Technology to Extend Modern Way of Life for a While Longer

"How much longer can things continue like this?" is a common question asked by exasperated people who see all the red flags of this dying culture, economy, and civilization. It's a great question, but, unfortunately, it is not so easy to answer. There are plenty of factors that can affect the time remaining for civilization. No one knows the day nor the hour of the coming collapse. But what we can be certain of in these times is that technology is a powerful force that is easy to both underestimate and overestimate. And despite all the "band-aid and paperclip" approaches the powers that be apply that will obviously not hold forever, technology often steps in and pushes back the eventual, inevitable reckoning. 

Thomas Malthus predicted a population crisis. He rightly observed in his own time how human population increased by multiplication while agricultural expansion increased by addition. In other words, population growth was greater than the ability of the earth to feed everyone. Once the Oil Age hit a little over a century later, people scoffed at the ideas of Malthus. Technology had saved the day! Thanks to oil, agriculture could expand much more, sustaining a much larger global population.

And oil is really the lifeblood of the current global civilization. It is the magic elixir that allows the modern world to exist and function. It allows globalization, greatly increased agricultural ability, consumerism, police states/bloated governments, feminism...many things not inherently part of human existence - the proverbial bells and whistles, good or bad. 

In the past few years, the concept of "Peak Oil" emerged. Oil Production follows a bell curve - oil production rises, and it must inevitably fall. This idea was not too widely known until fairly recently, perhaps the last 3-5 years. And it was met by plenty of scoffers, who, predictably, always seem to fall back on the religion-esque notion of "technology will save us!"

But they are only right in the short term. Oil has become increasingly difficult to recover. The old oil fields are almost done for. But techonology has once again stepped in - not to save us per se, but it has apparently put some more time onto the clock. Alternative oil sources such as oil shale, oil sands, artic oil, and deep-water are now being used, along with techniques like hydraulic fracturing.

It's not exactly technology saving us though. It's temporary. These new sources of oil are dirtier, harder to obtain, and much more toxic than traditional sources. Developing countries, like China, are increasing oil consumption. So problems haven't really been solved. An untenable way of life is being extended. All the while, new problems are being created. And now it won't be so easy to fix anything.

I'm certain that the governments of the world will continue on a ruinous path, spending themselves into the oblivion of debt as long as the oil is flowing. This way of life will continue up until the very moment it cannot any longer.

Keep your eyes on the clock.

The Exploitation of Trayvon Martin's Story: Drawing A Parallel to Media Misandry

If you are like most people, you probably had a strong initial reaction to the killing of Trayvon Martin. One way or another, taking one side or another, within seconds or minutes, you probably had a strong opinion formed very quickly. As time has gone on and bits and pieces have unfolded about Martin's killing, you may have changed your opinion. Furthermore, you may think, as I do, that the media played a powerful role in trying to influence peoples' opinions on this story and inflame emotions about it.

A central element of this story is the racial distrust that the media has apparently been trying to fan the flames of. Immediately,  the racial aspect came up. The media certainly decided to prod at this aspect and took advantage of the story of a "white"(?) man killing a black man (or child?). Using this, exploring the racial aspect must certainly have been good for ratings and sales. But beyond the easy tactics, the media also distorted certain things to heavily influence people to form a certain opinion. (I know how shocking, simply shocking it must be, to hear that the media does such things.)

I had heard or read Zimmerman described as white, latino, and white-latino. I had heard/read that Zimmerman was injured. Other sources said he was not injured, one source I heard saying that a video of Zimmerman in custody showed him having no injuries. Some said Trayvon could be heard yelling on a recording; others said it was Zimmerman. Pictures of Martin shown on the news have reportedly been younger photos of Martin - obviously intended to make certain that Martin is definitely perceived as younger and innocent. 

The details became so many and so obscured by media influence that I realized I couldn't form an accurate enough opinion of what happened unless I had witnessed this first-hand. But I realized a parallel that deserved to be written about here.

For readers here, it is no secret how misandrist the media is, and how heavily to one side it leans. In matters of a story involving violence between a man and woman, the man is almost always going to be the "perpetrator" and the woman is almost always going to be the "victim," regardless of facts. Heavy-handed tactics will be used to influence peoples' views of what happened, regardless of what the story is. But some stories are easier to use nefariously than others.

Just as the media desires to fan the flames of distrust between races, the media also desires to fan the flames of distrust between the sexes. Misandry, of course, is a result of that. And the media is very good at creating tension, anger (at only the "appropriate" targets of course), and distrust among groups, especially along racial and gender lines.

Seeing a controversial story unfold in the media, and jumping to conclusions (after having every "fact" fed to you by the media) is tantamount to a fish biting biting the bait. No matter how certain one is of the facts, it's an easy trap to fall into. Forming an opinion based off of media influence is ubiquitous, invasive, and is easily used to influence people to absorb any idea the media desires, at the whims of the media.

The stories may be different, but the aims of the media in feeding them to us in its distorted way remains the same. So the next time a controversial story appears in the news, and you see people getting riled up, angry, and indignant, consider how controlled and scripted it really is.