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Def: PetroApocalypse - a metaphor for serial large-scale oil crises.
Def: manifesto: a written statement declaring publicly the intentions, motives, or views of its issuer
The Battle for Barrels is Duncan Clarke's peak oil manifesto. In this book he presents evidence about Peak Oil theory and then proceeds to argue that the concept of peak oil is a farce. He writes, "Our rapid descent into the looming, unprecedented PetroApocalyse is preordained, a Nostradamus-type event& there will be no nirvana." And then he proceeds to lay out his manifesto which was written to "debate the theory" only to end by saying, "Though no one model appears unimpeachable, theory and evidence, Machiavelli tells us, lean strongly against Peak Oil." Hmmm& how can Machiavelli tell us to lean against peak oil when he born in 1469 and the first modern oil well is believed to have been drilled around 1848? But forgive me I digress.
I don't buy it.
Regardless of what you may think, we've got some serious competition for oil and it's becoming more and more expensive to extract much of the oil in current oil fields. China and India are coming online very quickly and they need oil. America runs on oil. Oil prices impact the price for food and millions of consumer products, and is the platform for our "auto economy". And hey, what a great idea - paying nearly $120 dollars for a barrel of oil! Please charge us more!
According to the Oil Depletion Protocol's website, today, approximately 1 barrel of oil is being discovered for every 5 or 6 extracted, and according to ChevronTexaco, 33 of the 48 significant oil-producing nations worldwide (of which America is not), are experiencing declining production.
I surmise if you asked Clarke if we should be concerned he'd dismiss the notion. Midway through his treatise (on page 140 to be exact) he finally identifies the common theme of theorists, "The economists' critiques surveyed confirm the overall view of Peak Oil theory that we have been developing: it simply is not possible to generate reliable forecasts of oil production from a standard model built on an assumption of a quantum fixe and exclusion of such factors as crude prices, technologies, corporate strategies and government policy." Whew. I need a break - I'm all tuckered out.
So all you braniacs out there put on your trivial pursuit hat because it's school time. (Not quite as fun as Hammer Time, but almost!) Clarke attempts to draw parallels and innuendos to support his thesis; he pulls out historical facts, current events, entertainment, literature, and poetry to come to his final conclusion, "lean strongly against peak oil."
Right or wrong (keep reading my blogs and I'm sure I'll discover a book that intelligently debates Peak Oil theory either in full or part) reading this treatise is like being on a ship in rough seas - just when you think you have an idea of the point he's trying to make, he breaks out an analogy or chorus of a song that doesn't demonstrate the point to the length it makes you seasick.
But in honor of the infamous 1999 internet apolcalypso, "The Cluetrain Manifesto," If you only have time for one clue this year, this is the one to get& .. don't bother reading this book.
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