[p2p-research] good summary of anti-transition hypothesis

[Eugen Leitl]

On Sun, Sep 20, 2009 at 02:47:19AM -0500, Kevin Carson wrote:

> It's interesting how the worst Peak Oil doomers and apologists for the
> current model of industrial capitalism share the same mirror-image
> assumption:  high rates of fossil fuel consumption are necessary  for
> our current material standard of living, and there is no way of
> producing materially the same level of consumption outputs with lower
> levels of energy input.  Prosperity and "progress" are DEFINED in
> terms of how much energy is consumed.

It takes less brain cycles to be wasteful with energy. That's not
a value statement, that's just what empiry tells us.

In general, this is the reason why energy conservation in some
locations doesn't seem to matter: what we save, gets cheerfully
wasted elsewhere. As long as cheap energy is available, and ill
effects postponed we will continue to waste.

-- 
Eugen* Leitl <a href="http://leitl.org">leitl</a> http://leitl.org
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