Peak expectations

ONTARIO – Decades ago the “peak oil” argument had the same cachet as a John F. Kennedy assassination paranoia theory propagated by the granola crowd.

Fueled by the Iraqi War, and high energy prices, a quick scan of any of the more vituperative websites and you’d believe U.S. President George Bush, V.P. Dick Cheney, and the American industrial complex are in league with the devil to destroy mankind.

These apocalyptic premonitions of a Mad Max-like world worked in favour of the environmentalists. Scare enough pants off suburban residents about losing their precious cheap energy, and it would mean improved fuel conservation, better waste management, and more sustainable transportation through public transit.

A documentary called “The End of Suburbia: Oil Depletion and the Collapse of the America Dream” that had been making the rounds had activists clucking. The grassroots planning group Hamilton for Progressive Development will be showing it this month.

The real fear, though, is that Mad Max fantasy may be more real than first imagined.

Ancaster News (Canada)