Wednesday August 1, 2012, 2:32 pm



"Out of the frying pan, into the fire" is an apt description of our current place in history. No matter what you think of globalization and economic growth, I believe we'll soon discover that capitalism without them is much, much worse.

Of course, no one has to convince establishment economists, politicians and pundits that the absence of economic growth spells trouble. They've always extolled globalization as the Viagra of economic growth. But globalization has never been popular with everyone. Many believe that capitalism generates tremendous wealth and power for a tiny fraction of the Earth's seven billion people, makes room for some in the middle class, but keeps most of humanity destitute and desperate, while trashing the planet and jeopardizing human survival for generations to come.

A loose alliance of ecology and labor activists, small farmers, indigenous peoples and human rights advocates has disrupted international economic summits for many years. They say malignant capitalism demolishes habitats and poisons ecosystems, wreaks havoc with the climate, destroys indigenous cultures, pushes farmers off their land and into slums and erodes wages by pitting desperate workers around the globe against one another. At annual World Social Forums, these social movements voice their opposition to globalization and growth and unite around the belief that "Another World Is Possible!" They work toward the day when neoliberal globalization is replaced by a more democratic, equitable, Earth-friendly society.

Since globalization is so damaging, most activists assume that any future without it is bound to be an improvement. But now, it appears that this assumption may be wrong. In fact, for all of its depredations, future generations may someday look back on capitalism's growth phase as the halcyon days of industrial civilization, a naïve time before anyone realized that the worst was yet to come.

Today, worldwide energy and financial crises - that some call peak oil and peak debt - are beginning to permanently strangle globalization and growth. At the fulcrum of this historic tipping point lies the hard fact that civilization is running low on the only concentrated source of power we know of, whose energy return on energy invested (net energy) is large enough to sustain relentless growth. Today, the unparalleled economic take-off fueled by the Age of Fossil Fuels is reaching its apex. The rapacious flight to the top was powered by the Earth's dwindling hydrocarbon reserves. From these lofty heights, the drastic drop-off ahead appears perilous. As fossil fuel extraction fails to meet global demand, economic contraction and downward mobility will become the new normal and growth will fade into memory. But will this new growth-less future bear any resemblance to the one for which activists have been fighting?

Peak oil brings no relief to climate activists like Bill McKibben, since there is more than enough carbon left in the planet's accessible fossil reserves to unleash horrific climate catastrophes. Nevertheless, optimistic Green reformers like Al Gore, Jeremy Rifkin and Lester Brown see a window of opportunity at this historic juncture. For years, they've jetted from one conference to the next, tirelessly trying to convince world leaders to embrace their planet-saving plans for a sustainable, carbon-free society before it's too late. They hope energy scarcity and economic contraction can act as wake-up calls, spurring world leaders to embrace their Green New Deals that promise to save capitalism and the planet.
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By Craig Collins PhD, Truthout | Op-Ed

Fascinating article available at Visit Site, do yourself a favor and read this.

Wednesday August 1, 2012, 8:27 pm
Opportunistic greed is a financial cancer on the world stage. The super rich buy up everything in sight when times are bad and sell high when things are good. They don't give a damn about starvation, poverty, or a trashed environment. Fair play, equality, and justice mean nothing to them. They are mere bloodsucking financial vampires.

Friday August 3, 2012, 7:35 am
Tried to give Robert B a star - but Care2's screen just went blank and white - it seems to be playing up again.

Thanks for this article, Kit - mind you I was a bit depressed before I read most of it, and I think I have to go and cuddle my animals to survive it . It just re-emphasises that we must not let Rmoney and his hideous cohorts into power - they will wreck the entire world, wherever we may be!

The last few paras are more hopeful perhaps -
"But profit is a problem for stable, ecologically balanced societies. The profusion of insidious opportunities to exploit greed and fear, so prevalent in capitalism's manic-depressive economy, drop to a manageable minimum in a healthy economy that encourages people to take care of each other and the planet. While people and the planet may thrive in a sustainable society, the self-centered drive for profit and power cannot. Thus, capitalists will resist, to the bitter end, any effort to replace their dysfunctional bipolar economy with a stable one.

Would the transition to a sustainable society be expensive? Of course. Our petroleum-addicted infrastructure of tankers, refineries, pipelines and power plants; cities, suburbs, gas stations and freeways; shopping centers, mega-farms, fast food franchises and supermarkets would have to be replaced with smaller towns fed by local farms and powered by decentralized, renewable energy. But the cost of making this Green transition is a priceless bargain compared to the horrific consequences of suicidal catabolic collapse.

The real problem isn't price; it's politics ... breaking the death grip of profit-driven corporate power over our lives. (A discussion of this daunting struggle will be the subject of the upcoming article: "Defending the Future.")"

Friday August 3, 2012, 8:57 am

The problem is even deeper than politics, it's rooted in fear of change. The status quo, however bad it may be for any form of growth and development, is known and therefore, comfortable.

I will be on the look-out for the next article, "Defending the Future", it's critical we all have open minds to think about how to move forward toward a better future.

Saturday August 4, 2012, 1:38 pm
You cannot currently send a star to Robert because you have done so within the last week. What Robert said!!!!

Until we rid ourselves of the financial vampires and the fascist corborate body politic....the people will suffer. Getting rid of them will be up to all of us. If we don't, we will all perish.

Monday August 6, 2012, 10:54 pm
For God's sake why doesn't someone have a look at what Laisse Faire did in C19-Globalisation is another term for the same thing