MIT Engineer Asks: Are You Ready for the Future?
Is it not already too late if one waits until one is thirsty to begin digging a well?
-Chinese Proverb
The devastation of New Orleans, combined with the current rash of wild fires in the West and severe weather in the East, brings home the fact that climate change and ecological collapse are bad for business (and people's lives). Ready or not, life as we know it is going to change radically over the next decade. I doubt that we will see technology fail completely, but I am certain that we will see increasing environmental and political instabilities that will create disruptions in the flow of electricity, goods, and central services to huge numbers of people, and that America will not be spared from societal disruptions on a global scale.
When Technology Fails, a book by Matthew Stein, provides something for everyone, from folks who just want to help their families when disaster strikes, to the go-it-alone survivalist, to the eco-minded person who wishes to tread more lightly on the earth, whatever the future may hold. Hurricane Katrina, the Tsunami in Asia, and 9/11 really bring it home. How many of us are prepared for disruptions of this magnitude? How will you cope if the water stops flowing out of your tap, or if gasoline and electricity are unavailable? If the doctors and hospitals are overloaded, can you deal with common medical emergencies? How can we do our part to minimize our impact on this planet, and to live more sustainably?
What is this book about?
Information / Preparedness / Networking:
- Climate Change / Hurricanes / Superstorms
- “Peak Oil” and Gasoline Shortages
- Sustainable Living / Self-Reliant Communities
- Disruptions in Supplies and Services
- Biological Terrorism / Pandemics
- Skyrocketing Energy Bills
- Earthquakes / Floods / Wildfires
Do The Right Thing!
Most of us just want to “do the right thing” for our selves, friends and families, but what is this “right thing”?
First, we must educate ourselves (knowledge is power!) about where our world is headed so we may have a realistic view of the challenges facing the world in the next few years and the following decades.
A Perspective on Relative Threats
In spite of the very real threat of terrorism, I believe that our greatest threats are from other sources. To gain some perspective, let's compare the impact of several major events:
The Main Threats to Our Future
As I see it, the four main threats to a stable American and world future are:
- PEAK OIL: The oil crisis of the 1970's was a result of a 5% drop in global oil production due to the OPEC oil embargo. We are facing an imminent, unavoidable drop in global oil production as most of the world's oil fields are now in decline. Many oil industry experts state that global oil production has essentially already reached a plateau and predict that it will start to decline sometime between this year and the year 2010. This is happening at precisely the same time that the huge populations of China and India are rapidly expanding their industrial capacities and their appetite for oil.
- ECO THREAT: Global warming and other climate changes (super storms, etc.) coupled with major ecosystem collapse are the basis for the Eco-Threat. Hurricane Katrina is a powerful example of the effects of climate change. When you consider that a single degree F of global warming so far has contributed to the changes in weather that most of us now acknowledge (RE: severity of hurricanes Katrina, Andrew, Mitch, etc.), and that a continuation of current consumption patterns is projected to result in a global warming that is 2.5 to 10 times as great over the next century, it is obvious there are potentially dire consequences for the stability and quality of human life on our planet.
- BIO THREAT: We face a potential for massive plagues due to: 1) The ability of viruses to mutate into new forms that make the jump from animal to human species (i.e. Bird Flu). 2) The widespread use of antibiotics in animal feeds makes a perfect breeding ground for growing bacteria that are resistant to modern antibiotics. 3) The potential for terrorists to secretly infect populations with deadly bacteria or viruses and for them to spread the infection globally (air travel) before it is detected.
- TERROR THREAT: The threat of terrorism is obvious. What is not quite as obvious is the connection between our dependence upon foreign oil and how it funds terrorism while putting our soldiers, engineers and oil company personnel in harms way, and draws the attacks of fanatical Muslim minorities in their attempt to drive American influences from the entire Middle East.
Preparedness Planning
I suggest that you develop a personal preparedness plan, and have prepared the following checklist which may be printed from this web site's “Articles” section:
Positive Action
Many people ask, “What can I do?” Individually we can educate ourselves and prepare ourselves to cope with future instabilities in the climate and the supply of gasoline and central services. Remember, preparedness is disaster & terrorism insurance.
