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The Fate of Our World

I was reading this article that was recommended to me by my daughter. The name of the article is "The Party's Over: Oil, War and The Fate of Industrial Society", written by Richard Heinberg. It really struck me because it made me realize how dependent on oil we are, especially here in Los Angeles, Calif. Oil is used to make plastic which is used to package our foods. Oil is used to transport our fresh foods that aren't packaged. The problem is that nonrenewable oil will run out! Not to mention that it is harmful to our environment.

We as humans think that we are different than other creatures on the earth but in reality, we are not. Heinberg states, "When other creatures gain an energy subsidy, they instinctively react by proliferating: their population goes through the well-studied stages of bloom, overshoot, and die off... [Humans] have reacted to the energy subsidy of fossil fuels exactly the way rats, fruit flies or bacteria respond to an abundant new food source." The world population is now past 7 billion (bloom), and oil is not getting easier to extract. 


To avoid the overshoot and die off, we have to find new ways to meet our energy needs, but it will also take lifestyle changes.

It is never "too late" to do something that will make the future for our children and their children, and so on, better. But we need to do it now. We cannot wait another 10, 15, or 20 years. If we wait, then it will be too late. Can we do it without effort? No. Can we do it painlessly? No. But it can be done. We all need to unite and do it together.

Becoming more locally independent for our basic human needs like food, water, and shelter is one of the most important things we can do. Some of the things we can do as individuals is grow our own foods. Create your own Edible Garden of Eden in your own back yard. Many people complain that they don't have the time, space or green thumb. But really it's a lot easier than everybody thinks.

There is hope for our future generations to live in a sustainable world where they do not have to feel that our survival or the survival of the earth is threatened. However a world dependent on oil is not that world.


Article Source: Maggie Owens

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