***Today, we are talking about one of the most boneheaded miscalculations of all time. Almost with a single maladroit stroke, a relatively small group of [[[ power-mad people pretending to be ]]] world-improvers undermined the progress of 9 generations. Five years later, Americans are on the losing end of the "biggest transfer of wealth in history," as T. Boone Pickens described the oil market of 2008. George W. Bush has the highest disapproval ratings of any U.S. president in history. America's most profitable industry - finance - has collapsed…its currency has lost a third of its value…and European, Chinese and Indian economists are wagging their fingers saying, "I told you so."***
Yeah but the Chinese, European and Indians pay $130/barrel too. It's not like they are doing any better. The future is going to suck no matter what.
***They knew no history; nor did they understand economics. They were the perfect people to lead the nation to disgrace and bankruptcy.* **
Well all those wonderful foreigners got stuck with 100s of billions of worthless MBSs. They fell for the neo-cons financial tricks. Give the devil his due.
***As colleague Byron King explains, below, we've spent the last 100 years building the wrong kind of world. Now, many Americans are doomed to live in the ruins of a civilization that no longer works.***
Well that's because hardly anybody in this country wanted to live in an energy impoverished state over the last 100 years. Not like it's been the neo-cons ruling us for 100 years either.
***"Much of what happens in our time only happens because energy is relatively cheap and abundant. So when energy gets expensive, a lot of what happens is going to stop happening.** *
***"I leave the rest to your imagination. "***
Yep... if only the neo-cons had somehow convinced China to stay true to its maoist roots!
All this hand wringing over high gas prices. Look at Japan. Most fuel efficient country in the world. Been working hard on it since the 70s. Still sucks to be them during peak oil as they import all their oil.
It's not like if we had elected Al Gore we'd have $10/barrel oil or anything or peak oil would be averted. Blaming the neo-cons is just a great way to turn everything into a neo-con/bush hating festival which unfortunately does not do anything to affect the underlying geological reality.
One thing about the neo-cons: So they figured out all the SHTF was going to happen toward the end of the decade and started to act on it 10 years out. That takes real foresight and determination and they were right (about the SHTF at the end of the decade). Or they are just a bunch of dummies bumbling around looking for WMDs that don't exist and trying to install democracy but nobody on PeakOil.com really believes the official line anymore, right?