Fun post from steelweaver about how Mad Max was inspired by the 1976 oil crisis and has some unsettling parallels with our current situation:
as I remember it, the setting for the first movie in the Mad Max series is a world where oil scarcity has led to economic disaster and the beginning of the breakdown of social order; where, whilst the police and justice systems continue to function, governmental cutbacks have diminished their ability to effectively maintain control; and where, whilst small pockets of civil society remain relatively unchanged (Max lives in a comfortable suburb with his wife and child), increasingly large areas are plagued by criminal gangs of looters.
Just saying…
In fact, the three-movie arc of the Mad Max films is in many ways a beautifully realised totally ridiculous, but excellently costumed, account of the slow breakdown of order (I), followed by total chaos (Road Warrior), followed by the first stages of re-establishing technology, trade and culture (Thunderdrome).
steelweaver: A Mad Max future
(Via Brainsturbator)
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/62WuniFMe5k/
Update: Another reason that it’s so incredibly horrible: The vast majority of the Exxon Valdez cleaners are now dead, with an average life expectancy of 51 years. (Thanks to Wade for the reminder)
My wife Jililan explains why the BP oil spill is worse than we think:
1. THEY KNEW IT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN.
2. THEY ARE NOT “ONE BAD APPLE”
3. WE WILL CONTINUE TO HEAR EMPTY PROMISES OF GREENING UP OUR ENERGY PROBLEMS, AND YET WASHINGTON WILL CONTINUE TO DO NOTHING.
4. BOYCOTTING ONE GAS COMPANY DOESN’T DO A THING.
5. EVEN IF WE DRIVE LESS, OUR LIVES ARE INEXTRICABLY LINKED TO PETROLEUM.
6. BP IS DUMPING MORE TOXIC WASTE INTO THE GULF AS PART OF THEIR “CLEANUP”
7. THE GOVERNMENT HAS DONE EVERYTHING IT CAN TO MAKE SURE BP COMES OUT ON TOP OF ALL OF THIS.
8. SO… HOW MUCH OIL IS REALLY GUSHING INTO THE GULF OF MEXICO?
Each point is expanded upon, with references.
Prime Surrealestate: The BP Spill and Why It’s Worse Than We All Think
See also: Some Oil Spill Related Articles Worth Your Attention
Related posts:
- Some Oil Spill Related Articles Worth Your Attention
- The new right-wing media mogul in town
- Alvin Toffler, Jamais Cascio, and more weigh in on the “Next Big Thing”
From http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Technoccult/~3/3FdmESIldnQ/
