[Sys1]

Funny that this "mad" Max seems a so wise man. Finally, perhabs he's mad just regarding to our growth paradigm.

[Zardoz]

Nicely-done column.

Whether or not your friend actually exists, or you made him up to get the point across, doesn't matter at all. Articles like this will slowly wake people up, perhaps just a few at a time, until the reality of what we're facing becomes the conventional wisdom.

Every little bit helps.

[seldom_seen]

great piece. thanks for sharing.

[gnm]

I think perhaps Don is aquainted wth our own mad Max freind CV eh?

-G

[Colorado-Valley]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Zardoz', 'N')icely-done column. Whether or not your friend actually exists, or you made him up to get the point across, doesn't matter at all. Articles like this will slowly wake people up, perhaps just a few at a time, until the reality of what we're facing becomes the conventional wisdom. Every little bit helps.

[Aaron]

Nice Prose...
Course, he's only "Mad", if he's wrong eh?
If he's right, he's a flippin genius.
And if he's "Max, the Brain", and is correct about the future, then I'm sure he appreciates the extra carrots and stuff you'll be growing for him and his mongrel dog.
And make sure you stay in shape... he'll need a snack later.

Send donations to: Sustainable Eco-Reaping Inc., c/o Miracle/Mad Max, PO Box 666, Boston, Mass 02134

[Colorado-Valley]

He's the guy with all the carrots and potatoes. I've got some nice Angus cattle, so we can trade.
Really, the big problem out in the country is that farms and exurbia are so disbursed. Our rural development would be better if it were more like Europe's, with farmlands surrounding defensible villages.
We're too easy to pick off by being so far away from each other.
If it comes to that, of course ...

[Dukat_Reloaded]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'A')rticles like this will slowly wake people up

[TheTurtle]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Dukat_Reloaded', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'A')rticles like this will slowly wake people up

[Dezakin]

More arguments of doom ad nauseum that are obviously false. In twenty more years people will be saying the same thing: 'Just around the corner lies our doom'

[frankthetank]

I second that, dukat..!

[Falconoffury]

It's obvious because you choose not to dig deep into the details.

[tsakach]

Rather than dwelling on the standard peak oil doomer scenario, perhaps Max could benefit by studying nature and gain insight on how other species adapt successfully to rapidly changing conditions:

Cockroach vs Dinosaur

"The mass extinction of the dinosaurs took place 65 million years ago. So far most theories agree that the extinction was not a slow evolutionary process but one that was "leap-like" concentrated in a relatively short period of time. Increasing fossil evidences seem to give more scientific credence to a leading theory on how and why the extinction happened. This theory says that a cataclysmic bombardment of the earth surface by a gigantic meteor took place. This created a huge dust that blocked out the sunlight for a period estimates of which range from many months to a thousand years. The dinosaurs-the dominant life forms- were destroyed in turn as death went up the food chain starting with the plant life immediately dependent on sunlight. The cockroaches lived through this period. Their make-up and capabilities enabled them to survive and adapt to the new environmental conditions created by the cataclysmic changes.

The cockroaches are one of the oldest species still in existence. They are 350 million years old. They are most noted for their adaptability to changing conditions of life. Contributing to this highly developed adaptability is their large scale reproductive capacity (one cockroach can give birth to 400,000 descendants in a year) and the size, structure, and chemical make-up of their bodies. Their antennae and other sensory organs give them extreme sensitivity to light and air movements which contribute to their speed and maneuverability. Their ability to keenly sense tiny food nutrients in extremely varied and scarce environmental situations make them resourceful and resilient.

These capabilities constitute their main strengths and limitations and therefore helped define their "strategic/tactical" methods of survival. They operate mainly at night while most other animal species are asleep. Their main method of defense is rapid retreat. The final point of retreat are "bases of operation" created out of hidden places most difficult to access and less frequented by predators or killer sprays. The "bases of operations" serve as temporary protection for especially the impregnated females (who are capable of giving birth to 16-32 roaches per egg carried). These females reside in the center of the "bases" and produce new "soldiers" in the struggle for survival. Another effective method of defense is the ability of an entire cockroach concentration to scatter and quickly retreat to a new and harder to reach "base of operation" when the old one is exposed to direct assaults."

[Dreamtwister]

And how exactly does that apply to our situation?
Sometimes, "adapting successfully to rapidly changing conditions" means "reducing population".

[handforged]

Ah! I, too, must be a Mad Max. I am a doomer through and through for many reasons and nothing short of the miracle required to "fix" PO appearing *and working* will change my mind. I irritate my friends for shooting holes in their optimistic theories. The one comment that stumps all optimists is that we doomers only have to be right once.

[PenultimateManStanding]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Colorado-Valley', '
')Really, the big problem out in the country is that farms and exurbia are so disbursed. Our rural development would be better if it were more like Europe's, with farmlands surrounding defensible villages.

We're too easy to pick off by being so far away from each other.

[Narz]

Honestly, I found it to be kind of a boring movie. The wife I found quite annoying for some reason. Very bad actress. The plot was pretty predictable and they gave very little background as to what the fuck was going on.
Life, on the whole, didn't seem so bad. No one was starving. The baby had a little plastic ball, everyone's clothes seemed relatively new & clean (except the motorcycle crew anyway). Of course there seemed to be almost no people in this brave new world but maybe that was due to their isolated rural location.

The girl with her boyfriend in the colorful car was mad cute, her brief appearance was the highlight of the film (I'd be angry as hell at those motorcycle guys too though it looks like her man got the worst of it ). I wouldn't mind seeing her in a different kind of picture (though she's probably pushing fifty now ).
Anyway, what was so great about this movie that it's such a cult classic?

[AirlinePilot]

Now go watch the other movies. None are really good, but I think the fact that the acting is poor and the music is horrible make it some sort of cult thing, like the old B movies of the 60's and early 70's.

The real doomer stuff is in the follow up flicks.

[Lore]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Narz', 'A')nyway, what was so great about this movie that it's such a cult classic?