This is a very deeply interesting documentary about oil, oil supplies, the peak oil phenomenon, and the coming looming disasters which await us. The documentary is not "balanced" in that they gave no voice to the other points of view, but I suppose they think those other points of view are so far out of truth to not be worth addressing.
It starts with some assertions of truth: Oil is the Blood of the Dinosaurs, Oil is the Bloodstream of the Global Economy, Oil is the Blood of the Earth
Today I want to talk about the Peak Oil situation and do an overview of some of the current news related to this.
Let's start with a quick primer on what this is.
Adapted from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_oil http://www.7gen.com/website/peak-oil/23988-peak-oil
Hmm... "Oil prices could hit $200 a barrel in the next few months. How the spike changes everything." ... Oh, really? Yeah, this is a big problem alright. The article starts off with the average gas price "edging towards $4 per gallon"... er, in California it's been over $4 per gallon for quite awhile ... in any case it's obvious that the higher price is going to cause the populace to make some changes. This happened in the 1970's during the prior oil price shock, as that was the previous time in which efficient cars were popular. It's happening again.
The OPEC Annual Statistical Bulletin provides much grist for exploring the question: "So is Saudi production about to nosedive"? If Saudi production were to nosedive it would indicate the world oil peak having been reached.
Maybe Saudi production nosedived in late 2005. Maybe the Saudi's are voluntarily holding back production so they can manipulate the market.
Summary
 | The End of Suburbia: Oil Depletion and the Collapse of the American D Ream asin: B000VXUV5A |
"It used to be that only environmentalists and paranoids warned about running out of oil." But times are changing and there is more and more awareness of the peak oil phenomenon. The ever-rising price of oil and other events are making it abundantly clear that the oil industry is in crisis. "With global demand inexorably rising, a limited supply will bring higher, more volatile prices and eventually shortages that could provoke -- to quote the title of the must-see peak oil documentary -- the end of suburbia."
In the 1970's there was a fake oil crisis which caught everybody's attention. At least for awhile, until the easily distracted Americans forgot and Reagan was elected, and we went back to driving SUV's as if there were no limit to the oil.
American policies were designed for a world economic arrangement of $20 per barrel of oil. Oil is now at $120 per barrel and climbing. There may be, in the short term, a decrease in the price of oil if the short term supply situation straightens itself out. However, long term, the price of oil is only going to go up. As our dear president said, America is Addicted to Oil but like true addicts we haven't even entered the first step in the 12 step program to recovery. We haven't admitted to our addiction and are in deep denial.
 | Energy Crossroads: A burning need to change course, asin: B000SNWA2A |
 | Transport Revolutions: Moving People and Freight Without Oil author: Richard Gilbert,Anthony Perl asin: 1844072487 |
The authors of Transport Revolutions: Moving People and Freight Without Oil were interviewed by the CBC about Peak Oil. "The likely outcome of not dealing with this issue is not an environmental catastrophe. It's an economic and social catastrophe that may leave us unable to deal with the environmental catastrophe," The gushers are gone and that's significant. Big oil discoveries aren't happening any longer.
'In January, Jeroen van der Veer, chief executive officer of Royal Dutch/Shell, e-mailed his staff that the world will peak in conventional oil and gas within the decade. He wrote: "Shell estimates that after 2015 supplies of easy-to-access oil and gas will no longer keep up with demand." It used to be unheard of for oil executives to talk about limits to oil production. ' Several other oil company executives are saying the same thing.
"André Angelantoni, founder, Inspiring Green Leadership, hosts the free, bi-weekly Peak Oil, Climate Change and Business Online Executive Briefing, which educates businesses and individuals on the coming oil shock and how they can prepare for it." He is interviewed by Meredith Medlin of Living Green Effortlessly. He is talking of the coming oil crunch which is an inevitable result of the peak oil phenomenon.
