since I don't believe in the peak oil theory or that peak oil represents the end of capitalism, we have to agree to disagree.
On 10/17/05, paul phillips <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Jim, very good questions to which I have no definative answers -- except > perhaps a tentative one to the first, dealing with globalized > capitalism. If Kunstler is correct, globalized capitalism will be one > of the first casualties of the end of cheap oil. In fact, all of the > writers I have read on the subject make the point that (capitalist) > markets can not deal with the challenges of the end of cheap energy or > of global warming and that only governments can and must, even such Bush > advisors as Hirsch. Kunstler takes particular aim at global corporations > such as Walmart which he argues will disappear. He gives no specific > time table for this disappearance but following the logic of his > argument, we are talking about perhaps 10 or 20 years after peak oil. > That, of course, does not rule out imperialism of an earlier, > pre-industrial sort (e.g. Europe's colonization of North & South > America) though I think that is much less likely because of the economic > and political cost of suppressing insurgency (e.g. Iraq, Chechnya) given > the small scale, low technology and cheapness of light weapons. (For > example, Tito and the Yugoslav army managed to manufacture sufficient > weapons in clandestine manufactories to hold off and eventually defeat > countless, motorized divisions of the German army in Bosnia in the 2nd WW.) > Obviously, some form of world government will be necessary to > prevent the kind of local resource/land wars typical in feudal Europe, > warlord Asia, or tribal North America though, equally obviously, the > current UN model would not suffice. > > Paul > > Jim Devine wrote: > > >Paul, how do localized governments -- which hopefully would have > >governments subordinated democratically to the democratic will -- deal > >with a globalized capitalism (i.e., imperialism)? without some sort of > >democratically-controlled world government, how are wars between the > >localities avoided? > > > > > > > -- > No virus found in this outgoing message. > Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. > Version: 7.0.344 / Virus Database: 267.12.2/137 - Release Date: 10/16/05 > -- Jim Devine "Knowledge is Good." -- motto, Faber College.
