asymptoticlife.com

“The transition to a no-growth economy (or one in which growth is defined in a fundamentally different way) is inevitable, but it will go much better if we plan for it rather than simply watching in dismay as institutions we have come to rely upon fail, and then try to improvise a survival strategy in their absence.”

I sit reading Richard Heinburg’s compelling article, “What if the Economy Doesn’t Recover?“  The article suggests that change is not only inevitable, but ultimately beneficial:

“Let’s be clear: I believe we are in for some very hard times. The transitional period on our way toward a post-growth, equilibrium economy will prove to be the most challenging time any of us has ever lived through. Nevertheless, I am convinced that we can survive this collective journey, and that if we make sound choices as families and communities, life can actually be better for us in the decades ahead than it was during the heady days of seemingly endless economic expansion.”

Outside my window, in my temporary office here at the Santa Monica Airport, sit two twin-engine private jets.  I don’t know enough about aircraft to identify them, but I do know that a Gulfstream IV uses 5,000 pounds of fuel per hour for the first hour and 3,000 pounds per hour cruising.  That works out to about 184 gallons per hundred miles for a 500 mile flight.  Compare that with my Saturn SL1, which uses 2.6 gallons per hundred miles on the highway.  A Toyota Prius can make the same journey on 2.1 gallons, a Hummer H2 would use 10 gallons.  (The G-IV is rated for 14-19 passengers, but most of the private jets that take off here have one or two passengers, making them comparable to an automobile.)

Measuring the same modes of transportation by CO2 emissions, a G-IV would emit 3,882 pounds of CO2, while my Saturn would emit 51 pounds, a Prius 41 pounds, and an H2 196 pounds.

To me, private jets symbolize the propositions that our resources are unlimited, and our waste irrelevant– two propositions obviously flawed on their face.  We cannot argue that oil is infinite– that is an absurdity.  We can argue that we need not worry about running out in our lifetime, though the facts suggest otherwise.  Likewise, we cannot argue that our trash is irerelevant– that leads to the absurdity of a planet filled with trash that has nowhere to go.  We can argue that the trash we produce will have no effect during our lifetimes, but again, the facts suggest otherwise.  And even if they didn’t, what about the lifetimes of our children and grandchildren?

Last week, I quoted a Wall Street Journal editorial that suggested this is the first generation of Americans who do not believe their children will have it better than they have.  Yet we participate daily in a system that ensures this will be so.

Many will argue that there is nothing we can do, that we must try to convince our leaders to act because our own efforts can have no effect.  That just isn’t so.  In fact, our leaders are unlikely to act until forced to do so.  Meanwhile, it’s up to us.  And there’s plenty we can do, we just have to stop waiting for others and do it ourselves.