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I suck and need help.

Unread postby caliginousface » Wed 17 Jan 2007, 21:22:15

Ok, so about 2 years ago I learned about peak oil via LATOC and it freaked me out. At the time I was preparing to enter a private university to major in aviation. Since then I have transferred to San Jose State University and am majoring in Environmental Studies. I hate this major, and I love it. It has shown me how humans don't give a fuck, but yet, some want to.

I find myself torn between my major and other things I do. When I was young, I wanted to be a pilot, and am still pursuing it, as of right now I am a flight instructor for single engine planes. I no longer want to fly for airlines, but rather for the forest service, or Cal Dept of Forestry, NASA doing ice sheet eval., and maybe even the Coast Guard. The reason I am torn is because the effects of peak oil are always in my mind when I think about the future, and my impact on the environment. It's hard to tell people to be greener when I go crank the engine of an airplane that eats and spits leaded gas.

I've tried talking to my parents about how I feel, but they either choose to not understand, or they don't. My best friend who is a smart mother fucker understands, but he doesn't, if htat makes sense. How do I justify the continuation of this life?

I hate that nearly everything humans do is damaging to the very land that give us life. Locally, developers want to keep eating up land for houses because urban sprawl is the r0x0rZ oMgZ! Students at my school throw paper and bottles in the trash can, and people throw their fucking cig butts out the window. The Amazon depressses me like some of you, and reading about polar bears makes me hate how our lives are structured. Usually at the end of the day I get in weird moods (and I swear I think i'm driving myself crazy) while thinking about the future concerning geopolitics and the such. Sometimes I wish I would just get drafted already so I knew what was coming.

Pretty much what I'm asking by writing in all this, is can anyone provide me some consolation.

:(

:cry:
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby AirlinePilot » Wed 17 Jan 2007, 21:29:20

Your not alone man! Im an airline pilot, been in the airlines since 1989. Navy pilot before that. I became aware of this whole thing about 2 years ago. It sucks, but right now Im thinking I dont want to be a statistic so Im doing little things mentally and planning wise to prepare. Keep on doing what your dreams tell you, its not wrong, its just that right now we have gotten ourselves into a shit sandwich which is not going to end well. We might have 5 years left, and we might have 35 before things go bad. Be ready, but dont stop living life and enjoying all it holds.

I suggest you go take a few days break and do some hiking somehwere, or whatever it is you like to do for down time. Think really hard about whether or not you are going to be miserable with the knowledge or move forward and see it as a challenge.

Ive chosen the latter, its just who I am.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby caliginousface » Wed 17 Jan 2007, 22:01:02

The thing is I don't know what my dream is. I love hot air balloons, but my parents would kill me if I chose that as a career, and it leaves little options for being environmentally constructive.

I've been working on buying gear for camping excursions, so you're spot on with that suggestion.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby pup55 » Wed 17 Jan 2007, 22:07:16

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'c')an anyone provide me some consolation.


You do not suck. You are just confused. If you are in your early to mid twenties, like a regular college student, I would say this was normal and you should not worry about it.

If you were about 40 and saying the same things, then you would have a problem.

But you have probably about 5-6 years to try out different things, and either succeed or fail. You don't know how lucky you are to have the resources available to do all of the flying stuff, plus go to school, plus live in some apparent comfortable fashion (at least you have computer access).

Your Dad is probably some corporate middle manager that got to where he is by agreeing with the boss and taking as little individual initiative as possible. The mom, no telling, but chances are going along with the flow a lot. Therefore, what you are doing is beyond their order of thinking. But, they also do not know how lucky they are. You could be some kind of crackhead, thug, or in one of our nation's fine prison institutions. No telling about the friend. He may not actually be all that smart.

Anyway, what to do: Prepare for things to be pretty normal X number of years in advance, but make advance preparations just in case of Oilmageddon. Either way, things are going to be in a state of flux, so by keeping flexible, you will have a big advantage. Also, you must have some sort of discipline or you would not have made it through flying lessons yourself, so use this to your advantage.

One more thing: I have given this advice many times: Do not, under any circumstances, skimp on birth control. Nothing will screw up your plan faster than having a wailing infant and significant other around to cut down on your mobility. Your choice of a life partner with compatible life strategy will be really critical to this. When this extra overhead shows up, be prepared to get a real job so as to support them.

Until then, do what you do best and do not worry about it.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby GreenMarine » Wed 17 Jan 2007, 22:11:38

First off I know you’re a pilot, but you need to smoke a joint and blow off some steam. There is nothing sweeter then enjoying one of gods many green gifts.

(Please ignore if you don't believe In God)(CHOOSE WHAT YOU WANT TO READ)

As for consolation. I have come to my own, one day I will be naked in front of God, I will not have any possessions (no car, house, gold, guns, seeds, books.... nothing) except for what is in my heart and what is in my mind. God will see the life I have lead. He will say you have killed men that I gave life to. God will see that I killed in fear and Misinformation by a leader that was wrong and slaughtered many blindly when he himself has never suffered what combat is.

Your consolation is knowing that when you wake up tomorrow you will have food in your cabinet to eat, when so many will go hungry (Africa). Your consolation will be gaining an education. Your consolation is knowing you will be able to go to heaven.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby caliginousface » Wed 17 Jan 2007, 23:01:26

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('GreenMarine', 'F')irst off I know you’re a pilot, but you need to smoke a joint and blow off some steam. There is nothing sweeter then enjoying one of gods many green gifts.

(Please ignore if you don't believe In God)(CHOOSE WHAT YOU WANT TO READ)

As for consolation. I have come to my own, one day I will be naked in front of God, I will not have any possessions (no car, house, gold, guns, seeds, books.... nothing) except for what is in my heart and what is in my mind. God will see the life I have lead. He will say you have killed men that I gave life to. God will see that I killed in fear and Misinformation by a leader that was wrong and slaughtered many blindly when he himself has never suffered what combat is.

Your consolation is knowing that when you wake up tomorrow you will have food in your cabinet to eat, when so many will go hungry (Africa). Your consolation will be gaining an education. Your consolation is knowing you will be able to go to heaven.


Yah I'm no religious at all, I hate religion acutally. But thanks man.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby caliginousface » Wed 17 Jan 2007, 23:06:54

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('pup55', '
')
Until then, do what you do best and do not worry about it.


Appreciate it man. I'm 20 right now... I do live comfortably, and i'm happy about that. If I had the qualifications I'd be flying for AirServ this humanitarian company that does supply relief efforts (Iraq, Afghanistan, and the like). I don't really know what I should be doing. Should I be burning avgas or should I be interning with environmental companies doing stuff. I don't know.

But I hope mother nature rapes us so we all get in line.

Oh yah, I have a big nose and i'm pretty dark so I don't have to worry about the chick thing. They dig hotter cooler guys.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby NEOPO » Thu 18 Jan 2007, 04:58:14

What about the fact that people are dying to support this lifestyle?

Airlinepilot makes his living off of a system of shuttling people back and forth which stimulates the economy which requires more and more energy which leads to situations like peak oil, climate change and war but hey no biggy - you didnt start the fire - smoke em if you can afford em!! 8)

For 100's of years we have done what we do best and not worried about it.......

Who said "the same way of thinking that got us into this mess is not going to get us out" ??? Oh never mind....... 8)
It is easier to enslave a people that wish to remain free then it is to free a people who wish to remain enslaved.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby pup55 » Thu 18 Jan 2007, 05:56:40

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'I') don't have to worry about the chick thing.


You may not have anything going on at the moment, but this can change when you least expect it. When it does, be ready.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'p')eople are dying to support this lifestyle


This is true. Face it, you got lucky. You somehow found yourself plopped down in a land where food is so abundant that a third of the dogs in the country, and a lot of people below the poverty level are obese. Clean, fresh drinking water is so plentiful and cheap we use it to flush our waste out of our houses.

You could, if you wanted to, decide this is morally wrong, and start voluntarily living at the same level of energy consumption as the average person in the world, which is 4 barrels of oil per year. Since the average American consumes 24 barrels per year, this means you would have to make do on only 1/6 of the energy.

Would you gain anything by this, except for "moral superiority?" Doubtful. The only thing this would really accomplish is allow one more Chinese fatcat to drive his Toyota to work every day. I have met some of them and some of them are even more of jerks than American fatcats, so this is really not going to accomplish anything for the good of the global village.


$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'F')or 100's of years we have done what we do best and not worried about it.......


Also true. The American model, despised as it is in some places, has up until now been successful in providing a standard of living envied by the bulk of the world population.

Now we all know that this is unsustainable, so at some point we will have to look for another model. Your mission, and your responsibility to your ancestors, is to (when you are good and ready) pass your genetic material onto the next generation. So, the best thing you can do is be ready to adapt to change, and hope we end up with something like Italy, rather than something like Bangladesh.

History is full of really gifted people, natural leaders of mass political movements, that have the ability to rise up and become drivers of rapid societal change. We all know who they are: Gandhi, Mao, MLK, John L. Lewis, Carrie Nation, Lech Walesa, we can probably think of some others. I thought Cindy Sheehan was going to be one but she flamed out. If you are driven to do this sort of thing, go for it, but these people are one in a billion, and a lot of times they end up having unhappy lives, or their contemporaries are suspicious of their motives, or their kids end up being decadent and exploit their fame after they die a martyr's death. So what's the point?

So, do what you do best, and prepare to do something else when things change.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby Loki » Thu 18 Jan 2007, 06:08:40

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('pup55', 'W')ould you gain anything by this, except for "moral superiority?" Doubtful. The only thing this would really accomplish is allow one more Chinese fatcat to drive his Toyota to work every day. I have met some of them and some of them are even more of jerks than American fatcats, so this is really not going to accomplish anything for the good of the global village.

I disagree. There's much to be gained from putting your values into action. Not feeling/acting like a hypocrite is a good thing. As for "Chinese fatcats," this reasoning is based on Jevons paradox, an unproven economic theory. I don't buy it---by this reasoning, we should all be driving Hummers. And even if it is true, there's nothing we can do to control peoples' behavior around the world. But there is something we can do about our own behavior. Which brings me back to my point about the psychological benefits of not feeling/acting like a hypocrite.

Your earlier advice about birth control is spot on, though. Greatest invention in human history. I also agree with your assessment that being young and confused is a pretty standard state of being. Hell, I'm 33 and still don't know shit. The older I get, the less I seem to know.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby pup55 » Thu 18 Jan 2007, 10:09:24

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')here's much to be gained from putting your values into action. Not feeling/acting like a hypocrite is a good thing


I suppose you are right, but it is hard to find a place to draw the line. The example above (4 barrels per year) suggests a "Bulgarian" lifestyle. But, by your reasoning, maybe everybody should be living like a Bangladeshi, which means basically never getting into a car, eating no more than 2000 calories per day

(Link)

and heating your food over cow dung.

Link

While morally admirable, I think most of your relatives would start to worry about you a little bit if you did this, even more so than if you spent a lot of time taking flying lessons.

This is an old argument, going back to Plato and Aristotle, I think, about what is the appropriate level of resource consumption and wealth accumulation for people.

Here's a link. It's kind of interesting.

Aristotle on Wealth Accumulation

I don't think there is a good answer.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby NEOPO » Thu 18 Jan 2007, 20:28:31

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('pup55', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')here's much to be gained from putting your values into action. Not feeling/acting like a hypocrite is a good thing


I suppose you are right, but it is hard to find a place to draw the line. The example above (4 barrels per year) suggests a "Bulgarian" lifestyle. But, by your reasoning, maybe everybody should be living like a Bangladeshi, which means basically never getting into a car, eating no more than 2000 calories per day

(Link)

and heating your food over cow dung.

Link

While morally admirable, I think most of your relatives would start to worry about you a little bit if you did this, even more so than if you spent a lot of time taking flying lessons.

This is an old argument, going back to Plato and Aristotle, I think, about what is the appropriate level of resource consumption and wealth accumulation for people.

Here's a link. It's kind of interesting.

Aristotle on Wealth Accumulation

I don't think there is a good answer.

Hell the only reason I posted in the first place was because it appeared that you knew exactly what to do which was "do what you do best and dont worry about it" or something to that effect.

So much for the power of one or setting a good example.
One does not have to be rich, famous or powerful to change the world.
Might you recall the name of the person who created the first wheel or the first mouse trap or was the first to use oil?
Of course there us no need to answer :)

Finally whittled down to "I don't think there is a good answer"......

Kid - take it all in - we have enormous amounts of data at our fingertips - we may not have this power for much longer.
Seek the answers to your questions yet in the end....make up your own mind and act accordingly.

I know what I am going to do and it only slightly resembles the same shit that got us into this mess.........

Why do they always say cow dung? :lol:
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby Kingcoal » Thu 18 Jan 2007, 21:43:36

I love the title of the thread. Well, just remember that we all suck and need help. I myself am hopeless addicted to cheap hydrocarbons. I love the stuff. I'd jump naked into a pool of light sweet crude. God I get horny just thinking about it... Any chicks out there want to try it? Actually, oil is lighter than water; humans are 70% water, probably not a good idea.

Anyway, we are all, hopelessly addicted. Those who aren't? Well, in this country, maybe some of the hardcore Amish. We need conservation and technology. The two, coupled together are a wonderful mix. Technology is not the enemy, the wasteful, gluttonous lifestyle is.
"That's the problem with mercy, kid... It just ain't professional" - Fast Eddie, The Color of Money
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby pup55 » Thu 18 Jan 2007, 23:46:18

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'i')t appeared that you knew exactly what to do which was "do what you do best and dont worry about it


I can see I need to lighten up.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby gego » Thu 18 Jan 2007, 23:56:32

If you think you suck, who am I to argue with you? Surely you know yourself better than the rest of us know you.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby mgibbons19 » Fri 19 Jan 2007, 00:03:19

cunnilingusface, the first step is realising you suck

two strategies I have heard is tracing the alphabet, or aiming for approximately "two oclock" on the dial.

Either should work and will definitely improve your sucking.

Good luck. Enjoy it while it lasts.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby caliginousface » Fri 19 Jan 2007, 01:07:31

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('mgibbons19', 'c')unnilingusface, the first step is realising you suck

two strategies I have heard is tracing the alphabet, or aiming for approximately "two oclock" on the dial.

Either should work and will definitely improve your sucking.

Good luck. Enjoy it while it lasts.


:roll:

Thanks man, I'll work on it. :P
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby caliginousface » Fri 19 Jan 2007, 01:50:18

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('NEOPO', '
')
Finally whittled down to "I don't think there is a good answer"......

Kid - take it all in - we have enormous amounts of data at our fingertips - we may not have this power for much longer.
Seek the answers to your questions yet in the end....make up your own mind and act accordingly.

I know what I am going to do and it only slightly resembles the same shit that got us into this mess.........

Why do they always say cow dung? :lol:


Man I've been taking it in since I found out about this stuff. My studies at the university help enforce a future of dimness despite some attempts to infuse optimism with alternative energies and restoration projects.

I'm seeking answers, but I find more questions in the process, thus I suck because I'm not sure which direction to go, and how to get going that way.
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Re: I suck and need help.

Unread postby Aimrehtopyh » Fri 19 Jan 2007, 03:06:35

I'm not sure "optimist" is the correct way to describe those who are only happy when things are getting bigger, faster, easier, cheaper, sexier, and more numerous every single day.

A true optimist can be in a world of shit and still keep his chin up.
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