#Peakoil and pushing on a string

Imagine the economy as a wagon with one string attached to the front and one at the back. When energy is cheap, the wagon is pulled forward by the front string. The string at the rear represents monetary policy. Pulling on the rear string prevents the economy from going too fast.

Cheap energy is over. There is nothing pulling the wagon. Now the 1% is trying to move the wagon by pushing on the string at the back.

It is clear that a new system is needed. We, the 99%, must make it happen. There are things we can do now, under the current system, that will smooth the transition. First, let's stop wasting energy. Autosprawl, the system of cars, highways, and suburbs, is a waste of energy. It seems all-powerful, but in fact it is very weak and getting weaker. If we make buses free in the city, we can break its back.

Printing money can not, will not, solve #peakoil

Feasta: "Over the last few years central banks have had a policy of quantitative easing to try to keep interest rates low – the economy cannot pay high energy prices AND high interest rates so, in effect, the policy has been to try to bring down interest rates as low as possible to counter the stagnation. However, this has not really created production growth – it has instead created a succession of asset price bubbles. The underlying trend continues to be one of stagnation, decline and crisis. The severity of the recessions may be variable in different countries because competitive strength in this model goes to those countries where energy is used most efficiently and which can afford to pay somewhat higher prices for energy. Such countries are likely to do better but will not escape the general decline if they stay wedded to the conventional growth model. Whatever the variability this is still a dead end model and at some point people will see that entirely different ways of thinking about economy and ecology are needed – unless they get drawn into conflicts and wars over energy by psychopathic policy idiots. There is no way out of the Catch 22 within the growth economy model. That’s why de-growth is needed."

Investment in #publictransit pays huge dividends. APTA has the numbers.

Poland steadily adopting #freetransit town by town

http://fptpoland.blogspot.com

Sao Paulo - instead of strike, metro workers call for opening the turnstiles

Free Fare Movement - Brazil: "metroviarios.org.br : "One of the resolutions of the meeting of the day 20/5 was the formation of a committee to define how the release of the turnstiles will be taken during the Wage Campaign. The Committee will organize this activity, which may happen even before the possible strike category. This discussion will be taken to the areas that members can decide on the best way to perform the activity ""

Kuala Lumpur free buses generate excitement

New Straits Times: "FAST, CLEAN AND FREE!
Yes, in case you haven’t heard, there is a smarter way to get around KL without having to worry about getting stuck in traffic, parking, etc."

Let's encourage those who are reducing our costs

The car culture is subsidized. Profits are privatized, costs are socialized. It is a heavy burden on the taxpayer and the economy.

There is a simple cure -- public transit. Public transit users are keeping costs down by not driving. Every time someone gets on a bus, that is less pollution, less congestion, better health, fewer collisions, less distracted driving, less money sent out of town for gasoline, etc, etc.

Fares ration service, and punish people for reducing the car subsidy burden. Let's stop charging fares.

The great imaginary California oil boom: Over before it started

Resource Insights : "The pending 96 percent reduction in estimated deep shale oil resources in California revealed last week in the Los Angeles Times calls into question the oil industry's premise of a decades-long revival in U.S. oil production and the already implausible predictions of American energy independence. The reduction also appears to bolster the view of long-time skeptics that the U.S. shale oil boom--now centered in North Dakota and Texas--will likely be short-lived, petering out by the end of this decade."

As “Transportation Cliff” Nears, Unions Rally for Public Transit

Working In These Times: "“We need a long-term mass transit highway reauthorization bill, one that has real money to finance America’s infrastructure, highways, bridges, mass transit systems, so we don’t sink into a Third World in terms of mobility for tens of millions of people every day,” says Harry Lombardo, president of TWU. “Two years ago, instead of coming up with a comprehensive program and financing it to rebuild the infrastructure of America and expand mass transit or at least maintain it as we know it, they kicked the can down the road.”"



Photo - ATU

Zero fare!

https://www.facebook.com/tarifazerobh?