[Ripley]

Hi, I'm a newbie and wish it was the day before yesterday, as I said in the Welcome forum. I've chosen this thread to ask a few questions. Why? Because it hasn't sunk in yet, honestly it just hasn't. I wasn't all that freaked out by Matt's site, rather I read it with interest and looking for holes, but I couldn't find any, so I carried on looking for more and found this forum. I consider myself progressive, (totally over-used word that) pro-feminist, so yes I have seen some posts that I find totally offensive. Wouldn't send my 20 year old here. PO does bring us back somewhat to our spirit. Mine is durable, grounding. Never been in a church except for weddings/baptismals/funerals, so I don't have all that baggage. My instincts are great, logical, common sensical. In fact already I have chosen where to live, which is near the cleanest spring water I have ever tasted. And there is a College nearby that teaches Straw/baling Construction.

I appreciate this thread, it feels safe as a beginning, this whole forum is far too big, there are like 14 pages to scroll thru just to find a specific topic to see if it's been covered. It's just unwieldly and so slow. In any case I do hope some of you can respond to my questions.

Only two really.
What will the state of electronic banking be like? I receive 2 disability cheques from the Can. gov't. My only income and can't imagine how I would get by without them.

How do you talk to adult children about PO? Without sounding like a nutjob ready to be taken to an institituion?

If there are threads that exist for those two topics, oh please do post them here. In the meantime I have to 'share' this with my husband. But not tomorrow, after the flurry of activity of the usual chores/duties/ etc.

I have a good friend, we've been hanging for 30 years, and we've been discussing issues much like this one for years on end. But obviously not PO. We both raised our children to never sacrifice themselves to military service, that to resist is the best way to abolish warfare. If only all young people saw this. We also taught them healthy skepticism around their government, their politicians, corporations/capitalism/slavery. No we are not pinko commies, we just figured out stuff and saw thru the crapola very easily. We have simply trusted our instincts and our intuitions and they have proved us correct more times than not.

Matt's ideas on why people are so attracted (not sure if that's the right word) to PO as a subject, will be very interesting to read. And indeed whatever his observations are, they are going to be hurtful to alot of people. Pride goeth before the fall. The walls must come down. MSM must get honest. Diverting all the military spending into immediate alternative energy projects should be the most talked about issue during any new election campaign both in the U.S. and Canada. The people must demand it. The U.N. should be talking about it and preparing the world. And all the nukes must go, so trust can be built between countries. It may be that only 'the people' will be the the catalyst for change.

Because I am on the executive of a non-profit, I have access to a rather large number of media lists. This week I am going to be sending Matt's link to every politician on the list. When this is truly out there in the MSM, well, the propaganda we'll be forced to listen to in response is going to be thrown right back in their face by those who dare to. I will be one of them.

Sorry for this rather long post, if anyone can direct me any threads regarding my questions, I would appreciate it.

I'm glad it has not sunk in yet, or I don't believe I could have put together this long post.

[Doly]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Ripley', '
')What will the state of electronic banking be like? I receive 2 disability cheques from the Can. gov't. My only income and can't imagine how I would get by without them.

[Ludi]

Kfish, thanks, not prying at all. Both my sister and I are resistant to typical SSRIs, she has tried St John's wort (unsuccessful) I have not but plan to grow it in my medicinal garden at least to help others if not myself.

Matrim, the reason I get frustrated about the "we need to evolve to the next spiritual plane" junk is that it isn't helpful. We aren't going to magically evolve to the next spiritual plane in time to help ourselves. Evolving spiritually needs to happen in conjunction with evolving as a culture. In my opinion behavior directs spiritual/mental change and vice versa, neither evolves in isolation from each other. Our behaviors need to change in concert with changing beliefs and goals. Our culture's core beliefs are many thousands of years old and developed in a world in which there were always more resources to be had by simply conquering the guy over the hill. We've reached the point now where there is little to be had by conquering the guy over the hill, a world we have learned is finite. Our culture did not develop with the idea of finite resources, so our basic cultural beliefs will need to change. We see this deep seated belief in infinite resources even here on PO.com (moon gas, infinite nuke energy, abiotic oil, etc).

[Interfector]

By that I mean, anyone who believes that the era of cheap oil is over, and that life will probably get steadily tougher for the majority of people, but doesn't think that we'll be resorting to cannibalism to survive within a decade, but that could be a potential scenario in the future if the right action isn't taken now.

[Arsenal]

Preparing for doom but hoping for the middle ground.

Arsenal.

[benzoil]

Click on the link to "Usergroups" at the top of the page.
Select the group "Moderate".
View list of other Moderates.

Yes, there are a few of us. There are more doomers listed, but not everyone has chosen to subscribe to one of the groups. They're not used too much, but allow threads to be restricted to one type or another so that we have less shouting matches.

[Ludi]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Interfector', 'B')y that I mean, anyone who believes that the era of cheap oil is over, and that life will probably get steadily tougher for the majority of people, but doesn't think that we'll be resorting to cannibalism to survive within a decade, but that could be a potential scenario in the future if the right action isn't taken now.

[Kingcoal]

Well, as usual, it all depends on us as a nation. The problem that we see is that the average person holds onto the false belief that there is plenty of oil and the problem is oil company greed. No matter how much you might try to reason with such people, they will cling to denial. Denial in the face of earth shattering problems generally brings on collapse, hence the doomerish slant on things here.

Everyone could wake up tomorrow, take to the streets and demand that their government face the fact of peak oil and demand real solutions. If we were to completely rebuild our transportation systems and invest into renewable electric generation in a vast scale, things would still be tough for perhaps two decades. In fact, the vast amount of money and energy devoted to such projects would warp the economy and most definitely reduce the standard of living for a while. After that, the fruits of our labors would be realized and we would be sitting pretty, energy independent and prosperous. Most people alive today have never lived through such commitment and sacrifice for something of such value. They are used to the gravy train and it looks to most of us that these people will cling to their illusions until the day they die. In fact, history shows that outcome to be quite common when such a situation exists.

Peak oil is a liquid fuels crisis. Over 70% of all oil we consume is burned up in internal combustion engines. Thus, peak oil is a transportation problem. If we can solve that, we will have plenty of oil for the other, more sane uses of the resource.

My personal theory is that rebuilding the electric grid to being 100% renewable will allow electricity to take the place of oil as an economic feedstock. Renewables don't require any fuel once designed, built and brought online. Our growth economy needs a feedstock. Oil was that feedstock, before that, coal. Our currency is based on oil as a result. We need to base our economy and currency on something that doesn't run out.

[desultorypawn]

Me!

[CarlosFerreira]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Ludi', 'I') think times will get very tough but that folks in the developed world and most of the rest of the world will probably not resort to cannibalism.

[davep]

+1

[Bas]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Ludi', 'I') think times will get very tough but that folks in the developed world and most of the rest of the world will probably not resort to cannibalism.

[mrsea]

I subscribe that we should hope for the best but prepare for the worst. I certainly hope the coming hard times will not be such that one must resort to cannibalism. However, in line with being prepared, I’m curious, has anyone yet published a “Doomer’s Cookbook”?

[benzoil]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('mrsea', 'I') subscribe that we should hope for the best but prepare for the worst. I certainly hope the coming hard times will not be such that one must resort to cannibalism. However, in line with being prepared, I’m curious, has anyone yet published a “Doomer’s Cookbook”?

[AgentR]

Lots of room in your comments for all kinds of folks to fit... in one sense I am a moderate; I don't think life in ten years time will be incredibly different for your average American(US/Canada) or European.

On the other hand; longer term, I think things are going to be *far* worse than most here dare to consider.

[IslandCrow]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('C.S.Lewis', '[')i]MAN. This elegant little biped has long been valued as a delicacy. It forms a traditional part of the Autumn Feast, and is served between the fish and the joint. Each Man-

[KingM]

I'm a moderate, leaning towards optimist. Civilization will eventually collapse, that's a given, but I think we've got better than even odds of making it to the end of the century with less disruption than we faced in the last century.

[Mr_Potato_Head]

I'm kind of a middle grounder although it's interesting to note that if you can get over that whole "cannibalism thing" there's really not too much to worry about. Well, besides everyone else catching on.

[CarlosFerreira]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Mr_Potato_Head', 'I')'m kind of a middle grounder although it's interesting to note that if you can get over that whole "cannibalism thing" there's really not too much to worry about. Well, besides everyone else catching on.