally, the newspaper said that asphalt had doubled in price to 500 a ton in the past year.

[cube]

I agree with AgentR ---- $20/gallon is possible.

I find it rather odd how many people immediately jumped on him and firmly stated that the figure was "too high". Lets not forget that we can make 100 mpg cars (granted it may have the comfort level of an airplane seat) but perfectly possible. The cost of fuel would be 20 cents/ mile ......that's how much some people pay TODAY driving an SUV.

getting back to the movie, I think it was rather optimistic. At the end there was a "hint" that new urbanism could solve (part of if not completely) the problem. Basically the message is: "There will be difficult times ahead but there is hope."

My opinion is much less optimistic. There is only 1 outcome no matter what action humans take and that is a massive dieoff.

[gwmss15]

why dont people just take the bus to the station and get on the metro and sell that car unless you carry large volumes of cargo ie "a builder"

most people do not need a car to go work or shopping or hoildays

The bus metro and intercity rail will cover most peoples needs even if there is a small increase travel time (max 30 mins a trip)

everyone on this site should try this take a bus ans a train to and from work or to and from the market on weekends and see how much you saved in money and how simple it was.

i travel to my current job in 50 mins by bus and metro and by car its 50 mins too guess which one i take the bus and metro.

all non work travel is by bus and train as i have done all my life.

[buffy]

How many of yall have ever tried to fit 5 kids on a scooter? I managed one first grader. Thats how my grandson gets to school. (they live with us)
Thank goodness my kids are grown. They swear to have 2 kids or less. (we shall see about that)
Personally $5 gas would put a serious dent in our budget and $10 would break us. Hubby uses a truck for work. 12 foot ladder wont fit on the honda civic and his tools won't fit either. We can't move closer to work because his work is in a different place every day.

$20 gas would put us out of bussiness.

[pup55]

In 1950, the average family income in the US was $3319 per year, and the gasoline price was 27 cents per gallon.

Now (or should I say in 2004) the average family income was $70,700 per year. If you do the math, proportionately, the price of gas was $5.75 in 1950.

People made it but:

Fewer people had cars. Those that had them drove a lot less. There was still some life in the small towns out in the country, where a much bigger percentage of the population was involved in agriculture. The average family paid $747 per year on food, which is the equivalent of $15912 today, which is about three times what the average family pays.

Housing, surprisingly was about the same. The mortgage payment on the average ($11,000) house at 4.58% was about 20% of your income ($600 per year). Nowadays, at 6% it's maybe $1000 per month on your $242000 average house, which is about 17%.

So, it looks like you had a home, but you stayed there, and presumably worked somewhere close. The playstation did not exist yet. Neither did: microwave ovens, widespread TV, LP record albums, widespread use of plastics, McDonalds, the Holiday Inn, MasterCharge (although Diners' Club, one of the predecessors, was established in 1950) direct dial long distance phone service, TV dinners (had to wait for the development of TV). Polio Vaccine, coronary bypass surgery, most modern cancer treatments, AIDS, contact lenses, breast implants. Widespread use of Toyotas.

In short, it was a completely different world.

I'm not sure we would be able to make it back there. I'm not sure we should.


USA Today

Census Bureau

Food Costs

Home Prices

[cube]

If you showed this video to the average Joe, he'd probably laugh it off as some Malthusian doomer porn either that or wake up and see the writing on the wall.

In reality I think the video was VERY optimistic. In the end there's talk about new urbanism/smart growth (whatever you want to call it) as being a "cure" for our ills.

Notice the video does NOT mention a mass die-off? I suppose for good reason, if you told the average Joe 80% of the population was going to dieoff....I don't think the public is ready to accept that just yet. Of course most of the people on this board would probably nod their head in agreement.....but I'm guessing this video was not made for us, but instead for the masses.

I believe the ultimate outcome will be a.............dieoff/powerdown.

[grabby]

20 dollar a gallon is possible within a year or two, because the dollar will be maybe around .30 of a euro. Gass will be plentiful but expensive in dollars/

[Tanada]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('grabby', '2')0 dollar a gallon is possible within a year or two, because the dollar will be maybe around .30 of a euro. Gass will be plentiful but expensive in dollars/

[joewp]

This film is back on Youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3uvzcY2Xug&eurl=

[jdmartin]

Hey there JoeW,

I can't seem to pull it up - says something about "accepting friend request" ?

Any help? I've been dying to see this, but my local video places don't carry it

[128shot]

link isn't work for me.

[KevO]

you tube must have dropped it

[joewp]

It was only available for about three days this time.

It is available on the bittorrent network, if you know what that is.

And Netflix has it for rental too.