Monday, April 20, 2009

Crash Course: Chapter 2

THE THREE "E"s


So, what do I mean when I say, “Massive change is upon us…”? Well, here’s where we need to burrow into the three “E”s, which is where we’ll spend the rest of our time in the Crash Course.

The first “E” is the Economy, which is the lens through which the Crash Course looks at everything. Within the Economy, there are four primary areas of concern: Exponential money, the first-ever collapse of a global credit binge, an aging population, and a national failure to save. If it isn’t clear to you what these mean, don’t worry; we’ll be discussing each of these in detail.

The next “E” is Energy, and there we will discuss what Peak Oil implies for an economic system that is based on continual expansion. This topic is important enough that I should dedicate the entire Crash Course to it, but I can’t, and I won’t.

And finally, the third “E”, the Environment, will be exerting its own unknowable but certainly significant economic burdens, due to shrinking resources and other systemic pressures, at the same time that the other two “E”s will be clamoring for your money and attention.

The story that I am going to weave for you cuts across all three “E”s and will make the claim that our monetary system is badly out of step with reality and will suffer severe instability and possibly collapse as a result.

It is fair to say that this particular constellation of issues, problems if you will, has never been faced before at these levels.

Never.

Whether you find this terrifying or exhilarating is simply a matter of your mindset. One key towards easing your mind is being armed with accurate and detailed information. This is what the Crash Course will deliver.

When viewed individually, each one of these sub-areas on each one of these “E”s could entirely consume your entire attention. But I am going to make the claim that these problems are so intertwined that they cannot be solved in isolation. All three “E”s will need to be considered at the same time.

How are they linked? By something very powerful that we desperately need to understand a lot better. Please join me for Chapter 3: Exponential Growth.

Thank you for listening.

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