Wednesday, May 23, 2007

It's The End Of The World As We Know It

When a society collapses, it rapidly loses complexity.
Its internal organization and institutions, laws, and
technologies become dramatically simpler, while
its inhabitants’ range of social roles and potential
behaviors is sharply narrowed. Many people suffer,
because without complex institutions, technologies,
and social roles, societies can’t keep large populations
living well. After collapse, people consume far less,
move around far less, communicate far less, and die
far sooner.
Entire article by Thomas Homer-Dixon.

What can we do? In truth, a great deal. First,
though, we need to recognize that episodes of crisis or
breakdown are not always bad things—if they’re not
too severe, and if societies are ready, they can create
both the motivation and opportunity for renewal and
regeneration.
Keeping breakdown from becoming catastrophic
means making our technologies, economies, and
communities more resilient. For instance we
can increase the ability of cities, towns, and even
households to produce essential goods and services,
such as energy and food, instead of depending
completely on distant producers of these things for
our day-to-day survival—as we do now.

4 comments:

FOUR DINNERS said...

That's one of me favourite REM tunes. I'm singin away here now. I've put it on the pc......

I think I just missed the point. Typical.

Candy Minx said...

No you didn't 4Dins. thanks for chiming in...the song indicates some hope or positive outcome...a kind of zen. And so does this article suggest that we could mobilize and have prepared communication and changes for if there were a finacial, ecological and social convergence of disasters.

Gardenia said...

Yes, I think we COULD - BUT - it isn't going to come from government.

We have New Orleans - then we have the instance of emergency preparedness grant money being used to install cameras in the bath house at the hot springs to watch the women changing clothes...........

We are too "far away from the land," when a hurricane hits and we are without water - do we know how to make water drinkable - there is exactly a 3 day food supply here before the trucks come in - and less than that probably, as people flood to the stores before the storms.........

I know the land in Wyoming, if I had a gun and fishing pole and matches and a way to reach these food spots I could survive. Then there is the matter of shelter - but then you are not talking of catastrophic breakdowns are you?

Down here, I think only of what is available in the store. I need a vegetable garden and to know how to grow it properly. My grandma grew awesome gardens in hostile environment.

She raided the landfill to recycle.

Now, she could survive!

Politically, survival is just setting up a new set of players and starting over and ending up the same. Things seem to swing in pendulums as you say - I've often viewed communism as a great equalizer - it quells religious wars, but then it (communism) becomes not popular too and religion comes back...

Oh dear, I've rambled my fuzzy way through these lasts posts of yours - you are probably saying "huh?"

Candy Minx said...

Gardenia, not at all, I love when you come and leave a comment...I hang on all your words. Not fuzzy at all. I agree we are too far from the earth and the land...we think it is our enemy and we must control it...no surrender.

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