Consumption

FST746RWSN87Attics, basements, and garages are loaded with the plunder of past shopping. Some people rent storage lockers just to hold all their extra stuff. Dumps are filling up with brand new items, never used, but tossed out. There's even a TV show called "Hoarders" - a reflection of the national preoccupation. Do all these THINGS really make us happier?

The following is a guest post by Dan Allen, a high school teacher in New Jersey. Previously on TheOilDrum, Dr. Allen wrote The Speech Obama Needs to Give.

Note from the author: As a high-school teacher, I wanted to give my thoroughly-industrial, suburban-NJ students a more detailed peek at their upcoming post-industrial future.

Bill Rees, originator of the ecological footprint, says we are already into overshoot. We can plan to reduce our use of Earth's resources, or plunge through a series of disasters.

Check out these simple tips that will save you tons of money!
Article published at TreeHugger 10/09/09

This film examines the way in which the petrochemical industry has manipulated events around the world to its advantage, and the various effects from the over-use of resources.

The End of Suburbia is a documentary concerning itself with predicting the effects of the coming peak of oil production. It consists of interviews with leading peak oil educators including Richard Heinberg, Colin Campbell, Michael Rupert, and James Howard Kunstler.

American policies were designed for a world economic arrangement of $20 per barrel of oil. Oil is now at $120 per barrel and climbing. There may be, in the short term, a decrease in the price of oil if the short term supply situation straightens itself out. However, long term, the price of oil is only going to go up. As our dear president said, America is Addicted to Oil but like true addicts we haven't even entered the first step in the 12 step program to recovery. We haven't admitted to our addiction and are in deep denial.