A couple of interesting articles on peak oil:
- Chip Giller and Dave Roberts of Grist fame are moving into the mainstream with their Boston.com op-ed on peak oil. Giller and Roberts present the basics of peak oil, the political postions that have been staked out, and actions we can take as a society. Most importantly (IMHO), the authors note:
So it’s time for us ordinary citizens to get active, too. Time to call our legislators, show up at city council meetings, write letters to the editor. After all, everyday Americans outnumber energy company executives by a ratio of roughly a bazillion to one — so let’s make sure the dialogue reflects that, and that our needs get proportionate attention.
- In a completely different vein, I ran across this article this morning that looks at peak oil and national security from an openly Marxist perspective. While many will likely write off such critiques as quaint, conspiratorial, or just plain nuts, author Geoffrey Caffentzis raises some very provocative points about the mainstream US political positions on energy security, and offers up the notion that both the Bush admininstration’s market faith, as well as the center-left position of focusing on “energy security,” both stem from a dominant capitalist paradigm (haven’t used a phrase like that since grad. school) that benefits the “corporate class.” Still, Caffentzis offers a perspective that, at the very least, shakes up the conventional positions that have been staked out when discussing peak oil and its political ramifications.