Life After the Oil Crash

(A lot of this is not my writing, but it's my take)

If you've been wondering why the Bush administration has been spending money, cutting social programs, and starting wars like there's no tomorrow, you may have your answer: as far as they are concerned, there is no tomorrow.

As one commentator recently observed, the reason our leaders are acting like desperados is because we have a desperate situation on our hands.

In 2003, the BBC filmed a three-part, relatively apolitical, documentary entitled "War for Oil" about the role the Bush administration's knowledge of Peak Oil played in their decision to invade and occupy Iraq. As the documentary explains, in private the Bush administration sees the war in Iraq as "a fight for survival." From a purely Machiavellian standpoint, they are probably correct in their thinking.

For what it's worth, Bush's Crawford ranch is completely off-the-grid and equipped with the latest in energy saving and renewable power systems. It has been described as an "environmentalist's dream home." The fact a man as steeped in the petroleum industry as Bush would own such a home should tell you something.

On a similar note, Dick Cheney's personal investments indicate he (or more accurately, whoever handles his money) is expecting economic collapse.

Neither Bush or Cheney (or really, any administration) can be honest with the American people about the severity of what is unfolding. If they were honest with the country, half the nation would refuse to believe them while the other half would likely panic.

Here is what I think is the ugly reality. Life After The Oil Crash.

An integral solution? Spiral Wizard Ben Levi from the Spiral Dynamics list writes:

• Identifying ways to become much more efficient in how we generate and use energy;


• Downshifting our energy consumption and tapping into alternative energy sources such as solar where we can;


• Shifting our focus to becoming horticultural- based, where a significant % of the population (i.e. 20-25%) produces food for the rest (not just the 3% in the current agricultural/ energy-intensive model);


• Designing everything in the spirit of "cradle-to-cradle" design, where everything is food for everything else (no more 'waste' to throw 'away', because there's no more 'away' anymore).

Get self-sufficient in terms of efficiency, food, transportation, and 'cradle-to-cradle' lifestyle. It's certainly going to take major change in all four quadrants to make this happen. Take care of your loved ones and build community.