Thursday, March 26, 2015

Can't have both

Oceans are turning acid, methane is releasing, currents are changing. There may still be time to save our species, but, unfortunately, the profit system still has the upper hand.

The hope of renewable energy seems logical, until you look at the details. Most renewable energy systems require quite a bit of fossil-fuel support. But there is a more dangerous problem. Hoping for technology breakthroughs is giving a false sense that solutions are coming.

As renewable energy is added to the for-profit inputs, it extends the life of the current system. It does not reduce the use of fossil-fuel, because all savings are immediately absorbed into the growth machine.

There is a solution that hits the Achilles heel of growth. First, make urban buses fare-free. Second, make cities car-free. This will break the critical mass of the private auto and sprawl. As people urbanize, the birth rate falls. There will be room for permaculture in the city, and the suburbs can become organic farms.