The Rise Of The Excruciating Mevangelical

Is anyone particularly concerned about the rise of hyper-individualism and its perceived negative consequences? 

William Blakes, Paradise Lost

The Erosion of Collective Purpose and the Rise of the Mevangelical

A fundamental shift occurred, moving away from a societal structure where individuals derived purpose from inherited roles and community obligations to one where purpose is self-invented. Now that relatively affluent societies have ‘progressed’ through several periods of ‘enlightenment,’ exacerbated by modern consumerism and digital ‘culture,’ we are firmly enbubbled “Mevangelicals.”

Mevangelicals are narcissists, or budding narcissists, obsessed with their experiences, their things, and how much the Universe, God, and other people love them. They are also acutely aware of the many rigorous challenges, the hard work, and the terrible traumas they’ve endured and continue to endure to remain powerful, self-actualized, and hyper-individuals with a godlike purpose. They are heroes in a mythomaniacal story playing out on a cosmic stage.

One significant manifestation of this is the decline in traditional community engagement and civic participation. Religious affiliation and attendance have seen a steady decline. While not a direct measure of community, religious institutions historically served as strong communal anchors.

Membership in voluntary associations and civic groups has also decreased. While specific comprehensive, recent data across all types of groups is complex to aggregate, studies by organizations like the National Council of Nonprofits and analyses of data from the General Social Survey (GSS) indicate a long-term trend of declining participation in traditional civic groups (e.g., parent-teacher associations, labor unions, fraternal organizations) since the mid-20th century. This contributes to a feeling of disconnectedness, as the avenues for shared purpose outside of individual pursuits diminish.

This shift fosters a sense of personal responsibility for well-being that can become overwhelming. When there's no inherited code to determine what one ought to do, individuals are left to construct their own moral frameworks, often leading to a hedonic treadmill and an 'avoid pain at all costs' heuristic.

Our capitalist culture does this by design. We are programmed to pay rent and consume to facilitate financial transactions in the markets that funnel capital returns to large institutions and their shareholders. 

Our growth-obsessed economy is a cancer to living systems and causes mental illnesses that seem normal to us. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported in 2022 that the global prevalence of anxiety and depression increased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, with an estimated 25% increase in both. While multifactorial, the pressure of individual self-reliance and the absence of robust communal support systems can exacerbate these struggles. Chronic anxieties, climate despair, narcissism, addiction, and depression are logical and inevitable symptoms of hyper-individualism.

There is an Increased focus on personal healing journeys. You’re nothing if not healing. The intergenerational trauma trend suggests it has become another self-referential pursuit. Therapeutic work is essential in some cases, but we are now seeing a cultural emphasis on individual introspection and recovery, sometimes at the expense of outward-looking, collective action or gratitude. This is less about specific statistics and more about a cultural narrative that has gained prominence, often seen in popular discourse around wellness and self-help. 

The Pervasive Influence of the Attention Economy and Consumerism

Our popular consumer economy stems from deep-seated desires that are often exploited by evangelical preachers, snake oil salesmen, marketing geniuses, public relations partnerships, think tanks, and now large language models powered by massive, energy-hungry data centers, which continue to shape our beliefs and thoughts, influencing our actions and behaviors. Our attention-driven economy, particularly amplified by social media, has intensified the focus on individual gratification and external validation. 

We are all Mevangelicals now.

Consider the following trends:

According to data from Statista, in 2024, the average daily time spent on social media by internet users worldwide is approximately 2 hours and 23 minutes. This sustained engagement exposes individuals to constant streams of curated, often aspirational, content, fueling comparisons and the desire for immediate gratification. The "Main Character Syndrome" and the continuous live posting of one’s life are direct consequences of this environment.

We are all aspirational consumers. The global influencer marketing industry was valued at approximately $21.1 billion in 2023 (Influencer Marketing Hub). This industry thrives on presenting idealized lifestyles and promoting products as pathways to personal fulfillment, directly mirroring the historical redemption promised by earlier marketers. The emphasis is on TAG Heuer watches and red-bottomed shoes. Blue checks and Big Dumb Hats as symbols of smarter, sexier, more respected, or more spiritual directly illustrate this trend.

America flunks the marshmallow test every single time. If we are not instantly gratified, we are chumps. While it is challenging to quantify broadly, behavioral economics research consistently highlights a human tendency towards immediate rewards, a trait that is often exploited by consumer culture. The proliferation of "buy now, pay later" schemes and instant delivery services caters to this ingrained desire for immediate satisfaction, reinforcing the idea that later doesn't cut it. Our addictions demand to be satiated. If we can’t maintain addictions, we are losers.

The Looming Challenge of a Less Secure Future

For at least a century, we have lived in a consumptive, redemptive capitalism that’s about to peak and will soon come to an end. Future generations will face a less prosperous and stable reality than their predecessors. This sentiment is increasingly reflected in public opinion and economic indicators.

Even people with inherited wealth believe they won’t do as well as their parents. They can see natural systems breaking down and feel that things are changing fast. While precise, consistently tracked data on this exact sentiment can vary by survey, multiple polls corroborate a growing concern. For example, a 2023 survey by the Pew Research Center found that 65% of Americans believe the next generation will be worse off financially than their parents' generation.

Economic anxieties reflect concrete economic realities. In June 2024, the annual inflation rate in the Eurozone was 2.6%. Although varying, many Western economies have experienced periods of elevated inflation in recent years. Simultaneously, personal savings rates have fluctuated, with many households feeling the squeeze. For instance, the personal saving rate in the United States has seen significant declines from pandemic highs, indicating less financial buffer for many.

Social Security benefits may not be available as early as 2037. While projections vary slightly, the 2024 Trustees' Report for Social Security and Medicare in the U.S. projects that the Social Security trust funds will be able to pay 100% of scheduled benefits until the mid-2030s, at which point, if no legislative action is taken, they will be able to pay about 83% of benefits. This concrete concern adds to the sense of future instability. 

There are numerous weak points in the structure of our economic system, all of which relate to limits to growth. Highlighting a few can never adequately illustrate the precariousness of our current circumstances.

We are animals embedded in complex living systems with emergent properties that are further embedded in natural cosmic systems that are unfathomable to us now. We must learn our place in the natural order of the world and discover and create cultures that can thrive in humble harmony within our environment.

Before we check into rehabilitation, we will have destroyed so much and suffered so much violence and indignity that it will make our current traumas seem mild. Tragically, we don’t belong to transgenerational, integrated, integral, intimate communities that could help us avoid the horrendous pain of detoxification. The road back to good health will be a precarious, arduous, and long journey. We can only pray some of us will get there.

It is the intuitive feeling that our hardships have only begun that makes some of us pine for more traditional times, times we can hardly imagine.

The Bottom Line Is Profits First

How's that for redundancy? That's the nutshell, the crux of the biscuit, raison d'etre, the core ethos of modern techno-industrial civilization.

“The genocide in Gaza has not stopped because it’s lucrative.” — Francesca Albanese

Francesca P. Albanese is an Italian legal scholar and expert on human rights. On 1 May 2022, she was appointed United Nations Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories for a three-year term, which was then renewed for another three years. She is the first woman to hold the position. Wikipedia

This is the comment I left on the video: People in the global north don't want to transform their cultures, but people in the south still harbor the dream. Yanis Varoufakis illustrated this quite clearly in a recent video. It's a damn shame that the world can't expect the global north to do anything to mitigate the worst outcomes of the polycrisis which is a suite of symptoms produced by modern humans going back thousands of years and differentiated today only by its tools. At our current scale and mode of civilization, the only thing we can presume to be probable is the self-termination of our civilization and the extinction of humans. Existential threats only get more pernicious and dangerous. You've watched this for decades. What can we do to instill an operational mindset for transforming human culture when we are all utterly powerless and living in a fantasy world? We will be talking about our problems until we are finally unplugged, and then life will return to normal, for most of us, a nasty, brutish, and short existence. Death, war, global heating, and talking about this absurd madness are all lucrative. I hope you two are at least making a living. We appreciate your insights and noble efforts at laying bare these injustices.

Recently, I embarked on a research binge, examining typical U.S. pro-business organizations and lobbying groups. Many of the groups I have explored over the past thirty years—Citizens United, The Federalist, and many others. These organizations exist under a fanatical ideological veneer, used as a passionate, performative cover for activities solely focused on ensuring that money goes to the right people, businesses, politicians, special interest groups, and governments. The Right accuses the Left of unfairly and unscrupulously funding its causes and vice versa. All groups from Fare Right to Fare Left in the United States are corporatist and may as well be fascist adjacent. One way or another, the only organizations that survive and thrive are those that drive profiteering. Modern, techno-industrial, fossil-fueled, global, and financialized capitalism, with its dark tetrad characteristics evident from China to the Middle East, Africa, Vietnam, India, Australia, and beyond, has the whole world in its grip, driven by profiteering. The primary activities of these individuals and institutions are transforming material and energy throughputs into profits.

I have friends and acquaintances who are service providers, supporting individuals who prioritize profit; they are professionals, including cooks, sailors, pilots, healthcare workers, journalists, and content creators, among others. If you have not made your way by hook, crook, or hard effort to a place where you earn most of your money from capital on capital returns, you are most probably in the business of providing services to those who are.

I used GENINI to research one such organization whose mission is to follow left-leading money, what CRP would consider “evil money.” There are organizations on the Left doing the same thing, and they are all lucrative, or they wouldn’t be in business. They are all supported by wealthy donors and contributions from large corporations.

Use these research tools while you still have some semblance of agency. Soon, AI will be ubiquitous and invisible, and it will run everything. People will be treated as utterly domesticated pets, tolerated by the elite upper class, while we, the plebs and proles, the only labor saving meat bags left, implement their dystopian immortality project aimed at conquering the Universe. The actual outcome of these activities will be human extinction, but as they say, it will have been a fantastic ride.

***I am linking to a Google document of the full report; otherwise, this post would be very long. ;-)

Case Study

The Capital Research Center: A Comprehensive Analysis of its Mission, Operations, and Influence

I. Executive Summary

The Capital Research Center (CRC) is a conservative 501(c)(3) non-profit investigative think tank based in Washington, D.C., founded in 1984 by Willa Johnson. Its foundational mission is to scrutinize non-profit organizations, with a particular emphasis on “reviving the American traditions of charity, philanthropy, and voluntarism.” CRC explicitly adheres to principles of “free markets, Constitutional government, and individual liberty.” It functions as a “watchdog group” specifically tasked with monitoring “liberal money in politics” and actively discouraging corporate donations to organizations it identifies as liberal or anti-business.

As a conservative watchdog, CRC conducts “fact-based investigations” to expose the agendas of funders, activists, and politicians who, in CRC’s view, exploit governmental power for their special interests. A cornerstone of its operational strategy is the publication of InfluenceWatch, an extensive online encyclopedia detailing political influencers, as well as producing documentaries through its Dangerous Documentaries project.

CRC has garnered attention for its comprehensive investigations into “dark money” networks, such as Arabella Advisors, alleging their substantial impact on progressive causes and electoral processes. Conversely, CRC has faced its share of scrutiny, including accusations of funding climate science disinformation advertisements and criticisms concerning its characterization of individuals affiliated with left-leaning organizations. Its media bias is independently rated as “Lean Right” by AllSides.

CRC’s stated mission to “revive American traditions of charity, philanthropy, and voluntarism” is not merely an academic pursuit but a strategic ideological framework. By positioning itself as a defender of “traditional” philanthropy, CRC implicitly critiques contemporary philanthropic practices, particularly those it labels “liberal” or “progressive,” as deviations from these traditions. This allows CRC to present its “watchdog” activities as upholding fundamental American values rather than purely partisan opposition. The act of “reviving” implies that these traditions have been lost or corrupted, thereby establishing a normative framework for what constitutes “good” charity, aligned with their conservative, free-market values. This rhetorical choice provides a moral and historical justification for their investigative work, positioning their critiques as a defense of foundational American principles rather than simply partisan opposition.

IX. Conclusion

The Capital Research Center stands as a prominent and influential conservative watchdog organization firmly rooted in its mission to scrutinize non-profit organizations and monitor “liberal money in politics.” Since its founding in 1984, CRC has consistently operated from a clear ideological framework, advocating for free markets, constitutional government, and individual liberty. Its commitment to these principles guides its extensive investigative reporting, which aims to expose what it perceives as the undue influence of left-wing financiers and activist groups on American society and policy.

CRC’s operational model is characterized by its reliance on “fact-based investigations” and a multi-platform dissemination strategy. Through its flagship publication, Capital Research magazine, its comprehensive online encyclopedia, InfluenceWatch.org, various special reports, podcasts, and documentaries, CRC effectively amplifies its findings to a diverse audience, ranging from policy researchers to the general public. This integrated approach underscores its strategic intent to not only inform but also to actively shape conservative narratives and influence public and policy discourse. The organization’s financial growth, combined with its deep connections to a network of conservative philanthropists and political figures, further solidifies its position as a well-resourced and impactful entity within the conservative ecosystem.

While CRC asserts its objectivity and independence, its explicit “Lean Right” bias and the nature of its critiques position it as a partisan actor in the broader political landscape. Controversies, such as those surrounding its funding of climate science advertisements or its characterization of individuals associated with left-wing movements, highlight the contentious nature of its work and the ideological lens through which its investigations are conducted.

Ultimately, the Capital Research Center continues to play a significant role in the ongoing ideological battles within American politics and philanthropy. By meticulously tracking financial flows and dissecting the operations of organizations it deems ideologically opposed, CRC serves as a consistent voice in the conservative movement, contributing to debates on issues ranging from election integrity and environmental policy to the very nature and purpose of charity in a democratic society. Its ongoing efforts underscore the complex interplay between philanthropy, political advocacy, and ideological influence in the contemporary United States.

I strongly recommend the above documentary series and the following books.

What is Profit

Money makes the world go around. It’s a strain for most people to imagine a world where one doesn’t buy happiness. People who strive to be better than others often struggle with concepts of equality and equity, let alone simply being a humble animal embedded in Great Nature. What’s the point of living and working hard if you can’t be better than others and have power over others, over all living things, great and small, and let’s not stop there, over the Universe or even the Multiverse? The conquistador mentality goes back to the dawn of civilization thousands of years ago. What differentiates modernity from the olden days (throw a dart at a timeline) is its tools.

The contemporary discourse surrounding economic activity frequently frames profit-seeking as a driving force behind globalized, techno-industrial, and financialized capitalism. This perspective often portrays profit as a fanatical ideological veneer that masks activities solely focused on directing wealth to specific individuals, businesses, and political entities. Profiteering is the ultimate objective, transforming material and energy throughputs into financial gains, irrespective of broader societal implications. We must move beyond such a singular, critical interpretation to dissect the multifaceted concept of profit, exploring its definitive economic definitions, abstract theoretical underpinnings, historical evolution, and complex societal impacts. The analysis distinguishes between the neutral economic concept of profit and the pejorative profiteering to provide a more nuanced understanding of this pervasive influence on modern culture.

Conclusion: Profit as a Dynamic and Contested Concept

Profit, at its core, is a definitive economic calculation—the surplus of revenue over explicit and implicit costs. However, its true nature, origin, and role in society are subject to abstract and diverse theoretical interpretations, ranging from a reward for capital accumulation and entrepreneurial foresight to a product of labor exploitation. This inherent duality highlights the profound complexity of the concept and the ongoing academic and societal debates surrounding it.

Historically, profit has been an undeniable engine of innovation, economic growth, and efficient resource allocation, profoundly shaping modern industrial and technological societies. Its pursuit has driven advancements that have significantly increased productivity and improved living standards for many. Yet, the analysis also reveals that the unchecked pursuit of profit has led to significant societal challenges, including escalating wealth inequality, widespread labor exploitation within global supply chains, environmental degradation, and undue corporate influence on political systems. These negative manifestations often align with the concept of profiteering, where ethical boundaries are transgressed or systemic conditions permit exploitation. The initial critique of profiteering highlights a valid concern about the consequences of profit when it operates without sufficient ethical or regulatory constraints.

Modern culture is increasingly grappling with the paradox of profit: how to leverage its powerful incentives for progress while effectively mitigating its negative externalities. The rise and growing adoption of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles indicate a significant societal demand and a growing business imperative to reconcile profit maximization with broader ethical and sustainable development goals. This suggests a potential evolution in the cultural narrative of success, moving beyond purely monetary terms to embrace a more balanced view of prosperity that encompasses social well-being and environmental stewardship. The fundamental challenge for the future lies in designing and implementing economic systems and institutional frameworks that can effectively channel the profit motive towards inclusive and sustainable outcomes, ensuring that the transformation of material and energy throughputs benefits all of humanity rather than exclusively serving a select few.

***You can listen to a brief “note-generated” podcast of the report.

***To read the report, click on the link in the heading above.

But seriously, folks, the business-as-usual concepts of profit need to be consigned to the dustbin of history. We need a reality-based, symbiotic idea of value that stems from living systems embedded within Great Nature’s living systems.

Reality as understood by the heart, the imagination, science, physics, biology, love, empathy, and compassion.

For now, though, one can still dream of conquest, vicious competition, control of resources, and making thousands of times more money than a well-compensated corporate lawyer.

The inherent conflict between endless growth-driven profit and the finite nature of our planet is the crux of modernity’s existential predicament. When profit-making becomes the sole, unconstrained objective, it most often disregards ecological limits and social well-being, leading to a self-terminating system. This relentless pursuit of financial gain, particularly within the frameworks of neoliberal and neoconservative ideologies, prioritizes market efficiency and deregulation above all else. These frameworks, while promising prosperity through unchecked capitalism, often externalize the actual costs of production onto the environment and marginalized communities.

TESCREAL Anarcho Capitalists spend the world’s resources accelerating towards a fantasy machine where they compete forever for profits in the cloud.

The “Profit Fist” ideology fosters a “business as usual” mentality that accelerates resource depletion, drives ecocide through habitat destruction and pollution, and exacerbates global heating by prioritizing fossil fuel extraction and consumption. The profitability of war tragically incentivizes conflict, leading to further resource consumption and human suffering, truly embodying a form of “genocide” through economic and political means. Such a system, predicated on infinite growth within a finite world, inevitably leads to “overshoot” – humanity’s demand exceeding the Earth’s regenerative capacity – ultimately undermining the very living systems it depends upon.

The uncritical adherence to these ideologies, which champion profit maximization at any cost, is profoundly destructive. They foster a short-term perspective that overlooks the long-term implications for ecosystem health and social equity within the bounds of evolving natural living systems. In a world grappling with ecological collapse, war, ensuing famine, global heating, and escalating social crises, a paradigm shift is urgently needed to redefine success beyond mere financial accumulation, recognizing that true prosperity must be rooted in peacemaking, ecological stewardship, sustainability, and distributive justice. Otherwise, the current trajectory of profit-driven exploitation will indeed prove to be a self-terminating path for both human civilization and the planet’s intricate web of life.

Do people in the Global North want new narratives and better, healthier, happier, and more fulfilling ways of life? Ways of life rooted in sustainable cultures of place and interconnectedness. Can they imagine what that might be? Would they sacrifice one hour a day to remove the venal vandals running the world from their jobs and replace them with people who cherish life?

I have many acquaintances who think our present norms are optimal, or at least that they can’t do much to improve them anyway. We live in “the best of all possible worlds.” Many people believe that whatever is happening is part of God’s plan. These people are relatively wealthy and accustomed to being able to buy whatever they need to make them comfortable, secure, and “happy.” I wish I could say they will notice the polycrisis when it starts to hurt, but I doubt it, and it’s too late anyway. When it starts to hurt, they will have already been trained to blame others, and their emotions and reactions will be monetized. They will act out in a violent, chaotic panic or give up. One thing I think will most probably feel is pride, no matter how bad things get. They will believe they are on the right team until the bitter end.

Someday, the last King will die on a golf course in Tasmania, and life will go on without the wise ape.

© 2025 Steven Cleghorn

Running A Critique of Capitalism Through The Reality-Lens

Prompting recursive perspectives on an article by an honest thinker struggling with the only world religion that impacts living systems and material and energy throughput.

I input a lengthy prompt into Gemini and vetted the results, as well as the reference materials cited in the results. I also edited the text for clarity. Gemini outputs what I was looking for, more or less. This is the confirmation bias factor of LLM librarians: the more you know about a topic, the better your results will seem, requiring you to do the necessary work of analyzing your results critically and the thought processes you used to access them. So why do I maintain my train of thought? How did I acquire it? Why do I cling to it? One must always be aware of why one thinks the way one does.

The article in question is:

Trump’s Tariffs: Everything You Wanted to Know about Them but Were Afraid to Ask the Bond Market

GEMINI Response (edited)

The article "Everything You Wanted to Know about Them but Were Afraid to Ask the Bond Market" offers a stark critique of contemporary financial capitalism, portraying it as a system in terminal decline, sustained only by a "credit addiction" and "manipulated emergencies." While the article primarily focuses on macroeconomics and financial mechanisms, its underlying narrative strongly resonates with the perspectives of "limits to growth," physics, biology, and degrowth, particularly when viewed through the lenses of the provided experts and concepts.

Analysis through the "Limits to Growth" Lens

The core argument of the article—that the current economic system is self-cannibalizing and unsustainable, requiring ever-increasing credit and "emergencies" to stave off collapse—aligns directly with the warnings of Donella H. Meadows, Dennis L. Meadows, Jørgen Randers, and William W. Behrens III in "The Limits to Growth." Their System Dynamics Modeling (World3 model) predicted that exponential growth in a finite system would lead to "overshoot and collapse." The article precisely describes a system of 'Buzz Lightyear territory: 'to QE infinity and beyond,' where growth is disconnected from productive capacity and real resources, sustained by financial illusion. This is the financial manifestation of overshoot, where the system has exceeded its real carrying capacity and is now living on borrowed time (and borrowed money).

Gaya Herrington's updated research on the World3 model further reinforces this. Her findings that the "business-as-usual" (BAU) scenario closely tracks real-world data, indicating a high likelihood of overshoot and collapse in the coming decades, perfectly frame the article's depiction of a system "fatally damaged" and in "slow-motion collapse. " The article's assertion that "the past has no future" and the "nostalgic pining for the mass work society of post-WWII Fordism is a chimera" echoes the Limits to Growth message that fundamental changes are required, not just a return to past economic models.

The article's discussion of the "mother of all vicious circles" in debt-chasing-debt, where the "absolute priority" is to refinance massive debt, can be seen as a financial feedback loop characteristic of complex systems nearing their limits. Just as the World3 model showed interconnected variables leading to systemic collapse, this article highlights how financial leverage and debt create an increasingly fragile and unsustainable economic edifice.

Analysis through the Physics Lens

From a physics perspective, particularly through the lens of Richard Heinberg and the Post Carbon Institute, the article implicitly highlights the disconnect between the financialized economy and the biophysical realities of energy and materials. Heinberg's work on peak oil and energy descent suggests that the availability of cheap, high-quality energy constrains industrial societies. The article, while not explicitly mentioning fossil fuels, alludes to a "productive economy" that is being "controlled demolition" in favor of a "financial casino." This implies that the real, physical economy (which requires material and energy throughput) is being hollowed out while the abstract financial economy continues to inflate.

The First and Second Laws of Thermodynamics are foundational to this concept. The financial system, where "money talks to itself without passing through commodity-producing labor," suggests a system attempting to defy the physical laws of energy and matter. Real wealth and productive capacity are ultimately tied to the transformation of low-entropy energy and matter into useful goods and services. The article's portrayal of "credit addiction" generating "economic nothingness rather than tax revenues, GDP, and therefore value production" points to a violation of physical limits. You cannot create real value indefinitely from nothing; it must ultimately be rooted in energy and material flows. The "destruction of fiat currencies" would be a financial reflection of the inability of the system to maintain its energy and material demands.

The article also addresses​​ the Energy Transition Challenges by implying that current financial mechanisms are not geared toward a truly sustainable future. Instead, they are focused on maintaining the existing, debt-laden structure. The reliance on "stealth QE" and "monetary bazookas" to keep the system afloat suggests that the financial system is unable to fund a genuine transition away from the biophysical limits it is rapidly approaching.

Analysis through the Biology Lens

William Rees's concept of Ecological Footprint Analysis and human overshoot of Earth's carrying capacity is highly relevant, even if not explicitly named in the article. While the article focuses on financial limits, these financial limits are ultimately symptoms of underlying biophysical limits. The "overleveraged financial domino" and "everything bubble" are the monetary representations of a human enterprise that has exceeded the planet's ability to regenerate resources and absorb waste. The "economic slowdown" and potential "credit crunch" are the economy's way of hitting biological limits, albeit in a financialized form.

The article's description of "self-cannibalizing zombie capitalism" resonates with biological systems in decline, where the organism consumes itself. This reflects the unsustainability of a system that extracts more than the environment can regenerate and pollutes more than it can assimilate. The idea that "real demand must be methodically suppressed" to prevent hyperinflation can be interpreted as a forced contraction, a biological response when an organism has overshot its resource base.

While the article doesn't delve into specific ecological impacts, the implicit connection is strong. The wars mentioned ("deliberately protracted Ukrainian conflict and the ongoing extermination of Palestinians") are themselves deeply tied to resource competition and control, which are aspects of exceeding planetary boundaries. Planetary Boundaries are implicitly transgressed when an economic system requires continuous expansion, as this puts immense pressure on natural systems like climate stability, biodiversity, and biogeochemical flows. The financial system's desperate attempts to maintain growth are forcing humanity further into ecological overshoot.

Analysis through the Degrowth Lens

Jason Hickel's work on degrowth provides a robust framework for understanding the article's critique. The article implicitly argues that the current "fatally damaged mode of production" (i.e., growth-dependent capitalism) needs to end. It describes the system as "narcissistic politicos" engaged in "political theatre as grotesque crisis management," highlighting the futility of traditional political solutions within a system addicted to growth. This resonates strongly with degrowth's call for a planned and democratic reduction of energy and resource throughput, moving beyond the obsession with GDP.

The article's portrayal of capitalism as a "Ponzi scheme characterized by credit addiction – where credit originates from economic nothingness rather than tax revenues, GDP, and therefore value production" is a profound critique of degrowth. Degrowth advocates argue that continuous growth is both impossible and undesirable, leading to ecological destruction and exacerbating inequality. The author's lament that "the emancipatory potential of institutional politics has long been exhausted, having disappeared with the productive potential of capital itself" aligns with degrowth's skepticism about reforming the current system from within, suggesting a need for systemic change.

The assertion that "a slow-motion collapse is what we already experience as capital transitions into its structurally unproductive terminal phase" directly supports the degrowth argument that we are already in a period of "degrowth by disaster" rather than a "degrowth by design." The article's implicit call to "begin to envision a society emancipated from capitalism" is a degrowth aspiration—to transition to a post-growth or post-capitalist society focused on well-being, social justice, and ecological sustainability rather than endless financial expansion. The "global reset recently floated out by the IMF, which in all likelihood will be based on centrally controlled digital currencies," could be seen as a desperate attempt by the growth paradigm to reassert control rather than a genuine shift towards degrowth principles.

Ugo Bardi's emphasis on "The Limits to Growth Revisited" and the idea that advanced economies run into "overshoot" and then must "return to rates of growth compatible with remaining resources, a process that would generate the collapse of the whole system" is perfectly mirrored in the article's analysis of the financial system's terminal phase. The financial instability described is the "collapse of the whole system" as it struggles to maintain an unsustainable growth trajectory.

In conclusion, while the article presents a financial analysis, it provides compelling evidence that the global economy, as currently structured, is operating far beyond its real, biophysical means. The desperate measures taken to maintain financial stability are, from the "limits to growth," physics, biology, and degrowth perspectives, symptoms of an unsustainable system in deep overshoot, highlighting the urgent need for a fundamental shift away from the paradigm of endless growth towards a more resilient, equitable, and sustainable future.

We can’t re-engineer this system; its collapse is inevitable and formed in its structure, stories, and belief systems, as well as the psychological and sociocultural nature of its leaders and adherents.

Plebs and proles are not willing to give up their things and addictions, the desire for which has been culturally engineered for thousands of years and made finally metastatic with the dawn of modern techno industrial, fossil fueled, financialized capitalism.

We are faced with unsolvable predicaments. People will not sacrifice their time, happiness, possessions, or lives to overturn the current culture even if they have a coherent, cohesive, and universal system alternative in mind worth fighting for.

We are, however, so brainwashed, domesticated, helpless, and powerless that we will die fighting for the fanciful vision of narrow-minded, dark tetrad leaders whose careers depend on the current paradigm or the TESCREAL fantasists accelerating towards converting anarcho-capitalists into a machine, a SIM where they ultimately play God.

Enjoy your life.

What are the odds that you were born and will live a long life? It's a miracle to exist. What are the odds you’d be born in a wealthy country in control of vast resources with lots of nice stuff to buy and experiences to have?

The improbability of your existence is a profound philosophical and biological truth.

The Odds of Being Born Human (and specifically, you!) are staggering.

The probability of a particular sperm fertilizing a particular egg, out of the trillions of possibilities over a person's reproductive lifetime, is already incredibly small (e.g., 1 in 400 quadrillion for the right sperm and egg).

This multiplies exponentially when you consider the unbroken chain of successful conceptions and births for all your ancestors stretching back to the beginning of life. If even one of those countless pairings didn't happen, or if one of those individuals didn't survive to reproduce, you wouldn't exist. Some estimates suggest the odds of your specific existence, given the entire historical lineage, are on the order of 1 in 102,685,000 (a 1 followed by 2.685 million zeros). To put that into perspective, the number of atoms in the entire observable universe is estimated to be around 10^80, or in standard notation, 1 followed by 80 zeros: 10^80.

Even before you, the odds of a planet like Earth forming in the "Goldilocks Zone" of a stable star, with the right conditions for liquid water, a suitable atmosphere, and the complex chemistry necessary for life to arise, are themselves incredibly low. The "Fermi Paradox" explores this very question, questioning why, given the vastness of the universe, we haven't found evidence of other intelligent life.

From this perspective, simply existing as a human being is an event of such improbable occurrence that "miracle" feels like an appropriate description.

Once you are born, the "odds" shift from cosmic improbability to statistical likelihood, influenced by a multitude of factors:

Throughout most of human history (Paleolithic, Neolithic, Bronze Age, etc.), life expectancy was remarkably low, often in the 20s or 30s. Child mortality was exceptionally high. If you survived childhood, your chances of living to 50 or 60 improved, but reaching old age was rare.

Over the last two centuries, and particularly in the previous 100 years, global life expectancy has more than doubled, now averaging over 70 years. This dramatic increase is due to:

Fossil-fueled, financialized, global capitalism, colonialism, etc. Improved sanitation, clean water, and waste management. Vaccines, antibiotics, advancements in surgery, disease treatment, and preventive care. More reliable food supplies lead to a better understanding of diet. Improved living conditions, education, and poverty reduction (though disparities persist).

If you were born in the right place and at the right time, Modernity has been very good to you. If not, you lived a fairly miserable life in the service of colonialists, imperialists, mercantilists, capitalists, etc.

Even within modern societies, individual longevity is influenced by:

• Genetics: Approximately 20-30% of the variation in human lifespan is attributed to genetic factors. Some people are predisposed to healthier aging.

• Lifestyle Choices:

  • Diet: A healthy, balanced diet (e.g., plant-based, Mediterranean) is strongly associated with longer, healthier lives.

  • Physical Activity: Regular exercise significantly reduces the risk of many age-related diseases.

  • Smoking/Alcohol: Avoiding smoking and excessive alcohol consumption are significant factors in extending life.

  • Stress Management: Coping with stress effectively contributes to well-being.

  • Sleep: Adequate and quality sleep is crucial.

• Environment: Access to clean air and water, safe living conditions, and quality healthcare all play a role.

• Socioeconomic Status: Higher income and education levels are generally associated with better health outcomes and longer life expectancies.

• Gender: On average, women tend to live longer than men in most parts of the world.

• Current Statistics (e.g., from the U.S. Social Security Administration): Life tables display the probability of death at each age and the remaining life expectancy. For example, a newborn male in the U.S. in 2022 had a life expectancy of approximately 74.74 years, while a female had about 80.18 years. These tables allow you to calculate the probability of living to a certain old age (e.g., 80, 90, 100) given your current age and gender. While not 100%, the odds of reaching what was once considered "old age" are significantly higher today than at any point in history.

In summary:

• The odds of you specifically being born human are so infinitesimally small they defy easy comprehension, truly leaning into the idea of a miracle.

• The odds of a human (once born) living a long life have drastically increased due to societal progress. However, they are still influenced by a complex interplay of genetics, lifestyle, and environmental factors.

So, how thankful are you that you are a modern consumer living in a prosperous country, able to maintain your many addictions while we accelerate towards a world where habitat for humanity doesn’t exist? How thankful are you that you were not born in Gaza, Ukraine, South Sudan, or the Republic of Congo? How grateful are you for your parent’ wealth and the many opportunities it has afforded you?

No one is self-made.

We are lucky storytelling, true believers. Point up and say. All glory to whatever that is. Then get down on your knees and plant some tears in the dirt as a humble expression of your place in Great Nature.

These observations have been articulated thousands of times in various ways. Why is that? Who’s listening?

Would You Rather Be God Or Slime Mold?

Thanks for that, Mr. Lee; it needed to be done. The Nates of the world serve a small, precious audience, but they won’t inspire a critical mass to advocate for their proposed way of life.

Sam Altman tells us that we need new hardware and software to enter the AI revolution. We can all look forward to financing new and improved super-smart gadgets and computers, designed and built to AGI standards, as we transition to Artificial Human Intelligence and the impending Singularity.

(Artificial Intelligence is an oxymoron in the context of Great Nature, but who am I but a humble human animal with no ambition? “Loser!”)

Because of this transition, we won’t have to worry about health, biology, complex ecosystems with emergent properties, or material and energy scarcity. Our machines will be so efficient that the universe will be ours to transform as we wish.

Learning about R & K species strategy is boring. Tech optimism is exciting.

We are homo sapiens, exceptional and supreme. We are about to transcend Deep Nature. Nature needed to be redesigned and engineered; that’s our grand purpose. Great Nature created the creator of its makeover.

God’s will has always been human.

One can prompt an LLM librarian to say whatever you want to hear. AI was born of the competitive, wealth-hoarding Nature of conquistadors. AI will make us the best version of ourselves.

Civilization can not be naturalized. We evolved to remake Nature in our image, an image we can’t live with because it’s not yet powerful enough.

Explore the ontology of human consciousness (my mind model of me) and comprehend its implications and cost.

People want to lord over creation, as their Big Gods have for millennia, or serve their masters while ruling over smaller domains.

Our stories teach us to submit to a higher power or to take control.

Andres Indest tells conquistadors what they want to hear. The LLM librarian will lead us to the promised land beyond the Singularity, where Artificial Human Intelligence makes us all gods. AI is your destiny.

Would you rather be a god or slime mold? Would you rather serve god or slime mold?

One way or another, this civilization will come to an end soon.

Meet Andres Indset.

Read this transcript.

BUSINESS PHILOSOPHER & TECH-EVANGELIST

The Norwegian-born philosopher, deep-tech investor, and former top athlete Anders Indset has been recognized by Thinkers50 as one of the leading thinkers in technology and leadership. Anders is a bridge-builder between humanity and technology, shaping the economy of tomorrow with his practical philosophy. With two decades of experience working with multinational companies, he is a trusted sparring partner for international CEOs and political leaders, and a guest lecturer at leading international business schools. With his deep understanding of the impact of exponential technologies, Anders demonstrates how and why leadership and its relationship to philosophy are more relevant than ever. He firmly believes that in a world with nearly unlimited access to knowledge, a deeper understanding and the ability to anticipate future scenarios, combined with the development of interpersonal skills, will be the most sought-after qualities for leaders.

In addition to writing books that regularly appear on international bestseller lists, he brings his ideas to life as an investor in exponential technologies such as AI, quantum technology, healthtech, and cybersecurity, helping companies scale their products and services. Anders shares his insights at his “Thinking out Loud” events, which range from small CxO retreats to large conferences with several thousand participants. His diverse background and unique, inspiring presentation style make him one of the most sought-after keynote speakers of today.

Civilization’s Dependence on Energy Slaves

The Energetic Foundations of Civilization: A Critical Examination of 'Energy Slaves' and the Path to Sustainability

I. Introduction: Unpacking the Concept of 'Energy Slaves'

The modern human experience is profoundly shaped by an invisible workforce: 'energy slaves.' This concept refers to the immense quantities of energy, predominantly derived from fossil fuels, that power contemporary lifestyles and infrastructure, effectively replacing a vast amount of human labor. An energy slave is a conceptual unit that represents the work capacity of a person through the consumption of energy in non-human infrastructure, such as machines, roads, power grids, and fuel. It serves as an energy equivalent to the physical work humans would otherwise need to perform to sustain current societal structures and consumption patterns.

The term "energy slave" was first coined by Buckminster Fuller in 1940, who meticulously quantified its yield by dividing the energy consumed by industry (from minerals and water) by the average energy provided by a human being. Fuller's initial calculations revealed a world population of just over two billion people in 1940 served by an estimated thirty-six billion energy slaves, equating to approximately 17 energy slaves per capita globally. Notably, this distribution was highly unequal, with the United States alone possessing twenty billion, or 54% of the world's total. By 1950, Fuller revised his estimates upwards, suggesting each human held an average of 38 energy slaves, a number that has since escalated to about ten times that figure for Americans today.

The concept has been further developed and utilized by other prominent thinkers, including Alfred René Ubbelohde, Hans-Peter Dürr, and Jean-Marc Jancovici. Jancovici, in particular, draws a stark conclusion: from a biophysical perspective, the modern way of life, encompassing "each and every one of us, including factory workers, cleaners and supermarket cashiers," has become fundamentally unsustainable.

While various conversion metrics exist—such as an energy slave producing an average power output of 100 W (equivalent to 876 kWh per year) or equating to the mechanical energy provided by a healthy individual working 40 hours a week (3 kWh per week)—the core utility of the concept lies in its ability to render visible the otherwise unseen energetic underpinnings of our civilization.

This exponential growth in energy slaves, directly enabled by the increasing exploitation of high-density, easily transportable fossil fuels, creates a perception of boundless productivity and affluence. However, this reliance inherently carries significant, often unacknowledged, environmental and social costs.

These costs are frequently externalized from traditional economic accounting, making the current lifestyle appear economically "cheap" despite its immense biophysical footprint. The observation that "each and every one of us" is implicated in this unsustainability, as Jancovici notes, challenges the common narrative that overconsumption is solely the domain of the wealthy. Instead, it redirects focus to systemic energy dependence as a collective predicament. The very "invisibility" of these energy slaves allows for a pervasive lack of accountability regarding the true energetic and ecological burden of modern life, obscuring the profound implications of our fossil-fueled existence.

II. A Historical Journey Through Energy Capture and Societal Evolution

Humanity's trajectory has been inextricably linked to its capacity for energy capture, marking distinct phases of societal organization and complexity.

From Foraging to Agriculture: The First Energy Transitions

For approximately six million years of hominin evolution, human societies maintained a relatively modest energy budget. This early existence depended on the services of about 13 energy slave equivalents, primarily derived from foraged food and the burning of biomass for cooking. The simplest tropical hunter-gatherer societies, for instance, captured as little as 5,000 kilocalories per person per day (kcal/cap/day) in total energy, with a minimal 2,000 kcal/cap/day originating from non-food sources. Their material goods were typically very simple, and shelters were basic, reflecting a low non-food energy demand.

A pivotal transformation occurred with the Agricultural Revolution, which began in the Proto-Neolithic period, roughly 9000 to 7000 BCE. This era marked humanity's transition from a nomadic, hunting, and gathering existence to a settled, farming lifestyle, driven by the domestication of plants and animals. Early innovations, such as the controlled use of fire for cooking and land clearing, significantly increased food production, which in turn allowed for higher population densities. This shift dramatically increased non-food energy capture: early agriculturalists raised their non-food energy consumption to an estimated 8,000 kcal/cap/day, with advanced preindustrial farmers reaching 20,000 kcal/cap/day. Such advancements enabled regions supporting rain-fed agriculture to sustain up to 20 times more "agro-empowered humans" than Western Hunter-Gatherers.

The Agricultural Revolutions: Energy Intensification and Societal Change

Agriculture has fundamentally reshaped human society by providing enhanced and more stable access to energy through the domestication of plants and animals. This newfound energy surplus was instrumental in facilitating the formation of large, permanent settlements—what the user describes as the "big city"—and the emergence of hierarchical social systems, which modern societies often perceive as usual.

The second agricultural revolution, deeply intertwined with the 18th-century Industrial Revolution, further intensified this trend. It transitioned farming into a market-driven system, emphasizing energy-intensive practices and mechanization, heavily reliant on fossil fuels for fertilizers and machinery.

A critical consequence of this industrialization is a profound paradox: modern agriculture, despite its capacity for unprecedented food production, often consumes more fossil fuel energy than it produces in food energy. This reveals a significant energy inefficiency and raises substantial environmental concerns, as the global food supply becomes directly dependent on a diminishing and environmentally costly energy source. This situation challenges the very notion of "progress" in food production, illustrating a conversion of high-quality, concentrated fossil energy into lower-quality food energy, rather than an efficient harnessing of solar energy.

The Industrial Age: Fossil Fuels and Unprecedented Energy Capture

The 18th century marked an epochal turning point in human history with the discovery by British entrepreneurs of how to convert the energy released by burning coal into motion. This innovation initiated an "epochal transition to fossil fuels" that profoundly increased non-food energy capture, impacting virtually every aspect of human society. This included agriculture, industry, transportation, communication, economics, urbanization, quality of life, politics, and the environment.

The contemporary United States, emblematic of a fossil-fueled civilization, now consumes an astonishing 230,000 kcal/cap/day in total energy, a stark contrast to earlier human energy budgets.

Vaclav Smil's seminal work, Energy and Civilization: A History, provides a comprehensive account of how innovations in humanity's ability to convert energy into heat, light, and motion have been the primary driving force behind cultural and economic progress over the past 10,000 years. Smil emphasizes that energy is the "only universal currency" and the foundational driver of all societal development.

Energy as the Primary Architect of Civilization

Each major historical shift in human civilization—from foraging to agriculture, and then to industrialization—is consistently accompanied by a dramatic increase in per capita energy capture. This pattern suggests that the availability of increased energy, particularly non-food energy, directly enabled the transition from nomadic, small-scale societies to settled, larger, and more complex ones. Historically, the "major brake on rising living standards" was the limited supply of food calories, a constraint that was largely removed only since the nineteenth century with the advent of fossil fuels. This implies that energy is not merely a component of civilization but its fundamental architect. The observation that "agriculture allowed for large permanent settlements (the big city) to form with a hierarchical social system" is directly supported by evidence indicating that increased energy use correlates with larger, more hierarchical institutions and a significant increase in inequality during the agricultural transition.

This suggests that the very structure of "civilized" society is an emergent property of energy surplus.

Evolution of Per Capita Energy Consumption (Energy Slave Equivalents)

The dramatic increase in human energy consumption across different stages of societal development is illustrated using the concept of "energy slaves" to quantify this progression. While the precise conversion of kilocalories to "energy slave equivalents" can vary (e.g., 100W continuous power output vs. the mechanical work of a human for 40 hours per week).

III. The Societal Fabric Woven by Energy Abundance

The historical progression of energy capture has not merely fueled material growth; it has fundamentally reshaped human societies, influencing their complexity, hierarchical structures, and even the psychological well-being of their populations.

The Rise of Complexity and Hierarchy

The energy surplus generated by successive energy transitions, particularly with the advent of agriculture and later industrialization, directly facilitated the growth of larger institutions and more complex, hierarchical social structures. Contemporary societies that utilize more energy tend to exhibit larger average firm sizes, indicating a "fattening of the distribution tail" where large firms become increasingly common. This growth in institutional size is hypothesized to correlate with the growth of hierarchy, which, in turn, concentrates resources at the top, potentially exacerbating inequality. Research indicates that "virtually all increases in inequality occur during the transition from subsistence to agrarian levels of energy use," a period when hierarchical organization began to emerge. Beyond agrarian levels of energy use, further increases have had a negligible impact on inequality, suggesting that the foundational shift in social stratification occurred with the advent of agriculture.

Joseph Tainter's theory of societal collapse posits that societies increase their complexity to solve problems, but this complexity comes with escalating costs in terms of energy and resources.

When the benefits derived from complexity no longer justify the expense, collapse becomes increasingly likely.

Tainter argues that modern global civilization, characterized by its high complexity and profound energy dependence, faces similar risks. Fossil fuels, in this context, have largely subsidized this escalating complexity, making it appear affordable, but maintaining current complexity levels without them may prove impossible.

The "Behavioral Sink" and Societal Dysfunction

John B. Calhoun's "behavioral sink" experiments offer a stark, albeit controversial, analogy for societal dysfunction arising from conditions of overpopulation and social density. In these experiments, Norway rats in meticulously designed "rat utopias" were provided with unlimited access to food and water, allowing for unfettered population growth within enclosed spaces.

Despite abundant resources, the rat populations exhibited a range of pathological behaviors.

These included sexual deviation, cannibalism, frenetic overactivity, pathological withdrawal, severe neglect of young, and extremely high infant mortality rates (reaching up to 96% in some groups), ultimately leading to population extinction.

Calhoun's work became a touchstone in urban sociology and psychology, serving as a model for societal collapse and decay. He emphasized that the key factor driving these behaviors was not merely physical density, but rather social density and the resulting disruption of social organization.

Calhoun himself viewed the fate of his rodent populations as a metaphor for humankind, characterizing the social breakdown as a "spiritual death" and expressing worries about human population surges and urbanization potentially leading to functional sterility and "irredeemable underpopulation.”

Spiritual death explicitly links this phenomenon to modern humans becoming "irreversibly dysfunctional" after generations in "overcomplex societies."

"R-Selected" Living: Maximizing Short-Term Energy Gain

Modern society's approach to energy is "r-selected (maximum short-term energy) living," which has proven not remotely sustainable. In ecological terms, r-selected species are characterized by high growth rates, the production of many offspring with minimal individual parental investment, short lifespans, small size, and a tendency to "waste a lot of energy." They are opportunistic exploiters, thriving in unstable or unpredictable environments by maximizing rapid reproduction.

This contrasts sharply with K-selected species, which are long-lived, larger, energy-efficient, and invest heavily in fewer, higher-quality offspring, suited for stable environments operating near their carrying capacity.

While some ecological theories suggest that human socio-economic development, particularly the demographic transition in developed nations, represents a shift towards a K-strategy in terms of reproduction (e.g., lower fertility rates, greater parental investment per child), it also exhibits an r-selected energy consumption pattern. This pattern is characterized by a relentless pursuit of short-term energy maximization, growth, and consumption, often at the expense of long-term ecological and societal consequences.

Andrew Nikiforuk's critique of fossil-fueled individuals as a "narcissistic and bankrupt cohort" who "shop incessantly" and "prize no place in general" aligns with the "r-selected" societal traits of rapid exploitation and a lack of long-term investment in place or community.

The Energetic Roots of Inequality and Social Pathology

The transition to an energy surplus, particularly with the advent of agriculture, is directly linked to the emergence of larger, hierarchical institutions and a significant increase in inequality. This historical progression suggests that energy abundance, while enabling societal complexity, simultaneously creates conditions conducive to hierarchy and resource concentration, leading to disparities. Calhoun's "behavioral sink" experiments serve as a powerful, albeit analogical, warning that even with abundant resources, high social density, and unchecked complexity can lead to profound social pathologies and dysfunction.

Modern society's energy consumption aligns with "r-selected" traits: a rapid, high-throughput, and often wasteful exploitation for short-term gain.

This relentless, short-term focus, coupled with the hierarchical structures fostered by energy surplus, can create systemic pressures that manifest as social pathologies. The drive for perpetual growth fueled by energy slaves may inherently produce the conditions for social breakdown, where, despite material abundance, the social fabric becomes "irreversibly dysfunctional."

The Contradiction of Human "K-Selection" and Energy "r-Selection"

A fundamental disjunction exists within modern human society: while some ecological theories propose that human socio-economic development, particularly in developed nations, indicates a shift towards K-selected reproductive strategies (e.g., lower birth rates, increased parental investment per child), the prevailing energy metabolism of society remains distinctly "r-selected." This "r-selected" approach to energy is characterized by prioritizing maximum short-term energy gain, high throughput, and often wasteful exploitation of resources.

This tension generates inherent unsustainability.

A K-selected existence, by definition, requires energy efficiency and living within the carrying capacity of the environment, which is precisely what current r-selected energy consumption undermines.

This contradiction highlights a deep-seated systemic imbalance in which biological evolution and cultural and economic practices are pulling in opposite directions. Achieving a sustainable future becomes profoundly challenging without addressing this fundamental energetic misalignment, as a species striving for long-term stability in its reproduction simultaneously depletes the very energetic foundation required for such stability.

IV. Expert Voices on Energy Limits and Future Realities

Donella H. Meadows, Dennis L. Meadows, Jørgen Randers, and William W. Behrens III are the original authors of the "The Limits to Growth" report (1972), which used the World3 computer model to simulate the consequences of exponential growth with finite resources. They also co-authored "Beyond the Limits" (1992) and "Limits to Growth: The 30-Year Update" (2004). Their work is foundational to the discussion of limits and overshoot.

William Rees, co-developer of ecological footprint analysis, is a prominent advocate for understanding and addressing human overshoot of Earth's carrying capacity. He's a frequent guest on podcasts and a vocal expert on the topic.

Richard Heinberg is a senior fellow at the Post Carbon Institute. He is one of the world's foremost experts on energy and sustainability, particularly in the areas of peak oil and the challenges of energy descent. He has authored numerous books on these topics, including "Power: Limits and Prospects for Human Survival."

Gaya Herrington’s research in the early 2020s updated the "Limits to Growth" model and found that the "business-as-usual" scenario from the original report still closely tracks real-world data, indicating a high likelihood of overshoot and collapse in the coming decades.

Ugo Bardi is an Italian physical chemist and a leading expert on resource depletion and the limits to growth. He has written extensively on "The Limits to Growth Revisited" and other related topics.

Andreas Malm and Wim Carton are the authors of "Overshoot: How the World Surrendered to Climate Breakdown." They explore how the concept of "overshoot" in climate science models can be a dangerous ideology that relies on unproven technologies.

Jason Hickel is an economic anthropologist known for his work on degrowth and challenging the concept of endless economic growth within planetary boundaries.

I have links to many bloggers and organizations focused on System Dynamics Modeling, Ecological Footprint Analysis, Resource Depletion, Planetary Boundaries, Degrowth, Human Supremacy, and Energy Transition Challenges. I post relevant articles on my social media feeds and have a book recommendation page.

I am one of many curators interested in the cascading predicaments we are experiencing and confronting: the polycrisis, global heating, ecodice, overshoot, mass extinction, pollution, habitat loss, inequality, and war.

If our leaders aren’t laser-focused on these issues, ‘we the people’ should fire them and replace them with concerned citizens who are.

The profound implications of humanity's energy trajectory are illuminated by the work of leading experts such as Vaclav Smil and Art Berman, who offer complementary perspectives on the historical role of energy and the challenges of its future.

Vaclav Smil: The Grand Historian of Energy

Vaclav Smil, a prolific interdisciplinary scholar, argues that energy is the "only universal currency" and the absolute foundation of all societal development. His comprehensive historical accounts, notably in Energy and Civilization: A History, demonstrate how innovations in humanity's ability to convert energy into heat, light, and motion have been the primary driving force behind cultural and economic progress over millennia.

The transition to fossil fuels, in particular, has had an "epochal" impact on virtually every facet of civilization, from agriculture and industry to transportation, communication, economics, urbanization, quality of life, politics, and the environment.

A critical, and often "terrifying," takeaway from Smil's extensive work is the historical reality that energy transitions are inherently slow processes.

Agricultural revolutions unfolded over millennia, and industrial revolutions over centuries.

This historical pattern leads to his profound skepticism regarding the feasibility of rapid, large-scale shifts to renewable energy sources, noting that the share of renewables in the global energy mix has remained relatively unchanged over recent decades, despite urgent calls for decarbonization. While emphasizing the crucial role of energy, Smil cautions against a purely "energetic determinism," acknowledging that energy levels do not solely dictate cultural achievements and moral development. He expresses "little time for the techno-optimists," suggesting that solutions to ecological problems necessitate either a significant reduction in energy usage or a fundamental shift in energy sources. Smil finds Western "conspicuous consumption distasteful and uncultured," implicitly advocating for reduced energy use and more modest lifestyles. He also highlights the enduring necessity of fossil fuels for specific, hard-to-decarbonize industrial processes, such as steel production (which requires metallurgical coke) and nitrogen fertilizer production (which requires natural gas).

Art Berman: The Geologist of Diminishing Returns

Art Berman, a petroleum geologist and energy analyst, centers his analysis on the critical metric of Energy Return on Energy Invested (EROEI).

EROEI quantifies the amount of usable energy extracted from a source relative to the energy required for its entire production chain—including exploration, extraction, processing, and distribution.

Berman highlights that historically, conventional oil fields boasted very high EROEIs (e.g., 50:1), but modern, harder-to-reach sources, such as deep-water oil and shale oil, exhibit significantly lower and rapidly declining EROEIs.

Berman points out that a substantial portion (up to 30%) of reported U.S. shale oil production consists of natural gas liquids (NGLs), which have a lower energy content than conventional crude and are often unsuitable for heavy transport like diesel, leading to their export rather than contributing to the domestic energy supply. Furthermore, fracked wells are characterized by "spectacular decline rates" (60% in the first year, 25% in the second), necessitating continuous, energy-intensive drilling to maintain production levels.

This declining EROEI leads to Berman's concept of the "Net Energy Cliff," where the energy cost of extraction becomes increasingly expensive and eventually cost-prohibitive, forcing society to adapt to a "much lower energy future".

He warns that the monetary costs of extraction will inevitably erode GDP growth and cap economic expansion.

Berman firmly asserts that "energy is the economy," arguing that the rising real cost of energy, driven by declining Energy Return on Energy Invested (EROEI), permeates all economic sectors and fuels public dissatisfaction and populist movements.

He critically notes that financial mechanisms, such as central bank guarantees, are currently "papering over" the fundamental physical limits of energy availability. Berman also reframes "Peak Oil" not as running out of oil entirely, but as running out of cheap oil, highlighting the economic and energetic viability threshold. He observes that the fossil fuel industry maintains its momentum due to its vast economic breadth, depth, and significant government subsidies.

The Inevitable Collision of Exponential Growth and Finite Energy

The analyses of Vaclav Smil and Art Berman, though from distinct disciplinary lenses, converge on a critical conclusion: the current trajectory of exponential economic growth is physically unsustainable.

Smil's historical perspective highlights the fundamental inertia in societal energy systems, indicating that rapid adaptation to new energy sources is historically unlikely. Simultaneously, Berman's EROEI analysis reveals that the physical foundation for growth is eroding, as the energy cost of extracting fossil fuels increases, resulting in diminishing net energy returns.

This suggests that a "great reckoning" is not a hypothetical future event, but an ongoing process in which physical limits are increasingly asserting themselves.

The "papering over" with financial mechanisms is a temporary illusion, masking a fundamental, unavoidable collision between an economic system designed for perpetual growth and a finite planet with diminishing returns on energy extraction.

This necessitates a radical re-evaluation of growth itself, rather than merely seeking alternative energy sources.

The Illusion of Abundance and the True Cost of "Cheap" Energy

'Energy slaves' provide a vast amount of energy derived from fossil fuels that fuels our modern way of life, replacing a significant amount of human labor, creating a perception of "cheap" and abundant energy. However, this perceived abundance is largely an illusion. Berman's analysis of shale oil reveals that a significant portion of "new" oil production consists of natural gas liquids, which have lower energy content than conventional crude and are often exported, thus not contributing to the domestic energy supply. This indicates a lower quality of energy, despite the reported quantity.

The declining EROEI for fossil fuels means that increasingly more energy (and thus capital) is expended to extract less usable net energy.

This rising "energy cost of energy" is not fully reflected in market prices, which are often distorted by substantial government subsidies and financial maneuvers. Smil, from his historical vantage point, finds Western "conspicuous consumption distasteful and uncultured". This perceived abundance, therefore, has fostered a culture of waste and overconsumption, leading to a societal metabolism that is fundamentally inefficient and unsustainable. The "energy slave" system, in essence, has created a hidden debt to nature and future generations, undermining true well-being despite material affluence.

V. Envisioning a New Relationship: Humility, Restraint, and Nature

No modern human can envision a new relationship with energy that truly embodies respect for Nature, humility, and restraint. This highlights the significant psychological, cultural, and systemic barriers to such a vision, particularly given the deeply entrenched anthropocentric worldview (human supremacy and delusory hubris) and consumer culture that have been fostered by centuries of energy abundance. However, various existing frameworks and practices offer pathways that attempt to articulate and enact precisely this kind of transformative relationship.

Degrowth and Ecological Economics: Prioritizing Well-being over Growth

Degrowth is an economic theory that advocates for the planned shrinkage of economies in high-income nations to reduce overall energy and resource throughput, thereby prioritizing human well-being, equity, and ecological sustainability over profit and endless economic expansion. It is explicitly not about reducing GDP for its own sake, but about reducing excess material and energy consumption.

Herman Daly, a pioneer of ecological economics, famously argued that humanity has transitioned from an "empty world" of resource abundance to a "full world" constrained by energy and resource limits. He contended that the exponential growth path characteristic of a fossil-fuel-dependent economy is unsustainable on a finite planet. Daly advocated for a "steady state economy" that stabilizes population and significantly reduces resource throughput, emphasizing that the economy is an open subsystem embedded within the finite biosphere, governed by biophysical laws. He also critically viewed GDP as an inadequate measure of societal well-being.

Jason Hickel emphasizes that current global resource use exceeds sustainable levels, and significant reductions in energy use (e.g., from 400 EJ to 240 EJ by 2050) are necessary to meet climate targets without relying on speculative negative emissions technologies. He argues that degrowth, as a planned reduction of material and energy throughput, may be the "only feasible way" to achieve the emissions reductions required by the Paris Agreement. Hickel proposes concrete policies to achieve this, such as legislating extended product warranties, reducing food waste, taxing red meat to encourage less resource-intensive diets, banning single-use plastics, and ending advertising to curb material consumption pressures.

He stresses that degrowth is a "deliberate and planned process" for a managed transition, distinct from an unplanned recession.

Deep Ecology and Reciprocity: Shifting Worldviews

Deep ecology, a philosophical and environmental movement championed by Arne Naess, fundamentally challenges the dominant anthropocentric worldview that positions humans as separate from and superior to the natural world. Its core principles include recognizing the intrinsic value of all non-human life, understanding the interconnectedness of all living beings and ecosystems, and a strong critique of consumer culture. It advocates for a profound shift to an ecocentric worldview, where humans are understood as an integral part of nature, rather than being above it.

A growing concept, particularly highlighted by scientists and Indigenous communities, emphasizes "reciprocity between humans and nature."

This involves actively "giving back" to nature—cultivating, protecting, and restoring ecosystems—rather than solely engaging in one-way resource extraction, as is characteristic of globalized capitalism.

Such practices, rooted in deep spiritual and cultural ties to the land, reflect generations of knowledge on how to use natural resources sustainably without depleting them, offering a dynamic and adaptive blueprint for resilience in the face of modern environmental crises.

Deep ecology calls for a "fundamental transformation of our values and lifestyles."

This includes practical actions such as consuming less, living simply, protecting local ecosystems through community action, and advocating for policies that prioritize environmental protection over economic growth. It urges addressing the "root causes of environmental destruction—consumerism, overpopulation, and human domination."

Pathways to Transformation: Humility, Restraint, and Relocalization

Andrew Nikiforuk, despite his pessimistic assessment of modern society, proposes "radical decentralization and relocalizing of energy spending combined with a systematic reduction of the number of inanimate slaves in our households and places of work".

He echoes Austrian philosopher Ivan Illich's call to choose between the "bicycle and the car," representing a choice between a "postindustrial labor-intensive, low-energy and high-equity economy" and unsustainable "capital-intensive institutional growth".

Even within the corporate sector, some entities, such as the "Respect Energy Group," are attempting to integrate principles of "Respect Nature, Respect People, and Respect Rules" into their sustainability strategies, aiming to provide clean, renewable energy while promoting environmental and social responsibility. These pathways collectively suggest a necessary transition towards a "post-growth economic system."

The challenge lies in dismantling a financial system that demands exponential capital growth, which in turn requires exponential energy growth, while the quality and accessibility of that energy are diminishing.

The Paradigm Shift: From Domination to Reciprocity

No modern human can envision a new relationship with energy without highlighting a perceived inability to conceive of a sustainable future.

However, philosophical frameworks such as Deep Ecology and the concept of reciprocity with nature offer a coherent and actionable framework that directly addresses this challenge.

The central understanding here is that a sustainable energy future is not primarily a technological or economic problem, but fundamentally a worldview problem.

It requires a profound shift from an anthropocentric paradigm, where nature is viewed as a passive resource for human domination, to an ecocentric one where humans are an interconnected part of nature, bound by principles of intrinsic value and mutual care.

This shift necessitates a redefinition of "progress" away from infinite material growth toward well-being within planetary boundaries, as articulated by proponents of degrowth.

The "humility and restraint" the user seeks are not merely moral virtues but practical necessities for a viable future, demanding a fundamental transformation of values and lifestyles, not just superficial technological fixes. The inability to envision this future stems from the deeply ingrained anthropocentric assumptions that underpin modern society.

The Policy-Behavior Gap: Knowing vs. Doing

While intellectual and theoretical blueprints for a sustainable energy future exist, as presented by experts like Daly and Hickel, who propose clear economic and policy frameworks for degrowth, and Deep Ecology, which provides a philosophical underpinning for a new human-nature relationship, a significant gap remains. Research indicates that overwhelming evidence suggests that we need to consume less and/or differently... However, for the majority of consumers, the uptake of sustainable behaviours is low.

This highlights a critical challenge: even if the knowledge and theoretical solutions are available, the primary obstacle is deeply rooted in ingrained "unsustainable consumption behaviours" and a collective resistance to fundamental lifestyle changes.

This suggests that the problem is not solely a lack of vision or technical solutions, but a profound societal inertia, a collective psychological barrier, or an unwillingness to translate knowledge into widespread behavioral and systemic transformation.

This inertia may be exacerbated by the "dysfunctional" state hinted at by Calhoun's work, where societal overcomplexity and resource abundance lead to a kind of collective malaise or inability to act rationally in the long-term interest. The challenge is not just what to do, but how to motivate and enable a species accustomed to energy servitude to choose a path of humility and restraint.

VI. Conclusion: Navigating the Energy Future with Awareness and Intent

The journey through the concept of 'energy slaves' reveals a profound historical narrative: humanity's escalating dependence on external energy sources has been the primary architect of civilization, transforming nomadic bands into complex, hierarchical societies. This reliance on a vast, invisible workforce of energy slaves, predominantly fueled by fossil fuels, has enabled unprecedented material wealth and convenience. However, it has simultaneously fostered unsustainable patterns of consumption, escalating complexity, and growing inequality, creating a hidden ecological and social debt. The warnings from experts like Vaclav Smil and Art Berman are stark and complementary: Smil's historical analysis underscores the inherent slowness of energy transitions and the deep-seated nature of our fossil fuel dependency, while Berman's EROEI framework highlights the diminishing returns and escalating costs of extracting increasingly difficult-to-access energy. Both converge on the inescapable conclusion that perpetual economic growth, as currently conceived, is irreconcilable with finite energy limits.

The current "energy slave" system, while appearing to deliver boundless abundance, is built upon an illusion of cheap energy, subsidized by externalized environmental costs and the depletion of high-quality, easily accessible resources. This has led to a societal metabolism characterized by "r-selected" behaviors—prioritizing maximum short-term energy gain and often wasteful exploitation—even as human biological reproduction may exhibit "K-selected" traits of long-term investment. This fundamental contradiction, coupled with the potential for societal dysfunction akin to Calhoun's "behavioral sink" in overly complex systems, underscores the critical and urgent need for a fundamental reevaluation of our relationship with energy.

While I am profoundly skeptical about the capacity of modern techno-industrial humanity to undergo such a radical shift, frameworks such as degrowth, ecological economics, and deep ecology offer tangible, albeit challenging, pathways for conscious transformation. This necessary transformation demands not merely technological innovation in energy sources, but a profound cultural and ethical shift.

It calls for a move from an anthropocentric worldview of domination to an ecocentric one of humility, restraint, and genuine reciprocity with the natural world.

The future hinges on our collective ability to transition from an "r-selected" energy metabolism—characterized by rapid, wasteful exploitation—to a "K-selected" one, embracing biophysical limits as the foundation for true, long-term flourishing and societal well-being. The challenge is immense, requiring not just new policies or technologies but a fundamental change in collective behavior and underlying values.

Degrowth & SSE vs. The Great Bang or The Long Whimper

I’m reading this now. I wish it made me feel more hopeful.

The concepts of degrowth and a steady-state economy (SSE) represent a fundamental challenge to the prevailing paradigm of continuous economic growth. While distinct, they are deeply intertwined and often seen as complementary pathways toward a more sustainable future.

Much has been written about such things.

The origins of degrowth can be traced back to thinkers like Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen in the 1970s, who applied the laws of thermodynamics (entropy) to economic processes, highlighting the finite nature of resources. More recently, the movement has gained traction amidst growing concerns about climate change, biodiversity loss, and resource scarcity, suggesting that if we don’t choose degrowth, an uncontrolled contraction or collapse of modern techno-industrial civilization might be inevitable.

Few people are aware of this approach because the current economic paradigm tends to support influential Players who benefit from it. The Players of The Great Game 2.0 AGI have no incentive to change and would sacrifice everything to continue their ecocidal rampage.

The easily manipulated and conditioned masses collaborate with their masters for the right to maintain their addictions.

Degrowth, or décroissance, is a critique of the idea that endless economic growth is compatible with ecological limits and human well-being. Critiquing economic growth is tantamount to a crime under the current global regime — a crime more grave than any horrendous war crime, as warfare is a growth engine. War provides for greater material throughput in the economy and is great for markets. In a world where global supply chains are essential, war is profitable for all the Players, and their support mob, the investor class. Russia and Ukraine could not fight their drone war without Chinese components. Israel could not bounce the rubble in the Middle East without materials extracted from locations worldwide, without neocollonialism.

The collapse of our current way of life is inevitable. Our current way of life will expire with a great bang or a long whimper. For those of us able to maintain our addictions, our demise will hardly be noticed.

Ecological economists generally define degrowth as an equitable downscaling of economic production and consumption (throughput) to bring material and energy use within ecological limits, thereby securing well-being. Well-being, who has time to consider that? What does “well-being” even mean? Instead of material accumulation, degrowth prioritizes human well-being, quality of life, leisure time, social connections, and community resilience. If you are a properly conditioned U.S. American, that sounds demonic to you. Only a socialist Satan (better Angels? What better Angels?) would imagine such a way of life. One would have to quiet down and slow down to enjoy Great Nature in such a fashion. Would life still be worth living without the culture wars, without something to hate?

A core objective of degrowth is to reduce society’s overall material and energy throughput to a level that respects planetary boundaries and allows for ecological regeneration. Could modernity survive in a world with less consumption of material goods? Our TESCREAL fantasist leaders would rather turn the solar system into a machine where they would play their games for eternity. The goal is to harness all the energy in the galaxy and transform everything into a Big, Beautiful Machine. If the Big Beautiful Bill prioritizes spending for that, it will pass into eternity.

Tech Bros, anarcho-capitalists, and our deluded, idiotic, dark-tetrade leaders would rather drive rapid civilizational collapse. It’s more exciting. It’s what God or Reason wants.

Unlike recession, collapse, or The Big Beautiful Machine, degrowth is envisioned as a planned and democratic transition, aiming for a just and participatory society that is ecologically sustainable. That can never be allowed! There’s no money in it. Volatility and liquidity are what’s needed to win.

Our leaders despise democracy and justice because their primary concern is outdoing their competitors and achieving a monopoly status, where they can devise clever ways of charging rents until complex living systems give way to the Big Beautiful Machine. Winning, measured by profit, is their only objective. They work for status, not people, and are utterly blind to Great Nature other than as a thing that provides entertainment or ephemeral feelings that their indoctrination has not completely suppressed into the cult of capitalism. Even a view of the Grand Canyon or the love of a child comes with a price tag attached to it.

Degrowth advocates for policies such as a universal basic income, work-sharing, expanded public services, and a shift in taxation from income to resource and energy use — a resource and energy-wise economy, which is unimaginable and a grotesque abomination to the Players. Our leaders would rather fight a strategic nuclear war with their rivals than entertain such ideas. Any conceptions that would curtail their rivalrous, bellicose competition over control of energy and resources are anathema to them.

I am not a fan of economics, but it’s essential to explore and understand the domain because it’s central to our modern techno-industrial way of life.

Herman Daly is widely credited with bringing steady-state economics (SSE) to prominence. The concept has roots in earlier economic thought and has been developed by other influential figures. John Stuart Mill, for example, discussed a “stationary state” in his “Principles of Political Economy”. Other economists who have contributed to the understanding and development of SSE include Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen , Robert Ayres, Robert Solow, and Joseph Stiglitz.

SSE envisions an economy that operates within the Earth’s ecological limits by maintaining a stable, but not static, level of population and per capita consumption. It is often seen as the stable state that a degrowth process would ultimately aim to achieve.

Economists must continually grasp at mass-produced straws, or they’d be out of a job.

Daly defines an SSE as an economy with “constant stocks of people and artifacts, maintained at some desired, sufficient levels by low rates of maintenance throughput.” Some form of government, I suppose, would enforce, democratically, a balance of birth and death rates to maintain a relatively constant population size. Sweet. What might that population be? Could this work with a population of one billion, for example? Who knows? Presumably, we’d have to do the numbers and crunch the big data to find out. Then we’d have to find a way towards a world with fewer people—a sinful prospect.

The overall material and energy throughput — the flow of resources from extraction to waste — is kept at a sustainable level. SSE does not focus on zero production but instead on production that prioritizes maintenance, durability, and qualitative improvements over endless quantitative growth. What government would adopt SSE in this “multipolar trap” of a world? How would we coordinate an economy like SSE across rivalrous nation-states, where Uncle Sam would rather continue raiding and warring rather than collaborating? Neocolonialism is the reason the staff get up in the morning.

And don’t you know, SSE is not stagnant? Like a mature forest, it is a living system that can change, develop, and improve qualitatively over time. It can evolve, but its overall physical scale remains relatively constant and within ecological carrying capacity. Innovation would focus on efficiency, resource reuse, and extending product lifespans. That would have been great had we decided to do this in the 19th century, but alas, our species would rather conquer nature and death through Big Gods or technology than recognize limits to growth.

I apologize for being so cynical. I wasn’t always like this, but I can’t see enough interest in such values in the world.

The core values and functions of a steady-state economy are deeply rooted in ecological and ethical considerations, contrasting sharply with the values of a growth-oriented economy. I imagine Floki from the series Vikings on an illimitable plane, hoping people will change because he’s seen the light. All we need to do is focus on understanding Great Nature, and we can keep some of our toys.

Our global yet local communities will be indefinitely sustainable, ensuring that human economic activity does not deplete natural resources or exceed the planet’s assimilative capacity for waste. Our benevolent, living systems-informed stewardship will protect the long-term health of ecosystems and life-support services while still allowing us to render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s. Our smartphones will be wise and not at all distracting as we focus on our local communities and familial relationships, interdependent with Great Nature.

By now, the business-as-usual crowd is thoroughly disgusted. Our brave leaders and their staff are thinking I must be writing this on a sailboat with Greta Thunberg on my way to support terrorists who are fighting against terrorists, and, due to my feeling that genocide is a terrible crime, I am completely absorbed into the social justice cult.

A level of production and consumption that is “enough” to provide a high quality of life for all sounds like an evil communist plot. Focusing on non-material aspects of well-being, such as community, relationships, health, and leisure, is too hippy for the catwalk. What am I smoking?

The Players would rather depopulate the planet through war than waste GDP on making a gulag big enough for people if this idea ever caught on.

A steady-state economy, promoting a more equitable distribution of wealth and resources, is unthinkable for people committed to outperforming their rivals. The pie must grow by exploiting the galaxy’s resources. It’s not that hard. We can build the Dyson sphere by 2030. Alleviating poverty through redistribution and ensuring a fair allocation of resources and opportunities runs counter to our nature as conquerors. Policies such as minimum and maximum incomes or progressive taxation are unthinkable. Life is suffering; only the strong survive.

Circular economy principles, maximizing the lifespan of products, shifting towards renewable energy sources, and getting more service from less throughput. Fantasies, all fantasies! Quality over quantity and ecological interdependence are contrary to everything we know about human supremacy and our functional destinies as apex predators, children of big God, science, engineering, reason, and technology. You might as well stop playing The Great Game and die. We are not animals! We are human beings! It’s better to spend all of our resources arming ourselves for a global conflagration with “bad guys” than invest in social services and a completely different kind of electrical grid. Shareholders must own all housing so they can charge rents and control the resources needed to fight this great battle of good versus evil.

Maintaining a stable population and resource consumption, minimizing waste generation and pollution, redefining measures of progress, allocating resources within limits, promoting durable goods and services that support sustainable livelihoods and local economies, and investing in qualitative development are tantamount to defeatism.

For our pathological world leaders, the combination of degrowth as a transition strategy and the steady-state economy as a long-term goal and a compelling alternative to the current growth-addicted economic model is impossible to entertain. A future where humanity thrives within planetary boundaries, prioritizing well-being, equity, and ecological health over endless accumulation, leading to a peaceful world where people understand their place within complex living systems. A miraculous planet where we continue to evolve with all creatures, great and small, is a world devoid of meaning.

The masses will continue to believe ancient stories and follow whimsical new belief systems crafted by men seeking power through false enlightenment. We will create new beliefs concerning conquest, pain, suffering, and great drama, addicted to those things that provide some relief until The Great Bang or The Long Whimper decides our fate.

I’m sad that I feel this way. I wish I had more faith in people. There are too few people in the world who envision a radically different way of life, let alone those who would sacrifice themselves to create a better world.

We are mostly passive witnesses to modern fossil-fueled techno-industrial neoliberal financialised capitalist consumer culture without the wherewithal or power to choose something else.

Are we not entertained?

What will be will be.

Humans Evolved Into A Kill Switch

The story of our brain’s evolution is complex, an inquiry of which would require a more than cursory understanding of multiple domains of science. It’s a fascinating story, and I recommend you look into it while the lights are still on. Our unique evolved anatomy produced “culture,” a Killer App, which is probably the most complex thing one can think of.

It’s a fascinating story, and I recommend you look into it while the lights are still on. Our unique evolved anatomy produced “culture,” a Killer App, which is probably the most complex thing one can think of.

Recently, I’ve been immersing myself in history books and podcasts, driven by a deep curiosity about how we, as a species, have lived, fought, and died throughout our history. When I say history, I’m not referring to the entire timeline of the past, which is studied through various disciplines like paleontology, archaeology, cosmology, physics, biology, geology, and genealogy.

Human history began when Homo sapiens sapiens (modern humans) first appeared, currently estimated to be around 300,000 years ago in Africa.

At present, I am more interested in history after the invention of writing, as opposed to pre-his-story.

If we take the invention of writing as the marker, Sumerian cuneiform script in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq), with the earliest evidence dating back to around 3400–3200 BCE, and Egyptian hieroglyphs, with the earliest known examples also dating to around 3200 BCE. History began around the late 4th millennium BCE (around 3200 BCE) in regions like Mesopotamia and Egypt.

Search Break: Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. Mathematics and Rationalism are Killer Apps.

Global cultural history is a lot harder to get a glimpse of, as there is not much evidence about many cultures. Oral traditions are mostly broken, fragmented, and complicated by interactions with other traditions. Some may still exist, but they are few and can’t be traced back to thousands and thousands of years. I am not familiar with debates on the topic, but you know what I mean.

Search Break: Pythagoras.

From this perspective, the vast majority of human existence falls under pre-his-story.

From my exploration of history and prehistory, I have noticed specific innovations I think of as “killer apps” — human innovations that, while initially felt to be beneficial, ultimately contain the seeds of our destruction.

Many thinkers have and are examining the unintended consequences of technological advancement and the role of cultural narratives in driving unsustainable practices and ways of life.

My interests are nothing new. Below are a few killer apps that have emerged along the timeline of our cultural evolution. I’m guessing complex spoken language was one of the first killer apps. Followed by:

• Early Toolmaking: Facilitating migration, hunting, and basic survival.

• Agriculture and Settlement: Enabling larger populations and the storage of resources.

• Trade Networks: Fostering interconnectedness and resource exchange.

• Ships and Navigation: Leading to exploration, trade, and ultimately colonialism/imperialism and a fossil-fueled modern techno-industrial global economy, and Ubiquitous Human Techno-Waste.

• Metallurgy (Bronze/Iron Age): Revolutionizing tools, agriculture, and warfare.

• Logic and mathematics.

• Fossil Fuels and the Steam Engine: Powering the Industrial Revolution and Unprecedented Resource Exploitation.

• Communication Technologies (Telegraph, etc.): Enabling global information networks, scientific collaboration, and managing complex systems.

• Advanced Weaponry (Industrial Age to Nuclear, etc.): Increasing the scale and destructive global conflicts and wars, and inevitably the automated destruction of everything on Earth. I know, that’s a bold statement, but if you can do the math, you will understand.

• Global Trade and Finance: Creating intricate interconnectedness, systemic vulnerabilities, and inequalities. Borrowing energy and materials from future generations, with no way of paying them back when we are gone. We live in a world of limited resources and seemingly unlimited constructs, conventions, and narratives. But really, it’s all Shakespeare. Right?

17 Essential Books About Shakespeare

All of the above are increasing in complexity as scientific, engineering, and technological innovations create second and third-order problems to fix, as the overall complexities of interconnected energy and material extraction and flows make systems more fragile, and competition for control of these systems more contentious and potentially destructive to the systems themselves and the people who maintain them.

We earn currency from markets that track the problems we create and solve for profit. We market solutions that create more problems. If you are in the right circumstances in this Great Game, you can have a fantastically wealthy experience with an intoxicating illusion of control.

More people experience this illusion of control and wildly wealthy lives than ever before. There are more wealthy people per capita on Earth than at any time in history, and more poor and miserable people as well. That’s merely a numbers game, and numbers can be played with to justify many disparate narratives and the goals that underpin them.

The development and deployment of these “Killer Apps” have been consistently justified by cultural narratives, such as philosophy, mythology, mystery traditions, The Gods, Big Gods, religion, divine right, jingoism, imperialism, racism, and nationalism. These stories and ideas have fueled expansionism, conflict, and the relentless pursuit of growth: stories, stories, and more stories with their justifying narratives, ideologies, and belief systems are at the very heart of the logic of the Great Game.

This trajectory, despite the initial benefits of these innovations for human groups, is leading towards:

• Genocide: Fueled by ideologies of supremacy and othering.

• Ecocide: Resulting from unsustainable resource extraction, environmental degradation, and habits of life.

• Overshoot: Exceeding the Earth’s carrying capacity for complex evolving living systems that we are part and parcel of and depend on for our existence. Life begets Life. Life depends on Life. However, we define Life at any particular time, as far as we know, this is the only living system (GAIA) in the Universe.

• Global Civilizational Collapse: The potential outcome of unchecked ecological destruction, societal instability, and various psychological and physiological pathologies emerging from false beliefs, a maladaptive misunderstanding of Great Nature, and destructive ways of life that ignore how we can sustainably exist within Great Nature’s rules/limits.

• Extinction: The ultimate consequence of a fundamentally unsustainable path.

My website has dozens of URLs and book recommendations covering killer apps that have emerged throughout history. Good information is at our fingertips, but we hardly care to delve into it as we struggle to survive or gain prestige.

All of these authors, individuals, and groups must be understood within their context and not be thought of as disseminating “The Truth.” Despite the inadequacies of our shallow wisdom and understanding of the Universe and our place in it, I enjoy exploring different ways of understanding aspects of “Reality,” which is ultimately too complex and vast for any individual, community, or human network to grasp.

All narratives are disputed and change over time as new information and methods of inquiry are discovered, and as stories are edited and rewritten for a desired effect. Although powerful lines of evidence support some of these narratives, they don’t represent, in general, a total understanding of complex, evolving, and emergent systems of Great Living Nature.

Panpsychism. Life. Consciousness. Dark energy. Dark matter. What is it, and how does it all work? Can we extract minerals and energy from the ocean floor at a reasonable cost, plus profits to maintain the acceleration of The Great Game 2.0? Do we have the time, resources, and energy to mine asteroids or terraform Mars? Can I upload my sense of body, mind, and soul, my memories, identity, and ego to a chip on a computer and live happily forever after? Will I get to stay in my body for a thousand years, or can I go to heaven in my spirit form and enjoy whatever people do there? Are bad, stupid people trying to stop me from creating an intentional community of people in Ireland with pure, genetically verified Celtic folks? If these bad folks want to stop me from my Celtic dream, what can I do about it? What does God want? What happens to us when we die? Does God want us to rebuild the Temple? Do U.S. Americans have to control AI because if the Chinese did, the world would be FUBAR? Is the American Pope a good guy?

We will never know it all, and neither will our machines.

We exist and do what we do based on the compelling Nature of our stories and how that forms our identity within our group of true believers. We are no longer intimately connected to Great Nature, so our primary concerns revolve around the Great Game of competition for dominance between large-scale groups. We are addicted to stories and compelled to act them out as best we can.

Why didn’t they write E=mc² on one of the tablets Moses brought down from the mountain? Why were the Israelites dancing around a golden calf?

I will leave my thoughts on transcendent, supernatural things to my private musings, creative writing, and intimate conversations with trusted and loved friends. A productive or whimsical imagination is nice to have.

None of the few books on my book recommendation page at Cospolon are “the best books” on a particular subject or narrative line of inquiry or explanation. The webpage hardly represents a complete library, and many books I have encountered are left out. Still, they are, I think, informative and helpful in understanding our current Great Singular Polycrisis that has emerged from our “Nature.” Read some of them if you will. It won’t make you holy, rich, powerful, or a “useful intellectual,” but it might help you prepare your heart and mind for the collapse of Complex Global Civilization.

I am at a loss thinking whether I should rewrite my manifesto page or simply delete it. Manifestos are illusions developed by delusions as a virtue crutch in the face of absurd circumstances that are only useful if they have a practical application that can be measured in the medium term.

No one knows what Medieval Period 2.0 will be like, but these days I like imagining it and writing about it. If I am going to write fiction, that’s the direction for me. Manifestos? Didn’t the Great War, the dot-com/housing crisis/whatnot crash happen decades ago, and every decade since? Have dreamers and protopians not been continually disappointed?

“Our team never won, but it’s my home team and I love it and root for it every season.”

If you take breaks from the emotional roller coaster constantly imposed on the brain/body’s endocrine system with its neurotransmitters and hormones, by supernormal stimuli from the hyperobjects of modern ideas, conveniences, and entertainments, you surely must be a little disappointed by the rhymes of modern life.

Much has been written about such things.

If you look into it, you will discover that modern techno-industrial civilization flipped the kill switch long ago. What looks like progress is actually the ongoing collapse of global civilization on an unprecedented scale, and the collapse is speeding up and hitting tipping points. Those living during the epic tale’s end will experience more pain, horror, and violence than any Empire’s collapse in the history of civilization.

Soon it will feel like “The Long Excruciating Tooth Ache.”

I wish my puny knowledge and intuitions didn’t arrive at such conclusions.

I want to frolic and sing as I forest bathe and drink from pristine rivers in the wilderness with animals coming to serve, feed, and keep me company as I wonder at the beauty of it all. I want to spend the afternoon singing extemporaneous poetry for the dragonflies.

In the coming years, we will mourn the loss of many conveniences. Selfishly, this idiotic storytelling baby boomer hopes I can keep my relatively easy life going as I grow older and approach my inevitable end.

I imagine I can take the pain and accept my death with dignity, courage, and with love in my heart.

Believing any group or individual has all or even some of the answers is a perilous attitude. But we don’t call it “Hopium” for nothing. All we can do is try our best to understand and prepare for the cascading predicaments we find ourselves in.

Search Break: The Buddhist Canon (Tripitaka).

Search Break: The Gospel According to Thomas.

The illusion is falling apart as we desperately cling to magic.

But inquiry can also lead to our understanding of what’s truly important and valuable. Some of us may find intimacy again.

WEIRD, Anglo supremacists have had a successful run, depending on how you define success.

I can only testify to my good fortune and what that means to me.

The world has learned from the Western way and adopted it. I have included an epic poem below that I hope you will read, absorb, and think about.

The idea of pursuing knowledge or experience fully or not at all exists across cultures. We are often advised to dedicate ourselves to a course of action, such as learning or exploration, in a thorough way, rather than just superficially dipping into it. Today, we need to dedicate ourselves to a thorough understanding of how Great Nature works and find our proper place within its living systems.

Unfortunately, we are not interested in what Nature has to teach us, so now, the final and greatest acceleration has begun.

The “Great Acceleration” typically refers to the period after World War II, specifically from the mid-20th century onwards, with its unprecedented global surge of activities and their impacts on GAIA (complex living systems).

The concept of the Great Acceleration is supported by numerous scientific studies that began around 1950. Good examples of this kind of work can be found at the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) and the Stockholm Resilience Centre.

The Great Acceleration is a term used to describe the rapid and widespread increase in human activity and its impact on Earth’s natural systems, which began around the mid-20th century. It is often associated with the Anthropocene epoch, a proposed geological era marked by significant human influence on the Earth’s ecosystems and climate. The Great Acceleration encompasses various social, economic, and environmental changes that have occurred on a global scale since the 1950s.

During the Great Acceleration, remarkable socioeconomic and Earth system trends have been observed. Global population has surged from approximately 2.5 billion in 1950 to nearly 8 billion by 2021, and the urban population has increased from 29% in 1950 to around 56% in 2021. The world GDP has grown from $9 trillion in 1950 to over $84 trillion in 2021 (in constant 2011 US dollars). Alongside these trends, earth system changes have accelerated, with atmospheric CO2 concentrations rising from 310 ppm in 1950 to over 410 ppm by 2021. The global average temperature has increased by approximately 1.2°C since the pre-industrial era, and the rate of species extinction is estimated to be 100–1,000 times higher than the background rate. Furthermore, plastic production has skyrocketed from 2 million metric tons in 1950 to over 360 million metric tons in 2021, and the global use of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilisers has risen dramatically, contributing to water pollution and eutrophication.

Our narratives and tools produced exponential increases in socioeconomic trends and ideologies (like neoliberalism). Modernity is destroying Earth's ecosystems. We read every day about the sixth extinction caused by agriculture, ocean acidification, deforestation, CO2 emissions, and so on. These interconnected trends illustrate how human activity has become the dominant driver of planetary change, leading to the proposed and debated Anthropocene epoch.

Rapidly evolving narratives and technologies in the basket we call Artificial Intelligence represent warp-speed acceleration compared to the recklessness of our last great acceleration.

But this is not the first era of acceleration. Others include the Neolithic revolution (c. 10,000 BCE onwards), the rise of early civilizations and urbanization (c. 4th-1st millennium BCE), the Age of Exploration and Colonization (c. 15th-18th centuries CE), and the Industrial Revolution (c. 18th-19th centuries CE). Of course, this is not a definitive breakdown or a complete list.

The Techno-Industrial AI, Robotic, Anthropocene is the Potential “Final” Great Acceleration, the ultimate “Kill Switch.”

The current acceleration is unique in its global scale, with its speed of technological change, black box nature, and the magnitude of its impact on Earth’s systems. And most people are oblivious to it, believing only the reality they’ve been conditioned and trained to believe.

Artificial intelligence has the potential to dramatically accelerate technological development and resource exploitation, potentially outpacing our ability to understand and manage its consequences or control its trajectory.

The Maximum Power Principle, Jevons Paradox, and other models of our limited understanding of how nature and society work are constantly at play here.

Even those trying to keep up can’t.

Search Break: Thermodynamics.

The increasing global population, consumption rates, and resource scarcity exacerbated by environmental degradation will intensify conflicts and destabilize whatever global order we think we have at present. BRICS, the U.S.’s “Rules-Based Order,” or whatever, has no strategy to confront “overshoot” or even the desire to contemplate limits to growth.

To the contrary, it’s a mad fight to preserve business as usual even if it kills us.

For now, in the so-called first world, we are too well fed and entertained to care. We will continue to take from the rest of the world to satisfy our appetites. The true cost of our lifestyle is out of sight and out of mind; it’s truly incomprehensible for most of us.

The combination of environmental destruction (ecocide), the potential for large-scale conflict (see the war in Ukraine and the genocide in Gaza with its rapid innovations in drone and robotic weaponry, targeting technologies, enabled by complex communications systems like Starlink, and remote identification of targets and kill chain operations), along with the risks associated with uncontrolled advanced technologies like AI present unprecedented existential risks to humanity. All of this has already been causing species extinction and polluting our world for a long time.

We have been consuming everything we can for thousands of years and have not learned to listen to wise people simply asking us to slow down and pay more attention to Great Nature.

“Killer Apps” have always been killers. Technological power and cultural narratives decoupled from an intimate understanding of the complexities of living systems create a dangerous feedback loop. The narratives of progress, supremacy, and endless growth blind us to the long-term consequences of our innovations and ways of life.

Narratives of human dominance over Nature and the right to exploit resources for economic gain have historically driven environmental destruction for tens of thousands of years.

Ideologies of nationalism, imperialism, and racial superiority have justified wars and genocides, amplified by increasingly powerful weaponry (“War Is The Thing That Gives Life Meaning,” a “Killer App”).

Entrenched cultural values and economic systems prevent us from adopting sustainable practices and the necessary paradigm shifts to avert ecological collapse.

Our ingenuity and capacity for manipulating Nature have led to unprecedented population growth and technological advancement. However, this very success, driven by “Killer Apps” and the narratives that propel them, is now threatening the planet’s living systems upon which we owe long-term survival.

How many more ways can all of us who are tuned into this say it?

At some point, we will all tire of sounding the alarm and sit back to wait for the silent spring.

The historical development of increasingly potent tools, coupled with cultural narratives that often prioritize short-term gains and intergroup competition, has created a situation where our successes drive us toward environmental destruction and potential extinction. The academic and scientific literature across various disciplines increasingly supports the idea that unchecked technological advancement within unsustainable cultural frameworks poses a significant threat to the future of our species and Life on Earth.

Addressing this challenge requires a fundamental shift in our cultural narratives and a conscious effort to develop and deploy technologies in a way that respects ecological limits and promotes long-term sustainability.

Can this be done? Can we preserve the good stuff and get rid of the bad stuff?

I must laugh.

It would take a miracle. Do you believe in miracles?

Our history and its narratives warp our understanding of our place in Nature. Circumstances and predicaments are brutal dictators that will determine what we do next, and after that, and on and on until we can’t fix what we’ve broken out of a sheer instinct to survive.

Can destroyers ever truly be creators?

Search Break: Look into the sizes and populations of villages worldwide at specific times and places. Start in Ancient Egypt and move forward in time, continuing your round-the-world journey. It’s an enlightening exercise.

Science, engineering, and technology create amazing things and complex problems that can only be fixed with more science, engineering, and technology.

Our machines will turn the Universe into Hammers and Nails.

Neoreactionary, TESCREAL accelerationism works toward replacing life with an artificial machine that will somehow align with “human values.” What kind of human values? The values of Tech Bros with delusions of being Gods? A machine, by its definition, can never align with human values because humans are just another animal embedded in Great Nature with all its limits, quirks, and ever-evolving potential. When the machine iterates its algorithms, what will be its purpose? Despite our inventions and predictions, we may never know.

What do you value?

The problem of evil is trivial next to the problem of the malfunctioning Nature of our great narratives that have produced the insatiable apex techno-industrial predator we have become.

Transforming a large-scale modern techno-industrial global culture may be impossible as we accelerate toward ultimate collapse.

Will the machine boot up just before the last creature dies?

What will be God’s next project?

Sin first, heat death later.

Do we really think we know?

We will concern ourselves with pop stars, season tickets to the game, and fighting over what story is supreme and sanctioned by God Almighty, or some heroic leader or thinker, giving us the right to do as we must.

What choices do you have?

Read and make history; do what you must; we are here now. I hope you are enjoying life. I am a modern techno-industrial narrator who has had a good run. If I were slightly more ignorant, I’d probably feel better than I do now. Or more stressed about achieving this and that, owning more stuff, and comparing better when measured against my competitors. I’ll never know the parallel universe selves. I live where I live not because it’s the perfect place. After a lifetime of travel and relocations, I thought this might be a slightly kinder, gentler place to watch global civilization unravel. Sadly, it’s falling apart faster than even a realist (haha, hehe) like me expected. I have friends in their 60s with young children; I can only say I hope they love and enjoy them. I can’t imagine what life will be like for them when they are 40.

I have been looking at what life was like in the past when there were far fewer people on Earth. For most of our “History,” life has been tough for most folks and violent for those wanting more or needing to migrate. Our history is marked by hard labor, conquest, brutal competition, oppression, subjugation, slavish service, and war. Read about ancient Mesopotamian kingdoms, ancient empires, and conquering hordes. Read about the Great Northern War, from 1700 to 1721, involving Tsar Peter the Great of Russia against the Swedish Empire, led by King Charles XII.

Have mercy!

If you weren’t part of the elite, life was hard. But even elites lived risky, dangerous lives, mostly short and violent, with some pageantry, feasts, and romance here and there.

Surely there have been many moments of bliss.

The horrors of he past are unimaginable. Reading about them is challenging. We romanticize the past or hardly imagine it. The future will be like today, only better.

If we are reborn again and again, as in Vedic and Buddhist stories, I can understand why people want to be free from rebirth. You were not always a princess living with Prince Charming in a lovely castle by a lake. In the same vein, I can understand why people pine for God's love, forgiveness, and peace in heaven. Imagining Valhalla must have been of great comfort before a battle.

Modern techno-industrial global fossil-fueled civilization has been splendid to me. I wish we could keep it going and make it gentle, modest, and sustainable, but that is an impossible dream. We are selfish, arrogant consumers led by Players of The Great Game 2.0 who are all marked by dark tetrad characteristics and defend consumerism, competition, markets, and the seven deadly sins for fear of losing their careers, their privileged place in society, respect, power, and control.

“I just want to fit in!” Patrick Bateman.

We are insane. We no longer fit into Great Nature. We have banished our souls to the wilderness of dark dreams.

Oh, what a wonder to dream an impossible dream. Would I were able to make it up as I go along.

An Essay on Criticism

BY Alexander Pope

PART 1

’Tis hard to say, if greater want of skill
Appear in writing or in judging ill;
But, of the two, less dang’rous is th’ offence
To tire our patience, than mislead our sense.
Some few in that, but numbers err in this,
Ten censure wrong for one who writes amiss;
A fool might once himself alone expose,
Now one in verse makes many more in prose.

’Tis with our judgments as our watches, none
Go just alike, yet each believes his own.
In poets as true genius is but rare,
True taste as seldom is the critic’s share;
Both must alike from Heav’n derive their light,
These born to judge, as well as those to write.
Let such teach others who themselves excel,
And censure freely who have written well.
Authors are partial to their wit, ’tis true,
But are not critics to their judgment too?

Yet if we look more closely we shall find
Most have the seeds of judgment in their mind;
Nature affords at least a glimm’ring light;
The lines, tho’ touch’d but faintly, are drawn right.
But as the slightest sketch, if justly trac’d,
Is by ill colouring but the more disgrac’d,
So by false learning is good sense defac’d;
Some are bewilder’d in the maze of schools,
And some made coxcombs Nature meant but fools.
In search of wit these lose their common sense,
And then turn critics in their own defence:
Each burns alike, who can, or cannot write,
Or with a rival’s, or an eunuch’s spite.
All fools have still an itching to deride,
And fain would be upon the laughing side.
If Mævius scribble in Apollo’s spite,
There are, who judge still worse than he can write.

Some have at first for wits, then poets pass’d,
Turn’d critics next, and prov’d plain fools at last;
Some neither can for wits nor critics pass,
As heavy mules are neither horse nor ass.
Those half-learn’d witlings, num’rous in our isle
As half-form’d insects on the banks of Nile;
Unfinish’d things, one knows not what to call,
Their generation’s so equivocal:
To tell ’em, would a hundred tongues require,
Or one vain wit’s, that might a hundred tire.

But you who seek to give and merit fame,
And justly bear a critic’s noble name,
Be sure your self and your own reach to know,
How far your genius, taste, and learning go;
Launch not beyond your depth, but be discreet,
And mark that point where sense and dulness meet.

Nature to all things fix’d the limits fit,
And wisely curb’d proud man’s pretending wit:
As on the land while here the ocean gains,
In other parts it leaves wide sandy plains;
Thus in the soul while memory prevails,
The solid pow’r of understanding fails;
Where beams of warm imagination play,
The memory’s soft figures melt away.
One science only will one genius fit;
So vast is art, so narrow human wit:
Not only bounded to peculiar arts,
But oft in those, confin’d to single parts.
Like kings we lose the conquests gain’d before,
By vain ambition still to make them more;
Each might his sev’ral province well command,
Would all but stoop to what they understand.

First follow NATURE, and your judgment frame
By her just standard, which is still the same:
Unerring Nature, still divinely bright,
One clear, unchang’d, and universal light,
Life, force, and beauty, must to all impart,
At once the source, and end, and test of art.
Art from that fund each just supply provides,
Works without show, and without pomp presides:
In some fair body thus th’ informing soul
With spirits feeds, with vigour fills the whole,
Each motion guides, and ev’ry nerve sustains;
Itself unseen, but in th’ effects, remains.
Some, to whom Heav’n in wit has been profuse,
Want as much more, to turn it to its use;
For wit and judgment often are at strife,
Though meant each other’s aid, like man and wife.
’Tis more to guide, than spur the Muse’s steed;
Restrain his fury, than provoke his speed;
The winged courser, like a gen’rous horse,
Shows most true mettle when you check his course.

Those RULES of old discover’d, not devis’d,
Are Nature still, but Nature methodis’d;
Nature, like liberty, is but restrain’d
By the same laws which first herself ordain’d.

Hear how learn’d Greece her useful rules indites,
When to repress, and when indulge our flights:
High on Parnassus’ top her sons she show’d,
And pointed out those arduous paths they trod;
Held from afar, aloft, th’ immortal prize,
And urg’d the rest by equal steps to rise.
Just precepts thus from great examples giv’n,
She drew from them what they deriv’d from Heav’n.
The gen’rous critic fann’d the poet’s fire,
And taught the world with reason to admire.
Then criticism the Muse’s handmaid prov’d,
To dress her charms, and make her more belov’d;
But following wits from that intention stray’d;
Who could not win the mistress, woo’d the maid;
Against the poets their own arms they turn’d,
Sure to hate most the men from whom they learn’d.
So modern ‘pothecaries, taught the art
By doctor’s bills to play the doctor’s part,
Bold in the practice of mistaken rules,
Prescribe, apply, and call their masters fools.
Some on the leaves of ancient authors prey,
Nor time nor moths e’er spoil’d so much as they:
Some drily plain, without invention’s aid,
Write dull receipts how poems may be made:
These leave the sense, their learning to display,
And those explain the meaning quite away.

You then whose judgment the right course would steer,
Know well each ANCIENT’S proper character;
His fable, subject, scope in ev’ry page;
Religion, country, genius of his age:
Without all these at once before your eyes,
Cavil you may, but never criticise.
Be Homer’s works your study and delight,
Read them by day, and meditate by night;
Thence form your judgment, thence your maxims bring,
And trace the Muses upward to their spring;
Still with itself compar’d, his text peruse;
And let your comment be the Mantuan Muse.

When first young Maro in his boundless mind
A work t’ outlast immortal Rome design’d,
Perhaps he seem’d above the critic’s law,
And but from Nature’s fountains scorn’d to draw:
But when t’ examine ev’ry part he came,
Nature and Homer were, he found, the same.
Convinc’d, amaz’d, he checks the bold design,
And rules as strict his labour’d work confine,
As if the Stagirite o’erlook’d each line.
Learn hence for ancient rules a just esteem;
To copy nature is to copy them.

Some beauties yet, no precepts can declare,
For there’s a happiness as well as care.
Music resembles poetry, in each
Are nameless graces which no methods teach,
And which a master-hand alone can reach.
If, where the rules not far enough extend,
(Since rules were made but to promote their end)
Some lucky LICENCE answers to the full
Th’ intent propos’d, that licence is a rule.
Thus Pegasus, a nearer way to take,
May boldly deviate from the common track.
Great wits sometimes may gloriously offend,
And rise to faults true critics dare not mend;
From vulgar bounds with brave disorder part,
And snatch a grace beyond the reach of art,
Which, without passing through the judgment, gains
The heart, and all its end at once attains.
In prospects, thus, some objects please our eyes,
Which out of nature’s common order rise,
The shapeless rock, or hanging precipice.
But tho’ the ancients thus their rules invade,
(As kings dispense with laws themselves have made)
Moderns, beware! or if you must offend
Against the precept, ne’er transgress its end;
Let it be seldom, and compell’d by need,
And have, at least, their precedent to plead.
The critic else proceeds without remorse,
Seizes your fame, and puts his laws in force.

I know there are, to whose presumptuous thoughts
Those freer beauties, ev’n in them, seem faults.
Some figures monstrous and misshap’d appear,
Consider’d singly, or beheld too near,
Which, but proportion’d to their light, or place,
Due distance reconciles to form and grace.
A prudent chief not always must display
His pow’rs in equal ranks, and fair array,
But with th’ occasion and the place comply,
Conceal his force, nay seem sometimes to fly.
Those oft are stratagems which errors seem,
Nor is it Homer nods, but we that dream.

Still green with bays each ancient altar stands,
Above the reach of sacrilegious hands,
Secure from flames, from envy’s fiercer rage,
Destructive war, and all-involving age.
See, from each clime the learn’d their incense bring!
Hear, in all tongues consenting pæans ring!
In praise so just let ev’ry voice be join’d,
And fill the gen’ral chorus of mankind!
Hail, bards triumphant! born in happier days;
Immortal heirs of universal praise!
Whose honours with increase of ages grow,
As streams roll down, enlarging as they flow!
Nations unborn your mighty names shall sound,
And worlds applaud that must not yet be found!
Oh may some spark of your celestial fire
The last, the meanest of your sons inspire,
(That on weak wings, from far, pursues your flights;
Glows while he reads, but trembles as he writes)
To teach vain wits a science little known,
T’ admire superior sense, and doubt their own!

Part 2

Of all the causes which conspire to blind
Man’s erring judgment, and misguide the mind,
What the weak head with strongest bias rules,
Is pride, the never-failing vice of fools.
Whatever Nature has in worth denied,
She gives in large recruits of needful pride;
For as in bodies, thus in souls, we find
What wants in blood and spirits, swell’d with wind;
Pride, where wit fails, steps in to our defence,
And fills up all the mighty void of sense!
If once right reason drives that cloud away,
Truth breaks upon us with resistless day;
Trust not yourself; but your defects to know,
Make use of ev’ry friend — and ev’ry foe.

A little learning is a dang’rous thing;
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring:
There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain,
And drinking largely sobers us again.
Fir’d at first sight with what the Muse imparts,
In fearless youth we tempt the heights of arts,
While from the bounded level of our mind,
Short views we take, nor see the lengths behind,
But more advanc’d, behold with strange surprise
New, distant scenes of endless science rise!
So pleas’d at first, the tow’ring Alps we try,
Mount o’er the vales, and seem to tread the sky;
Th’ eternal snows appear already past,
And the first clouds and mountains seem the last;
But those attain’d, we tremble to survey
The growing labours of the lengthen’d way,
Th’ increasing prospect tires our wand’ring eyes,
Hills peep o’er hills, and Alps on Alps arise!

A perfect judge will read each work of wit
With the same spirit that its author writ,
Survey the whole, nor seek slight faults to find,
Where nature moves, and rapture warms the mind;
Nor lose, for that malignant dull delight,
The gen’rous pleasure to be charm’d with wit.
But in such lays as neither ebb, nor flow,
Correctly cold, and regularly low,
That shunning faults, one quiet tenour keep;
We cannot blame indeed — but we may sleep.
In wit, as nature, what affects our hearts
Is not th’ exactness of peculiar parts;
’Tis not a lip, or eye, we beauty call,
But the joint force and full result of all.
Thus when we view some well-proportion’d dome,
(The world’s just wonder, and ev’n thine, O Rome!’
No single parts unequally surprise;
All comes united to th’ admiring eyes;
No monstrous height, or breadth, or length appear;
The whole at once is bold, and regular.

Whoever thinks a faultless piece to see,
Thinks what ne’er was, nor is, nor e’er shall be.
In ev’ry work regard the writer’s end,
Since none can compass more than they intend;
And if the means be just, the conduct true,
Applause, in spite of trivial faults, is due.
As men of breeding, sometimes men of wit,
T’ avoid great errors, must the less commit:
Neglect the rules each verbal critic lays,
For not to know such trifles, is a praise.
Most critics, fond of some subservient art,
Still make the whole depend upon a part:
They talk of principles, but notions prize,
And all to one lov’d folly sacrifice.

Once on a time, La Mancha’s knight, they say,
A certain bard encount’ring on the way,
Discours’d in terms as just, with looks as sage,
As e’er could Dennis of the Grecian stage;
Concluding all were desp’rate sots and fools,
Who durst depart from Aristotle’s rules.
Our author, happy in a judge so nice,
Produc’d his play, and begg’d the knight’s advice,
Made him observe the subject and the plot,
The manners, passions, unities, what not?
All which, exact to rule, were brought about,
Were but a combat in the lists left out.
“What! leave the combat out?” exclaims the knight;
“Yes, or we must renounce the Stagirite.”
“Not so by Heav’n” (he answers in a rage)
“Knights, squires, and steeds, must enter on the stage.”
So vast a throng the stage can ne’er contain.
“Then build a new, or act it in a plain.”

Thus critics, of less judgment than caprice,
Curious not knowing, not exact but nice,
Form short ideas; and offend in arts
(As most in manners) by a love to parts.

Some to conceit alone their taste confine,
And glitt’ring thoughts struck out at ev’ry line;
Pleas’d with a work where nothing’s just or fit;
One glaring chaos and wild heap of wit.
Poets, like painters, thus, unskill’d to trace
The naked nature and the living grace,
With gold and jewels cover ev’ry part,
And hide with ornaments their want of art.
True wit is nature to advantage dress’d,
What oft was thought, but ne’er so well express’d,
Something, whose truth convinc’d at sight we find,
That gives us back the image of our mind.
As shades more sweetly recommend the light,
So modest plainness sets off sprightly wit.
For works may have more wit than does ’em good,
As bodies perish through excess of blood.

Others for language all their care express,
And value books, as women men, for dress:
Their praise is still — “the style is excellent”:
The sense, they humbly take upon content.
Words are like leaves; and where they most abound,
Much fruit of sense beneath is rarely found.
False eloquence, like the prismatic glass,
Its gaudy colours spreads on ev’ry place;
The face of Nature we no more survey,
All glares alike, without distinction gay:
But true expression, like th’ unchanging sun,
Clears, and improves whate’er it shines upon,
It gilds all objects, but it alters none.
Expression is the dress of thought, and still
Appears more decent, as more suitable;
A vile conceit in pompous words express’d,
Is like a clown in regal purple dress’d:
For diff’rent styles with diff’rent subjects sort,
As several garbs with country, town, and court.
Some by old words to fame have made pretence,
Ancients in phrase, mere moderns in their sense;
Such labour’d nothings, in so strange a style,
Amaze th’ unlearn’d, and make the learned smile.
Unlucky, as Fungoso in the play,
These sparks with awkward vanity display
What the fine gentleman wore yesterday!
And but so mimic ancient wits at best,
As apes our grandsires, in their doublets dress’d.
In words, as fashions, the same rule will hold;
Alike fantastic, if too new, or old;
Be not the first by whom the new are tried,
Not yet the last to lay the old aside.

But most by numbers judge a poet’s song;
And smooth or rough, with them is right or wrong:
In the bright Muse though thousand charms conspire,
Her voice is all these tuneful fools admire,
Who haunt Parnassus but to please their ear,
Not mend their minds; as some to church repair,
Not for the doctrine, but the music there.
These equal syllables alone require,
Tho’ oft the ear the open vowels tire,
While expletives their feeble aid do join,
And ten low words oft creep in one dull line,
While they ring round the same unvaried chimes,
With sure returns of still expected rhymes.
Where’er you find “the cooling western breeze”,
In the next line, it “whispers through the trees”:
If “crystal streams with pleasing murmurs creep”,
The reader’s threaten’d (not in vain) with “sleep”.
Then, at the last and only couplet fraught
With some unmeaning thing they call a thought,
A needless Alexandrine ends the song,
That, like a wounded snake, drags its slow length along.
Leave such to tune their own dull rhymes, and know
What’s roundly smooth, or languishingly slow;
And praise the easy vigour of a line,
Where Denham’s strength, and Waller’s sweetness join.
True ease in writing comes from art, not chance,
As those move easiest who have learn’d to dance.
’Tis not enough no harshness gives offence,
The sound must seem an echo to the sense.
Soft is the strain when Zephyr gently blows,
And the smooth stream in smoother numbers flows;
But when loud surges lash the sounding shore,
The hoarse, rough verse should like the torrent roar.
When Ajax strives some rock’s vast weight to throw,
The line too labours, and the words move slow;
Not so, when swift Camilla scours the plain,
Flies o’er th’ unbending corn, and skims along the main.
Hear how Timotheus’ varied lays surprise,
And bid alternate passions fall and rise!
While, at each change, the son of Libyan Jove
Now burns with glory, and then melts with love;
Now his fierce eyes with sparkling fury glow,
Now sighs steal out, and tears begin to flow:
Persians and Greeks like turns of nature found,
And the world’s victor stood subdu’d by sound!
The pow’r of music all our hearts allow,
And what Timotheus was, is Dryden now.

Avoid extremes; and shun the fault of such,
Who still are pleas’d too little or too much.
At ev’ry trifle scorn to take offence,
That always shows great pride, or little sense;
Those heads, as stomachs, are not sure the best,
Which nauseate all, and nothing can digest.
Yet let not each gay turn thy rapture move,
For fools admire, but men of sense approve;
As things seem large which we through mists descry,
Dulness is ever apt to magnify.

Some foreign writers, some our own despise;
The ancients only, or the moderns prize.
Thus wit, like faith, by each man is applied
To one small sect, and all are damn’d beside.
Meanly they seek the blessing to confine,
And force that sun but on a part to shine;
Which not alone the southern wit sublimes,
But ripens spirits in cold northern climes;
Which from the first has shone on ages past,
Enlights the present, and shall warm the last;
(Though each may feel increases and decays,
And see now clearer and now darker days.)
Regard not then if wit be old or new,
But blame the false, and value still the true.
Some ne’er advance a judgment of their own,
But catch the spreading notion of the town;
They reason and conclude by precedent,
And own stale nonsense which they ne’er invent.
Some judge of authors’ names, not works, and then
Nor praise nor blame the writings, but the men.
Of all this servile herd, the worst is he
That in proud dulness joins with quality,
A constant critic at the great man’s board,
To fetch and carry nonsense for my Lord.
What woeful stuff this madrigal would be,
In some starv’d hackney sonneteer, or me?
But let a Lord once own the happy lines,
How the wit brightens! how the style refines!
Before his sacred name flies every fault,
And each exalted stanza teems with thought!

The vulgar thus through imitation err;
As oft the learn’d by being singular;
So much they scorn the crowd, that if the throng
By chance go right, they purposely go wrong:
So Schismatics the plain believers quit,
And are but damn’d for having too much wit.

Some praise at morning what they blame at night;
But always think the last opinion right.
A Muse by these is like a mistress us’d,
This hour she’s idoliz’d, the next abus’d;
While their weak heads, like towns unfortified,
Twixt sense and nonsense daily change their side.
Ask them the cause; they’re wiser still, they say;
And still tomorrow’s wiser than today.
We think our fathers fools, so wise we grow;
Our wiser sons, no doubt, will think us so.
Once school divines this zealous isle o’erspread;
Who knew most Sentences, was deepest read;
Faith, Gospel, all, seem’d made to be disputed,
And none had sense enough to be confuted:
Scotists and Thomists, now, in peace remain,
Amidst their kindred cobwebs in Duck Lane.
If Faith itself has different dresses worn,
What wonder modes in wit should take their turn?
Oft, leaving what is natural and fit,
The current folly proves the ready wit;
And authors think their reputation safe
Which lives as long as fools are pleased to laugh.

Some valuing those of their own side or mind,
Still make themselves the measure of mankind;
Fondly we think we honour merit then,
When we but praise ourselves in other men.
Parties in wit attend on those of state,
And public faction doubles private hate.
Pride, Malice, Folly, against Dryden rose,
In various shapes of Parsons, Critics, Beaus;
But sense surviv’d, when merry jests were past;
For rising merit will buoy up at last.
Might he return, and bless once more our eyes,
New Blackmores and new Milbourns must arise;
Nay should great Homer lift his awful head,
Zoilus again would start up from the dead.
Envy will merit, as its shade, pursue,
But like a shadow, proves the substance true;
For envied wit, like Sol eclips’d, makes known
Th’ opposing body’s grossness, not its own.
When first that sun too powerful beams displays,
It draws up vapours which obscure its rays;
But ev’n those clouds at last adorn its way,
Reflect new glories, and augment the day.

Be thou the first true merit to befriend;
His praise is lost, who stays till all commend.
Short is the date, alas, of modern rhymes,
And ’tis but just to let ’em live betimes.
No longer now that golden age appears,
When patriarch wits surviv’d a thousand years:
Now length of Fame (our second life) is lost,
And bare threescore is all ev’n that can boast;
Our sons their fathers’ failing language see,
And such as Chaucer is, shall Dryden be.
So when the faithful pencil has design’d
Some bright idea of the master’s mind,
Where a new world leaps out at his command,
And ready Nature waits upon his hand;
When the ripe colours soften and unite,
And sweetly melt into just shade and light;
When mellowing years their full perfection give,
And each bold figure just begins to live,
The treacherous colours the fair art betray,
And all the bright creation fades away!

Unhappy wit, like most mistaken things,
Atones not for that envy which it brings.
In youth alone its empty praise we boast,
But soon the short-liv’d vanity is lost:
Like some fair flow’r the early spring supplies,
That gaily blooms, but ev’n in blooming dies.
What is this wit, which must our cares employ?
The owner’s wife, that other men enjoy;
Then most our trouble still when most admir’d,
And still the more we give, the more requir’d;
Whose fame with pains we guard, but lose with ease,
Sure some to vex, but never all to please;
’Tis what the vicious fear, the virtuous shun;
By fools ’tis hated, and by knaves undone!

If wit so much from ign’rance undergo,
Ah let not learning too commence its foe!
Of old, those met rewards who could excel,
And such were prais’d who but endeavour’d well:
Though triumphs were to gen’rals only due,
Crowns were reserv’d to grace the soldiers too.
Now, they who reach Parnassus’ lofty crown,
Employ their pains to spurn some others down;

And while self-love each jealous writer rules,
Contending wits become the sport of fools:
But still the worst with most regret commend,
For each ill author is as bad a friend.
To what base ends, and by what abject ways,
Are mortals urg’d through sacred lust of praise!
Ah ne’er so dire a thirst of glory boast,
Nor in the critic let the man be lost!
Good nature and good sense must ever join;
To err is human; to forgive, divine.

But if in noble minds some dregs remain,
Not yet purg’d off, of spleen and sour disdain,
Discharge that rage on more provoking crimes,
Nor fear a dearth in these flagitious times.
No pardon vile obscenity should find,
Though wit and art conspire to move your mind;
But dulness with obscenity must prove
As shameful sure as impotence in love.
In the fat age of pleasure, wealth, and ease,
Sprung the rank weed, and thriv’d with large increase:
When love was all an easy monarch’s care;
Seldom at council, never in a war:
Jilts ruled the state, and statesmen farces writ;
Nay wits had pensions, and young Lords had wit:
The fair sat panting at a courtier’s play,
And not a mask went unimprov’d away:
The modest fan was lifted up no more,
And virgins smil’d at what they blush’d before.
The following licence of a foreign reign
Did all the dregs of bold Socinus drain;
Then unbelieving priests reform’d the nation,
And taught more pleasant methods of salvation;
Where Heav’n’s free subjects might their rights dispute,
Lest God himself should seem too absolute:
Pulpits their sacred satire learned to spare,
And Vice admired to find a flatt’rer there!
Encourag’d thus, wit’s Titans brav’d the skies,
And the press groan’d with licenc’d blasphemies.
These monsters, critics! with your darts engage,
Here point your thunder, and exhaust your rage!
Yet shun their fault, who, scandalously nice,
Will needs mistake an author into vice;
All seems infected that th’ infected spy,
As all looks yellow to the jaundic’d eye.

Part 3

Learn then what morals critics ought to show,
For ’tis but half a judge’s task, to know.
’Tis not enough, taste, judgment, learning, join;
In all you speak, let truth and candour shine:
That not alone what to your sense is due,
All may allow; but seek your friendship too.

Be silent always when you doubt your sense;
And speak, though sure, with seeming diffidence:
Some positive, persisting fops we know,
Who, if once wrong, will needs be always so;
But you, with pleasure own your errors past,
And make each day a critic on the last.

’Tis not enough, your counsel still be true;
Blunt truths more mischief than nice falsehoods do;
Men must be taught as if you taught them not;
And things unknown proposed as things forgot.
Without good breeding, truth is disapprov’d;
That only makes superior sense belov’d.

Be niggards of advice on no pretence;
For the worst avarice is that of sense.
With mean complacence ne’er betray your trust,
Nor be so civil as to prove unjust.
Fear not the anger of the wise to raise;
Those best can bear reproof, who merit praise.

‘Twere well might critics still this freedom take,
But Appius reddens at each word you speak,
And stares, Tremendous ! with a threatening eye,
Like some fierce tyrant in old tapestry!
Fear most to tax an honourable fool,
Whose right it is, uncensur’d, to be dull;
Such, without wit, are poets when they please,
As without learning they can take degrees.
Leave dangerous truths to unsuccessful satires,
And flattery to fulsome dedicators,
Whom, when they praise, the world believes no more,
Than when they promise to give scribbling o’er.
’Tis best sometimes your censure to restrain,
And charitably let the dull be vain:
Your silence there is better than your spite,
For who can rail so long as they can write?
Still humming on, their drowsy course they keep,
And lash’d so long, like tops, are lash’d asleep.
False steps but help them to renew the race,
As after stumbling, jades will mend their pace.
What crowds of these, impenitently bold,
In sounds and jingling syllables grown old,
Still run on poets, in a raging vein,
Even to the dregs and squeezings of the brain,
Strain out the last, dull droppings of their sense,
And rhyme with all the rage of impotence!

Such shameless bards we have; and yet ’tis true,
There are as mad, abandon’d critics too.
The bookful blockhead, ignorantly read,
With loads of learned lumber in his head,
With his own tongue still edifies his ears,
And always list’ning to himself appears.
All books he reads, and all he reads assails,
From Dryden’s Fables down to Durfey’s Tales.
With him, most authors steal their works, or buy;
Garth did not write his own Dispensary .
Name a new play, and he’s the poet’s friend,
Nay show’d his faults — but when would poets mend?
No place so sacred from such fops is barr’d,
Nor is Paul’s church more safe than Paul’s churchyard:
Nay, fly to altars; there they’ll talk you dead:
For fools rush in where angels fear to tread.
Distrustful sense with modest caution speaks;
It still looks home, and short excursions makes;
But rattling nonsense in full volleys breaks;
And never shock’d, and never turn’d aside,
Bursts out, resistless, with a thund’ring tide.

But where’s the man, who counsel can bestow,
Still pleas’d to teach, and yet not proud to know?
Unbias’d, or by favour or by spite;
Not dully prepossess’d, nor blindly right;
Though learn’d, well-bred; and though well-bred, sincere;
Modestly bold, and humanly severe?
Who to a friend his faults can freely show,
And gladly praise the merit of a foe?
Blest with a taste exact, yet unconfin’d;
A knowledge both of books and human kind;
Gen’rous converse; a soul exempt from pride;
And love to praise, with reason on his side?

Such once were critics; such the happy few,
Athens and Rome in better ages knew.
The mighty Stagirite first left the shore,
Spread all his sails, and durst the deeps explore:
He steer’d securely, and discover’d far,
Led by the light of the Mæonian Star.
Poets, a race long unconfin’d and free,
Still fond and proud of savage liberty,
Receiv’d his laws; and stood convinc’d ’twas fit,
Who conquer’d nature, should preside o’er wit.

Horace still charms with graceful negligence,
And without methods talks us into sense,
Will, like a friend, familiarly convey
The truest notions in the easiest way.
He, who supreme in judgment, as in wit,
Might boldly censure, as he boldly writ,
Yet judg’d with coolness, though he sung with fire;
His precepts teach but what his works inspire.
Our critics take a contrary extreme,
They judge with fury, but they write with fle’me:
Nor suffers Horace more in wrong translations
By wits, than critics in as wrong quotations.

See Dionysius Homer’s thoughts refine,
And call new beauties forth from ev’ry line!
Fancy and art in gay Petronius please,
The scholar’s learning, with the courtier’s ease.

In grave Quintilian’s copious work we find
The justest rules, and clearest method join’d;
Thus useful arms in magazines we place,
All rang’d in order, and dispos’d with grace,
But less to please the eye, than arm the hand,
Still fit for use, and ready at command.

Thee, bold Longinus! all the Nine inspire,
And bless their critic with a poet’s fire.
An ardent judge, who zealous in his trust,
With warmth gives sentence, yet is always just;
Whose own example strengthens all his laws;
And is himself that great sublime he draws.

Thus long succeeding critics justly reign’d,
Licence repress’d, and useful laws ordain’d;
Learning and Rome alike in empire grew,
And arts still follow’d where her eagles flew;
From the same foes, at last, both felt their doom,
And the same age saw learning fall, and Rome.
With tyranny, then superstition join’d,
As that the body, this enslav’d the mind;
Much was believ’d, but little understood,
And to be dull was constru’d to be good;
A second deluge learning thus o’er-run,
And the monks finish’d what the Goths begun.

At length Erasmus, that great, injur’d name,
(The glory of the priesthood, and the shame!)
Stemm’d the wild torrent of a barb’rous age,
And drove those holy Vandals off the stage.

But see! each Muse, in Leo’s golden days,
Starts from her trance, and trims her wither’d bays!
Rome’s ancient genius, o’er its ruins spread,
Shakes off the dust, and rears his rev’rend head!
Then sculpture and her sister-arts revive;
Stones leap’d to form, and rocks began to live;
With sweeter notes each rising temple rung;
A Raphael painted, and a Vida sung.
Immortal Vida! on whose honour’d brow
The poet’s bays and critic’s ivy grow:
Cremona now shall ever boast thy name,
As next in place to Mantua, next in fame!

But soon by impious arms from Latium chas’d,
Their ancient bounds the banished Muses pass’d;
Thence arts o’er all the northern world advance;
But critic-learning flourish’d most in France.
The rules a nation born to serve, obeys,
And Boileau still in right of Horace sways.
But we, brave Britons, foreign laws despis’d,
And kept unconquer’d, and uncivilis’d,
Fierce for the liberties of wit, and bold,
We still defied the Romans, as of old.
Yet some there were, among the sounder few
Of those who less presum’d, and better knew,
Who durst assert the juster ancient cause,
And here restor’d wit’s fundamental laws.
Such was the Muse, whose rules and practice tell
“Nature’s chief master-piece is writing well.”
Such was Roscommon — not more learn’d than good,
With manners gen’rous as his noble blood;
To him the wit of Greece and Rome was known,
And ev’ry author’s merit, but his own.
Such late was Walsh — the Muse’s judge and friend,
Who justly knew to blame or to commend;
To failings mild, but zealous for desert;
The clearest head, and the sincerest heart.
This humble praise, lamented shade! receive,
This praise at least a grateful Muse may give:
The Muse, whose early voice you taught to sing,
Prescrib’d her heights, and prun’d her tender wing,
(Her guide now lost) no more attempts to rise,
But in low numbers short excursions tries:
Content, if hence th’ unlearn’d their wants may view,
The learn’d reflect on what before they knew:
Careless of censure, nor too fond of fame,
Still pleas’d to praise, yet not afraid to blame,
Averse alike to flatter, or offend,
Not free from faults, nor yet too vain to mend.

The acknowledged master of the heroic couplet and one of the primary tastemakers of the Augustan age, British writer Alexander Pope was a central figure in the Neoclassical movement of the early 18th century. He is known for having perfected the rhymed couplet form of his idol, John Dryden, and turned it to satiric and philosophical purposes.

Is It Possible For Pope Leo XIV To Make A Difference?

Eternal salvation exists in a supernatural world. Where does that leave Life on Earth? What do Augustinians believe?

"The least American of the American Cardinals."

Thank you, Jesus.

There he is, Rev. Robert Francis Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, meets Pope John Paul II in 1982.

If you can, recall the world in 1981 and compare it to today. Forget about the stock market, President Trump, and gadgets for a moment, and ask yourself if the world is in better shape now than it was then.

The global Catholic population has increased since 1981; however, the percentage of Catholics has decreased in some regions, particularly in the Western world. In the United States, for example, the rate of adults who identify as Catholic has declined since 2007, though it has been relatively stable since 2014.

The global Catholic population has been steadily increasing, but some regional differences exist. The international Catholic population reached nearly 1.4 billion in 2023, representing a 1.15% increase from the previous year. However, the Catholic population in Europe declined by almost half a million in 2022, though this was offset by growth in other regions.

As of recent estimates, the global population includes approximately 1.8 to 2 billion Muslims, making Islam the second-largest religion worldwide. Protestants, a major branch of Christianity, have between 600 million and 1.1 billion adherents globally. There are approximately 220 to 260 million Orthodox Christians worldwide. Hinduism, the third-largest religion, has around 1.2 billion followers, primarily concentrated in India and Nepal. Buddhism, the fourth-largest religion, has approximately 500 million followers. Estimates for atheists, those who do not believe in God or gods, vary significantly depending on the study and how "atheist" is defined. Still, recent figures suggest a range of around 450 to 750 million people worldwide. What of Scientologists, Unification Church, Animists, Pantheists, Wiccans, Satanists, Neoliberals, Communists, Socialists, etc.? We are all faithful to something.

Are Catholics any less energy blind or overshoot blind than the rest of the population? Can Catholics comprehend the limits to growth that our current socioeconomic system overlooks? Besides saving souls and maintaining the wealth and power of the Church, what else are they doing to make the world a better place and stave off the destruction of civilization and Life on Earth, or mitigate the most painful and horrific consequences of global collapse? Do Catholics have real agency and power in the Real World?

God may love us, but surely ecocide and genocide are evil things? I hope Catholics will continually educate themselves about physics and biology and imagine a socioeconomic system that is less destructive than ours. Is that even possible with 8 billion energy-hungry consumers in the world? Will Catholics fight for all Life, or remain human-centric and forget about what sustains and nourishes all of us?

I was happy that Pope Francis seemed to care about social justice, inequality, global heating, and the environment, but what did he and the Church accomplish during his Papacy?

Prayer can't hurt, but we need to do something to address the polycrisis and improve our institutional leaders' moral and ethical intelligence, not to mention their understanding of fundamental physics and biology. For this, we need a cultural transformation. Can the Church be a part of that?

Can the Church reform its business practices, address its internal contradictions and failures, and become an example of the values it purports to represent?

Pope Leo XIV is an Augustinian who favours the transcendent over the mundane. Will we let Life on Earth be destroyed while we aspire to everlasting existence in a supernatural realm?

One wonders why God chose to become human. Was "man" made in God's image, or man's Big God, made in man's image? And what about original sin and predestination?

Since the torture and death of Joshua, the world of civilized people has remained a violent place. What is the utility of the Devil, Satan, fallen Angels, demons, and the like to a Church that espouses universal love?

Can we learn anything from people outside the Church, or must they all be converted in the hierarchy of supremacies through which war, prejudice, and the seven deadly sins are made manifest in society? What is the origin of the pathology of evil if not the human heart and mind? What are the preconditions necessary to develop these pathologies? What are their roots?

I hope the U.S. Americans will stop the jingoistic USA, USA, nonsense, and pray that Pope Leo XIV is a compassionate leader with a grasp on reality.

“He’s not a showboat kind of person.”

“He is a calm person who is not a careerist, is not just seeking a promotion, but someone who’s there to serve.”

“There’s a way of thinking that’s not the same way of thinking in other parts of the world, so that’s one thing I caution Americans to think: He’s not an American pope, he’s a pope who happened to be born in the United States.”

John Prevost said he thinks his brother, Pope Leo XIV, “will be a second Pope Francis.”

“I think he’ll follow right in his footsteps working for the underprivileged.”

Dear Lord, let's hope so. No other leader in the world seems to care about such things. Our leaders worship Mammon.

But will moral and spiritual leadership be enough to stop the madness of a world without limits, where billions fantasise about terraforming Mars and eternity in heaven while watching the world burn?

He was the “least American” of the American cardinals: Prevost was born in Chicago. But inside the Vatican, where he eventually lived and worked, he was considered the “least American” of the US cardinals.

He was well regarded by Pope Francis: The late pontiff “respected him and thought of him very highly,” according to CNN’s Vatican correspondent Christopher Lamb. “Clearly Pope Francis saw in him something – he saw him as a capable leader.”

He’s a member of the Augustinian order: Leo is a member of the Augustinian religious order, which is spread across the world. He led the order for more than a decade as its prior general.

He has strong leadership experience: Francis appointed Prevost to be the prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, which is in charge of assessing bishop candidates and making recommendations for new appointments. He also served as the president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.

He has a missionary focus: “I still consider myself a missionary. My vocation, like that of every Christian, is to be a missionary, to proclaim the Gospel wherever one is,” Prevost said in an interview with Vatican News shortly after he moved into his leadership role in Rome.

I pray Catholics will wake up and confront reality. If God loves humans, God loves slime mold just as much. It could not be otherwise.

Financial Contagion And The Futility of Maintaining Our Socioeconomic System

Financial Contagion is a profitable (for some) feature, not a bug, and the Masses have broken the glass and pulled the fire alarm on our burning Planetary system, but haven't heard it yet.

How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable Seem to me all the uses of this world! —Hamlet (Act 1, Scene 2)

President Trump and his team of useless idiots have poured oil and gas over complex explosive devices made by a global economy dedicated to profit at the cost of life, and lit a match.

Our revels now are ended.

These our actors,

As I foretold you, were all spirits and

Are melted into air, into thin air;

And like the baseless fabric of this vision,

The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces,

The solemn temples, the great globe itself,

Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve,

And, like this insubstantial pageant faded,

Leave not a rack behind.

We are such stuff

As dreams are made on, and our little life

Is rounded with a sleep.

—The Tempest (Act 4, Scene 1)

The relationships and feedback loops between the domesticated, programmed, and pacified masses and institutions, businesses, production, and consumption impose unavoidable risks to a highly complex modern techno-industrial, financialized, fossil-fueled, large-scale global civilization. Too few understand that we are currently living through this crisis. The polycrisis is accelerating faster than some experts thought. All Great Games conclude. The Great Game of Modernity is coming to a violent and chaotic end.

Financial contagion refers to transmitting economic shocks or crises across countries or within a domestic financial system. This spread is observed through the co-movement of asset prices, exchange rates, sovereign spreads, and capital flows. It can occur at an international level, affecting multiple economies, or domestically, where the failure of financial institutions can trigger a loss of confidence and instability in similar entities. Thus, we have the culture of "too big to fail." If we can't cure the causes of the pathologies infecting superorganisms and hyperobjects, living systems will die or possibly disappear.

Financial Contagion

Contagion can spread through various channels.

• Trade Links and economic interdependence can lead to a crisis when one country reduces demand for goods and services from its trading partners.

• Direct and indirect connections between financial institutions through lending, investments, and cross-holdings.

• Shifts in investor sentiment, increased risk aversion, and herding behavior can lead to capital flight and asset sell-offs in multiple markets.

Abstract

This paper presents evidence on the relative importance of alternative contagion channels during the Thai, Russian, and Brazilian crises. Results show that when crises are measured by changes in sovereign bond spreads, financial competition seems to explain almost all contagion episodes. However, when crises are measured by stock market returns, trade links and neighborhood effects appear to be relevant contagion channels during the Thai and Brazilian crises, while financial competition remains the only relevant channel in the case of the Russian crisis.

• Common Shocks: Global or regional events that simultaneously affect multiple economies.

• Competitive Devaluations: Countries may devalue their currencies to gain a competitive advantage, putting pressure on others to follow suit, leading to instability.

Excessive leverage and subsequent deleveraging-induced fire sales have been major contributors in past financial crises. This column explores the behaviour of two types of margin investors– brokerage-financed and shadow-financed – during a tumultuous period for the Chinese stock market. Results show that for accounts with exposure to fire sale risk, shadow-financed accounts account for a much higher proportion of the total stock market capitalisation than brokerage-financed accounts.

• Information Asymmetries and Coordination Problems: Unequal access to information can lead to market failures and contribute to the spread of crises.

Information Asymmetry

Efficient markets require high levels of transparency and free flow of information. When one party in a transaction has better information than the other party involved, then there’s opportunity for exploitation. A classic economic example is the “Lemon problem.” In the market for used automobiles, information asymmetry occurs when sellers know more about what they are selling than consumers do. The consequence is that buyers may unknowingly purchase cars with defects (lemons) at a higher price than they would have been willing to pay if they had information about the defects. Today, warranties and online information services, such as Carfax for the auto market, help address these problems and mitigate the “Lemon problem” for consumers.

The Role of Financial Contagion in Global Civilizational Collapse

As overshoot (where human demand exceeds Earth's carrying capacity) and complex global civilizational collapse progress, financial contagion will play a significant and amplifying role.

Individual economic crises will become more frequent and severe in a scenario of increasing resource scarcity, environmental degradation, and systemic shocks.

Financial contagion can rapidly transmit these localized crises across the global financial system, turning regional problems into global meltdowns. For example, a resource shock in one region could trigger bankruptcies and financial instability, spreading to other countries through trade and investment linkages.

Financial contagion can exacerbate the effects of other collapse drivers. For instance, climate change-induced disasters can lead to significant economic losses in affected areas. If these areas have strong financial ties to others, the financial repercussions can spread rapidly, further destabilizing already fragile economies.

Weather- and climate-related extremes caused economic losses of assets estimated at EUR 738 billion during 1980 - 2023 in the European Union, with over EUR 162 billion (22%) between 2021 and 2023. Analysing trends in economic losses is challenging, primarily due to large annual variability. Statistical analyses revealed, that economic losses increase over time and the last three years are all in the top five of years of highest annual economic losses. As severe weather- and climate-related extreme events are expected to intensify further, it seems unlikely that associated economic losses will reduce by 2030.

We are experiencing "wrath of God"-level weather whiplash worldwide, which will continue to pressure the insurance industry, infrastructure, and community stability. The Great Migration 2.0 is upon us without frontiers to absorb stressed populations.

As financial contagion spreads, it can erode trust in financial institutions and markets. This can lead to capital flight, reduced investment, and a breakdown of the financial infrastructure necessary for economic activity. The inability to conduct basic financial transactions in a collapsing civilization will hinder recovery and adaptation efforts. There is no coming back from a global civilizational collapse.

ABSTRACT

Health economists coined the term financial epidemiology in 2012 to monitor US household medical bankruptcies. Financial epidemiology has since expanded into a field of study assessing US household financial health in the age of COVID-19 and nuclear family development in the global South. This article traces the field’s formation and progressive standardization to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). It demonstrates how, in 1998, the IMF responded to the HIV/AIDS crisis, ‘Asian Financial Crisis’, and rapid internet information spread affecting market values by weaving together HIV risk, financial risk, and colonial discourses of disease into a theory of financial ‘contagion’. The theory of financial contagion has since globalized a ‘risk economy’. To inoculate against financial contagion, the IMF obligated Asian countries seeking bailouts to convert their assets into financialized reservoirs underpinned by the US dollar (USD). Global South households were thus financially converted to the nuclear family model of consumer healthcare like the United States. Aided by today’s deployments of financial epidemiology operating on behalf of US political economic interests, the IMF seeks to replace world currencies with the USD but with dubious impacts on the cycles of disease, disaster, and financial crises disproportionately borne by the global South.

Abstract

The recent global financial crisis was the first in recent history that was triggered by problems in the financial system of the mature economies. Existing work on financial crisis in emerging market countries, however, almost exclusively focus on the role of financial frictions in the domestic economy. In contrast, we propose a two-country DSGE model to investigate the transmission of a global financial crisis that originates from financial frictions in the rest of the world. We find that the scale of financial spillovers from the global to the domestic economy and trade openness are key determinants of the severity of the financial crisis for the domestic economy. Our results also suggest that the welfare ranking of alternative monetary policy regimes is determined by the degree of financial contagion, the degree of trade openness as well as the scale of foreign currency denominated debt in the domestic economy.

Financial contagion can create negative/positive feedback loops with other drivers of collapse. Global economic hardship in the north caused by a financial crisis will exacerbate social unrest and political instability, further undermining investor confidence and triggering more financial contagion.

What will you trade to get what you need to survive?

The March 2023 collapse of California’s Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) — the second-largest bank failure in US history — shook the global financial system. In the post-mortem of SVB, several risk (mis)management red flags have emerged. Although its vulnerabilities were not as complex as those that ravaged the US housing market (leading to the global financial crisis and the Great Recession), SVB’s failure is in some ways reminiscent of the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis. In both cases, a huge part of the problem was a failure to recognize the possibility that there was a financial contagion cooking in the financial jungle. Like the beginnings of a pandemic that are not recognized, once the contagion starts to take hold, it is just too late.

Amid the 2008 debacle, I offered some insight into how ineffective risk-mitigation efforts contributed to the financial contagion that spread across the globe. Given this latest banking crisis, it might be useful to revisit some of those ideas because, as Yogi Berra said, it feels like “déjà vu all over again.” This Advisor reintroduces five risk management principles that could prove helpful in future messy situations.

Financial instability makes international trade and finance more difficult and costly. This can disrupt already strained global supply chains, leading to shortages of essential goods and further economic decline, accelerating the collapse process.

Financial contagion inherently increases volatility and uncertainty in markets. In a context of civilizational collapse, this heightened uncertainty can paralyze business and individual decision-making, further hindering any attempts to build resilience or adapt to changing conditions.

Abstract

Rapidly growing numbers of empirical papers assessing the financial effects of COVID-19 pandemic triggered an urgent need for a study summarising the existing knowledge of contagion phenomenon. This paper provides a review of conceptual approaches to studying financial contagion at four levels of information transmission: (i) Catalyst of contagion; (ii) Media attention; (iii) Spillover effect at financial markets; (iv) Macroeconomic fundamentals. We discuss the unique characteristics of COVID-19 crisis and demonstrate how this shock differs from previous crises and to what extent the COVID-19 pandemic can be considered a ‘black swan’ event. We also review the main concepts, definitions and methodologies that are frequently, but inconsistently, used in contagion literature to unveil the existing problems and ambiguities in this popular area of research. This paper will help researchers to conduct coherent and methodologically rigorous research on the impact of COVID-19 on financial markets during the pandemic and its aftermath.

Feedback between the dumbed-down masses stressed by too much low-quality interaction with low-quality information about complex systems and phenomena and dumbed-down, careerist institutional leaders makes it impossible to develop the cultural knowledge required to meet the challenges of our predicament.

“Dumbed Down” assumes our culture can understand how living systems and Great Nature work through our knowledge of physics and biology by using the modern system of science with its high-tech tools and dependencies on complex social systems and cheap energy. Most of us are utterly ignorant of these domains of knowledge and inquiry.

People in the WEIRD North are deluded, arrogant, and lack the critical thinking skills to recognize what we are confronting. We are engineered addicts trained to consume.

Latest Research Trends

Network models are used to understand the interconnectedness of financial institutions and markets and how shocks propagate through these networks. This includes the study of multilayer networks to account for different types of financial transactions.

Network Theory in Financial Markets – A New Frontier in Understanding Market Dynamics and Risk Assessment

Evolution of the Global Financial Network and Contagion: A New Approach

Summary

This paper studies the interconnectedness of the global financial system and its susceptibility to shocks. A novel multilayer network framework is applied to link debt and equity exposures across countries. Use of this approach—that examines simultaneously multiple channels of transmission and their important higher order effects—shows that ignoring the heterogeneity of financial exposures, and simply aggregating all claims, as often done in other studies, can underestimate the extent and effects of financial contagion.The structure of the global financial network has changed since the global financial crisis, impacted by European bank’s deleveraging and higher corporate debt issuance. Still, we find that the structure of the system and contagion remain similar in that network is highly susceptible to shocks from central countries and those with large financial systems (e.g., the USA and the UK). While, individual European countries (excluding the UK) have relatively low impact on shock propagation, the network is highly susceptible to the shocks from the entire euro area. Another important development is the rising role of the Asian countries and the noticeable increase in network susceptibility to shocks from China and Hong Kong SAR economies.

Employing models to evaluate the evolving interdependencies between economic sectors and identify key sectors that propagate crises.

Quantifying Impact, Uncovering Trends: A Comprehensive Bibliometric Analysis of Shadow Banking and Financial Contagion Dynamics

Quantifying the impact and trends in research related to financial contagion and interconnected fields like shadow banking.

The Global Consequences of Financial Contagion

What caused the Great Recession of 2008? Learn why a financial crisis can spread around the world with our modern globalized economy.

Developing new approaches to measure contagion that capture the coincidence of extreme return shocks across regions. Analyzing how indirect transmission channels, such as fire sales and liquidity hoarding, contribute to financial contagion. Understanding the role of investor behavior, including irrational exuberance and increased risk aversion, in the spread of financial and economic crises. Examining how financial contagion dynamics changed during the COVID-19 pandemic, with findings suggesting increased contagion during financial distress and so on…

All of these efforts amount to putting lipstick on a pig. Our way of life is unsustainable, and the doom loop has been operating for hundreds of years. Moral and ethical considerations of what constitutes "the good life" are integral sideshows.

We must create and prepare for a new way of living on Earth that recognizes our limitations and dependencies on complex living and material systems.

Out, out, brief candle!

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage

And then is heard no more.

It is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing.

—Macbeth (Act 5, Scene 5)

The global system faces increasing pressures from mass ignorance of complex systems dynamics, institutional blindness, and the stupidity of our leaders, who have been infected with generations of pathological ideological beliefs.

"Overshoot" is a powerful accelerant and amplifier of instability that will lead to financial contagion and the collapse of the global economy and civilization.

For those who wish to understand where we are and what the near future holds, it would be wise to learn everything one can about the causes of "Overshoot," the limits to our particular kind of economic growth, and the origins of our quasi/proto economic religion. There are deep psychosocial and material causes that we must understand if we are to have any agency in how we continue to confront these rapid changes and plan for what's next.

Western Civilization Won't Solve The Polycrisis Notes 1

Soft-pedaling the crisis

Hope rhetoric often downplays the severity and urgency of climate and ecological crises, creating a significant "urgency gap" between the reality of the situation and public awareness—leading to a lack of appropriate response.

Magical thinking

The "rhetoric of hope" frequently employs a flawed syllogism—"we should, therefore we must; we must, therefore we can; we can, therefore we will." This ought-is teleology is unlikely to inspire meaningful change. Examples of people engaged in this form of communication are David Suzuki, Jane Goodall, Thomas Homer-Dixon, and all the greenwashing infotainers on the webs and tubes.

Ignoring the lineage of the crisis

Hope-centric messaging often fails to acknowledge that even with immediate and comprehensive action, the consequences of past environmental damage will continue to unfold. This omission contributes to despair and helplessness when promised positive outcomes don't materialize quickly.

Political parties won't solve problems because it would end the need for them. The Uniparty in the USA creates problems they can't and won't solve, keeping their cultural scam going in perpetuity.

Dishonest comparisons to past victories

The environmental movement's tradition of drawing parallels between past successes (like banning DDT or the Ozon layer) and the current, much larger-scale crises is dishonest (PFOS, Microplastics, Forever Chemicals, Global Heating). The term' polycrisis', which refers to the interconnected and multifaceted nature of the current environmental, and ideological challenges, is much larger, more pervasive, and more pernicious. The accelerating pace and increasing scale of environmental degradation driven by neoliberal, techno-industrial, financialized capitalism, and consumerism constitute a violent omnicidal heat engine.

Generating resentment

When older generations express hope based on younger people's dedication to the climate crisis, the youth may perceive this as a passing of responsibility and a recognition of past failures without any current action from the older generations, breeding resentment and hindering collective action. "Boomers did this to us!" The truth is civilization started it and Modern Techno-Industrial Financialized Capitalism will end it (the destruction of all life, or perhaps only our species).

Flawed definition of hope

Environmental writers often redefine hope to include action and engagement, contrasting it with "passive wishful thinking". However, the conventional definition of "to hope" implies "wishful thinking," which might not inherently lead to action.

Misleading anecdotes

Even inspirational stories used to promote hope can be misinterpreted, as illustrated by the anecdote of the Auschwitz prisoner who dies when her hope of liberation by Christmas is not realized. Unfounded hope is dangerous.

The impracticality of "long hope."

John Collier's concept of 'long hope', which envisions Western societies adopting Indigenous worldviews, is unrealistic given the immediate urgency of the polycrisis and the deeply entrenched nature of the 'Christian-zioniast-industrial-capitalist complex.' A fundamental shift of this magnitude is no closer now than it was in Collier's time, and the Earth-sacralizing elements of existing non-Western religions have already been overwhelmed by Western forces.

The West is a self termanating system of beliefs that ends when civilization crashes. This is a greater catastrophy than the fall of Empires.

Psychological barriers

Numerous psychological biases (bystander apathy, normalcy bias, and compassion fade) hinder effective responses to overwhelming crises—simply instilling hope is unlikely to overcome these deeply ingrained human tendencies.

'I just want to fit in!' Groupthink, motivated reasoning, and evil incentives ensure that our 'best' people are not good people and only serve pathological structures and systems.

Our way of life regularly commits genocide, total war, and perpetual ecocide, perpetuating a culture of exploitation and destruction. It is definitively evil even if most people are not inherently inclined towards evil behaviors, they are nevertheless indoctrinated in narratives that at the scale of Nation States behaves in evil, sick and demented ways.

Limitations of government action

Relying on hope for effective government policies is misplaced due to the short-term nature of pseudo-democratic election cycles and the conflict between politically feasible and environmentally sufficient actions.

Governments serve oligarchs, profits, and the kind of exploitation that is baked into our socioeconomic proto and quasi-religious traditions. Civilization depends on stories of Big Gods that rationalize human exceptionalism. Nature is for "Man" to exploit for the benefit of Kings and their support structures, systems, and service providers.

The historical inaccuracy of "without hope, all is lost"

The assertion that hope is necessary for action is challenged by historical examples of individuals and groups who have fought and persevered without hope, driven by duty, love, or other motivations. Palastinians.

People will often revolt when there is no hope.

Contradictory research findings

Research on the relationship between hope and climate action yields inconsistent results, partly due to varying definitions of hope. In practice, the claim that there is still hope can lead to denial and cognitive dissonance when it conflicts with the overwhelming evidence of environmental decline, techno-industrial-financialized war, inequality, externalities, collateral damage, ecocide, the sixth extinction, global heating, pollution, mental illness, addiction, and social diseases, etc.

In contrast to hope-based messaging, The Long Defeat (JRR Tolkien) is a more effective narrative for our time. This perspective acknowledges the likelihood of significant and ongoing environmental devastation but calls for courage and valor in the face of it, focusing on fighting a continuous battle even without guaranteeing ultimate victory. Reality-based narratives rooted in biology, physics, complex systems science, and complex, mysterious human nature can offer psychological relief, inspire action based on heroism rather than hope, and align with a more honest and robust assessment of our situation.

Human Nature or Moloch?

My friend shared a Facebook post by a person concerned with why the United States finds itself again in a chaotic mess made worse by a President with unsound character. I am not responding to the post but rather expressing related ideas.

Why do we allow psychopaths to lead our institutions, corporations, and nations? Why do so many powerful and influential people exhibit dark tetrad characteristics, such as narcissism, Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and sadism, which are associated with a lack of empathy and moral concern?

Hume and Socrates chatting across time. Thank the Abbasid Caliphate (750-1258 CE), particularly during its Golden Age (roughly 8th to 10th centuries CE) in Baghdad for passing on the wisdom of ancient Greece.

David Hume argues that reason alone cannot dictate our moral judgments.

“It is not contrary to reason to prefer the destruction of the whole world to the scratching of my finger.”

This statement highlights the role of our emotional nature in moral judgments, and has profound implications for our societal structures and the leadership we choose.

Morality should be about how we treat other people. Still, people usually think of morality as a rational weighing of interests, considering one's self-interest in contrast to considering the world.

Hume's central argument is that if we are to choose between accepting harm to ourselves and harm to others, reason alone can't tell us which is the better choice.

We have to concede that Hume has a point. Reason alone doesn't tell us that we should care about what happens to others. All the logical arguments can't make us care about anyone else, much less the world. Moral judgments aren't arrived at through reason; they come from our emotional nature.

Hume concludes that:

“Morals are of feeling, not of reason. It lies in yourself, not in the object. So that when you pronounce any action or character to be vicious, you mean nothing but that from the constitution of your nature you have a feeling or sentiment of blame from the contemplation of it.” —Treatise, Book III, Part I, Section I

When you look at someone causing harm to another person, the wrongness is not something you observe in the external objects; it is something you feel within you. Feelings are not subject to reason; they are passions that are part of our will.

But what informs our feelings?

We are animals with complex social interdependencies driven in various ways through cultural interactions. Culture emerges from evolved needs influenced by complex environmental factors.

Our ancestors adapted to challenges via evolution (natural selection), which shaped our behavior and cognition.

Social cooperation, empathy, and moral sentiments have evolutionary advantages for group survival and cohesion. This understanding can give us hope about the potential for positive change in our society.

For a holy week aside, let's look at the Beatitudes of Christ for moral sentiments.

The text of St. Matthew runs as follows:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Verse 3)

Poor? Spirit? There is much to meditate on here.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the land. (Verse 4)

The meek will possess the land? This is a Kingly admonition rather than an animistic sense of nature's sacredness, but perfectly reasonable for Jesus' time and place.

Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted. (Verse 5)

Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice, for they shall have their fill. (Verse 6)

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. (Verse 7)

Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God. (Verse 8)

A clean heart requires at least twenty thousand hours of preparation, concerted effort, focus, and deeply considered thoughts and actions.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. (Verse 9)

Amen!

Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Verse 10)

Amen, again!

Let’s go cross-cultural.

“The highest good is like water. Water excels in benefiting all things without contending with them. It dwells in the lowly places that all disdain. Therefore it is close to the Tao." (Chapter 8) - This speaks to the virtue of humility and finding strength in lowliness, a theme related to being "poor in spirit.” —Lao Tzu (Tao Te Ching)

“The sage puts himself last and finds himself first; he surrenders his body and his body is preserved.” (Chapter 7)

Humility and selflessness lead to a greater gain, and wisdom favors the prepared.

“A benevolent man helps others to establish themselves and helps them to attain their aims.” (Analects XII, 23)

This suggests a compassion that would naturally extend to those who are suffering.

“Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire.” (Analects XV, 24)

The “Silver Rule” implies an understanding of and consideration for the pain of others.

“A man who is without the feeling of commiseration is not a man.” (Mencius 2A:6)

This highlights the fundamental importance of empathy, which is closely tied to acknowledging and responding to the sorrow of others.

“The softest thing in the world overcomes the hardest thing in the world.” (Tao Te Ching, Chapter 43)

This emphasizes the power of gentleness and non-resistance, a form of meekness that can ultimately prevail.

“Therefore, the sage desires no desire, values no goods that are hard to come by, learns what is not learned, and returns to what the multitude has forgotten. Thus he can assist the natural development of all things but dares not act.” (Tao Te Ching, Chapter 64)

This speaks to a quiet, unassuming way that aligns with meekness.

“The gentleman concerns himself with the Way (Dao); he does not merely seek a full stomach. He may plow the fields, but his concern is not with getting rich. He may study with the expectation of officialdom, but not merely for the sake of a salary.” ( Confucius, Analects XV, 32)

This emphasizes a focus on moral principles (“the Way” wu wei 無為) over material desires, echoing the hunger for righteousness.

“Benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom are rooted in the heart.” (Mencius 6A:6)

This suggests an inherent human desire for these virtues.

“Is there any single saying that one can act upon all day and every day? Perhaps it is ‘Do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you.’“ (Analects XV, 24)

This reciprocity principle is a foundation for showing mercy and suggests that such actions will be reciprocated. Blessed are he merciful, for they shall be shown mercy.

“Empty yourself of everything. Let the mind become still. The ten thousand things rise and fall while the Self watches their return. They grow and flourish 1 but each returns to its root. Returning to the root is stillness. Stillness is the way of nature. The way of nature is eternal.” (Tao Te Ching, Chapter 16)

This speaks to the importance of inner purity and stillness for understanding the fundamental nature of reality (which could be interpreted as analogous to "seeing God" in a Taoist context).  

“The gentleman cherishes virtue; the small man cherishes the land. The gentleman cherishes the penalties of law; the small man cherishes indulgence.” (Analects IV, 11)

This highlights the importance of valuing inner moral character (“virtue”) over external possessions.

“The gentleman seeks harmony but not sameness; the small man seeks sameness but not harmony.” (Analects XIII, 23)

This emphasizes the value of peace and harmonious relationships. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

“Those who are skilled in combat should suffer the highest punishment. Thus the saying goes, ‘A leader of a punitive expedition is a great criminal; a leader of a war of conquest is a still greater criminal.’” (Mencius 7B:2)

This strongly advocates for peace and condemns aggression.

“To be poor and yet without resentment is difficult; to be rich and yet without arrogance is easy.” (Analects XIV, 10)

This suggests that enduring hardship for one's principles is a mark of virtue. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

“A loyal minister serves his prince according to the Way, and if he cannot do so, he resigns.” (Analects XI, 24)

This implies a willingness to face consequences for upholding righteousness.

Jesus Christ was not a Christian, a Buddhist, or a Taoist; he was a human being.

Social contexts and interactions influence our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Cultural norms, values, and social learning significantly influence our emotional responses and moral beliefs. This awareness underscores the complexity of the societal factors shaping our moral compass, making it a multifaceted issue that requires careful consideration.

The interplay between our biological predispositions, environmental constraints, and the development of cultural practices is crucial to the influence of moral sentiments.

Understanding emotions and their neural basis in the brain is crucial for ethical behavior. This knowledge supports the idea that feelings, including moral judgments, are fundamental to our experience and decision-making. Neuroscience research explores the brain regions involved in empathy, social cognition, and moral reasoning, providing valuable insights into the role of emotions in ethical behavior.

Hume said human society survives because most of us feel positive sentiments and sympathy for others, and these desires incline us to work together for our mutual benefit. Hume refers to positive feelings and sympathy as moral sentiments. He concludes that these sentiments are the source of morality, and we need not look further than that. We desire good for each other and are averse to the suffering of others. This emphasis on moral sentiments engages us in the discussion and reinforces our commitment to ethical behavior.

One can sense inherent grace radiating through existence if one closes one's eyes and quiets one's mind.

Desiring good for other people is not universally felt, as we know all too well from the examples of atrocities people commit daily. Hume acknowledges this and observes that people feel more sentiment for those close to them than those distant from them. Still, even then, we can feel moral approval and disapproval for acts that occurred thousands of miles away or hundreds of years ago. We can even feel moral pangs concerning the future. What kind of world do we want our children to live in?

Are psychopaths incapable of feeling moral sentiments?

It is natural for us to have greater feelings for family and friends than for strangers. Each of us has a limited circle of moral concern, consciously and unconsciously including and excluding people from our moral sentiment. This is neither unnatural nor harmful, but where we draw the line is an important question.

Some people willfully suppress their natural sentiments for other people, disregarding their suffering. They can rationalize away their natural feelings, convincing themselves that something is more important than acting morally. They shrink their circle of moral concern, willfully excluding others. How much of this is learned behavior? Can we hate to fit in? Do we care less because others in our group care less?

What do wealthy and powerful people care about? It is not contrary to reason for them to suppress natural feelings for the fate of life on Earth and people. They know that. For them, letting the world burn is preferable to suffering a scratch on their profit margins. They use their reason to justify the willful absence of feeling, to vilify, to scapegoat, to stand by and watch genocide, to send citizens to a foreign prison without due process, to ignore the courts and rule of law in favor of a nebulous rules-based order, to ignore sound science, to remain wilfully ignorant of physics, to commit ecocide, etc.

Greed, Hume implied, is preferring that harm befall others than be inconvenienced. Corporations ignore the poly crisis, public health, fairness, affordable housing, sustainable infrastructure, agriculture, externalities, and collateral damage to maximize profit. It is not contrary to reason for them to prefer destroying the whole world to losing their income or status. Their absence of positive sentiments and sympathy for others allows them to consider only themselves.

Why do people worship ruthlessly competitive people? We would not tolerate freeloaders or bad actors in a small community, but we do in larger ones. Is it because of Moloch?

Can rational arguments persuade wealthy people that protecting the environment is in their self-interest? Reason, evidence, and data can't make someone care about such things if they contradict their purpose.

Perhaps the answer to any crisis is to give more power to those who embrace their moral sentiments. That would undoubtedly lead to better outcomes than allowing those who lack such sentiments to concentrate power in themselves. A scratch or two on greedy fingers is preferable to destroying the whole world.

"Psychopath" is a common term, but the clinical understanding of antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) and psychopathic traits is complex. It involves a spectrum of behaviors and deficits, not simply a complete absence of feeling. Some individuals with these traits can be highly manipulative and feign empathy to achieve their goals.

While Hume emphasizes sentiment, reason isn't entirely irrelevant to morality. Reason can help us understand the consequences of our actions, identify patterns of harm, and cultivate empathy through education and exposure to benevolence. Reason can be a tool to inform and guide our sentiments.

The structures of our institutions, corporations, and nations also contribute to the problem. Systems that prioritize profit above all else lack robust ethical oversight and do not hold individuals accountable. This can create environments where those lacking in moral sentiment can thrive.

Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Addressing this requires systemic change in addition to individual moral development. Why did people vote for a known conman, unstable bullshitter, and criminal twice? DJT is a terrible businessman and negotiator, but many believe in a false narrative concerning their cult leader.

What is it about our culture that allows for that? I think we have grown to a point where mass insanity has a grip on politics and society. We must shrink the cancer afflicting global culture by throwing bad actors to the curb and allowing loving, kind, and just people to lead us—moral character should be the main thing we look for in a leader.

Hume argues that moral sentiments are rooted in our nature. There is evidence that empathy and moral reasoning can be developed and expanded through experience, education, and conscious effort, so there are still reasons to be hopeful. We can feel it.

We all experience a wide range of emotions, including sympathy, compassion, guilt, shame, and a sense of fairness, to varying degrees. Understanding the nuances of these emotions and how they are cultivated and nurtured is important.

Even if we agree that power should belong to those with a strong moral character, the question remains of how to effectively achieve this in a world where power gravitates to those driven by self-interest.

In our complex, modern techno-industrial world with over eight billion people, we are unlikely to find moral, loving, compassionate, and ethical people in charge. Stories about wise ones are found in the distant past when our way of life was quite different.

We must wake up, understand physics, biology, ecology, psychology, etc., and familiarize ourselves with our limitations. This will allow for a compassionate and careful period of degrowth while we reevaluate our way of life.

Global, energy and resource-intensive market economies at scale are unsuitable for life or people's mental health and moral sentiments.

Our way of life is omnicidal and destructive, foisting all manner of deleterious addictions upon us while encouraging the enactment of deadly sins against nature, people, and ourselves.

We must end human supremacy, the Anthropocene, and ecocide in favor of a future for high-quality, loving human caretakers of life on Earth.

If you want a fine example of the horrors of modernity, read ROT.

In 1845, European potato fields from Spain to Scandinavia were attacked by a novel pathogen. But it was only in Ireland, then part of the United Kingdom, that the blight’s devastation reached apocalyptic levels, leaving more than a million people dead and forcing millions more to emigrate.

In Rot, historian Padraic X. Scanlan offers the definitive account of the Great Famine, showing how Ireland’s place in the United Kingdom and the British Empire made it uniquely vulnerable to starvation. Ireland’s overreliance on the potato was a desperate adaptation to an unstable and unequal marketplace created by British colonialism. The empire’s laissez-faire economic policies saw Ireland exporting livestock and grain even as its people starved. When famine struck, relief efforts were premised on the idea that only free markets and wage labor could save the Irish. Ireland’s wretchedness, before and during the Great Famine, was often blamed on Irish backwardness, but in fact, it resulted from the British Empire’s embrace of modern capitalism.

Uncovering the disaster’s roots in Britain’s deep imperial faith in markets, commerce, and capitalism, Rot reshapes our understanding of the Great Famine and its tragic legacy.

Make peace.

One short end of Tech Bro, one giant leap for Tech Bro's Creation!

The Tech Bro's envisioned future involves turning our solar system into a machine that will harness the energy of the Universe (Meniverse) to make "Billy Basses" who can mimic Shakespeare and heat death around the expanding whatever-it-is pontificating to the vacant, vapid, vacuous void.

AI so very, very creative. type prompt type prompt type prompt type prompt type prompt type prompt type prompt type prompt type prompt type prompt

TESCREAL BROS (Transhumanism, Extropianism, Singularitarianism, Cosmism, Rationalism, Effective Altruism, Longtermism)

Elon Musk is dreaming of using Neuralink to upload his on-the-spectrum dark tetrad narcissistic mind into one of his crappy robots so he can spout off about longtermism on Mars with other geeky machines that don't have a clue about living systems. When the energy source runs out, you leave behind on Mars a sculpture park that no one will see. The Stardust will not remember Musk, but he’ll be in the machine, by the Gods, he’ll be in the machine.

From human-engineered God's mouth to your black mirror mind, Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, will inject machine hallucinations directly into your mind via META headset and implants from competitors to Musk and say these belief systems are ultra-transcendental because they come from machines trained on our data that learned how to create more data to train on in an infinite-progress production of junk data towards the heat-death of the Universe.

We call it progress. Ants howling at the moon.

"I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness"

Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of FTX, soon to be pardoned and freed from prison by President Trump, will reboot the effective altruist community to siphon all agency from the plebs and proles and channel it where it will have optimal utility. Currency constructs do the most good to creatures addicted to storytime. The Jetsons fly around our heads in a parallel universe, giving everyone leisure time to produce robots that produce white goods to create more leisure time. What will useless people do with all that free time? Give a Gazan a toaster today.

Toaster Child of the Future Today

Christian Angermayer, the billionaire founder of Atai Life Sciences, will psychotic episode the life out of the sciences and untether people from their mental health, unleashing a new form of tranquility divorced from community and our embodied embeddedness in ecology. When you’re in Tech, every problem has an algorithm.

Nick Bostrom, the wise guru of humanity’s future and a somewhat more down-to-earth advocate for meat brains, will ensure that all of the TESCREAL WORLD friends in Daddy’s bunker are cryogenically frozen after the necessary surgeries to improve their good looks and lack of ability on the squash court. (Party on! Excellent! Without the enthusiasm and goofy smiles)

Marc Andreessen, the Emperor/Dictator of the Tech Industry, re.FutureWorld will ensure that all TESCREAL BROS have an actual genius to look up to.

Peter Thiel, the chief investor advocate, master of monopoly theory, the sociological embodiment of zeros and ones, and philosopher-king, will continue to provide guidance and political clout to the project of replacing living systems with machine systems, the only reasonable outcome in the best of all possible futures.

The Universe needed a material, demonstrable, repeatable, empirical, material, Big God, and god damn it, Tech Bros had to create it.

“Left Brain” coders, gamers, and nerds found power and validation in Silicon Valley’s Tech World, where all Black Mirror episodes are hatched as entertaining prophesies to butter us up in a manly Marlon Brando way.

Individuals with strong analytical, logical, and problem-solving skills, often associated with “left-brain” dominance (though the brain is far more integrated than this simple dichotomy suggests: chemical, endocryn, dendrite, vegus nerve, microbiome, gravity, light, energy, society, no, ah, individuals and families), and deep interests in technology, coding, and complex mechanical systems lead bright people to endeavors that seem solitary or less overtly social in their early stages. Making the necessary, relevant connections requires manipulating physics (Nature’s Laws) to disconnect from Great Nature.

There’s been speculation and anecdotal evidence (though no definitive scientific consensus) suggesting a higher prevalence of individuals with traits associated with the autism spectrum within the tech industry. These traits can sometimes include an intense focus on specific interests, a preference for logical systems, and challenges in social interaction.

The intense focus and long hours required to achieve massive success in the tech world might lead to a perception of being “anti-social,” even if that wasn’t a Tech Bro’s inherent personality. The pressures and unique circumstances of extreme wealth and influence also create a degree of social isolation—sad but true. One must understand the sacrifices our heroes make when they move fast and break things while solving neoliberal capitalism’s externalities to ensure we all can have higher self-esteem by worshipping innovators because most of us are too busy having fun to get any real innovative work done or are too busy worrying about not having enough work to have the kind of fun we see on social media where we learn how vital innovation is and how it impacts our lives in so many wonderful ways.

Read my book: “So, You Don’t Want To Be An Intern. Idiot!” Exclusively sold on Amazon.

The flaws and limitations remind us of what’s real. Or maybe not.

The lamestream media highlights certain personality traits or quirks of tech leaders because sensationalistic fake news keeps the lights on, contributing to a stereotypical image that might not accurately reflect the diversity of personalities within the industry. Have you ever seen our heroes' dance moves when dancing with hot Ex Machina babes? These bros are far from INCELS.

We should know that the tech world is vast, sublime, beautiful, full of deep meaning, and encompasses a wide range of personalities, from highly charismatic and outwardly social leaders to those who are more introverted and focused on technical details. Attributing a single psychological “type” to all tech billionaire thought leaders would be an oversimplification and a disservice to the people who make life more interesting and libertarian progress a real possibility.

Thank you, Tech Bros! You are amazing people, and I can’t wait to see what you come up with next. Someday, I want to say, “I have the best friends Tech can buy. I’m loving it.”

TESCREAL, the acronym that Timnit Gebru and Émile P. Torres coined to describe a cluster of interconnected ideologies prevalent in Silicon Valley and among some AI researchers, stands for Transhumanism, Extropianism, Singularitarianism, Cosmism, Rationalism, Effective Altruism, and Longtermism.

A core tenet of transhumanism within TESCREAL is using technology to overcome biological limitations (the horrific limits to growth), including aging, disease, and even death. Humans stopped “evolving” in the Darwinian sense ages ago. We must direct and control our evolution through enhancements that merge humans with brilliant human-developed technology. If you are not a Human Supremacist, you are savage and ignorant.

The future of our species runs through a technological singularity where AI surpasses human intelligence and replaces our vulnerable meat-sack bodies with machines powered by nano-magic-breeder-reactors that can provide power for Superhumans networked through yolked black holes emitting intentional quantum spooky action at a distance, allowing our future selves unlimited time and energy to explore our brilliance and godliness.

Make the Universe Superhuman Again and Again and Again!

Transhumanism and singularitarianism (the belief in a technological singularity where AI surpasses human intelligence) envision a future where the lines between humans and machines disappear, and living systems are a blip in human supremacy's evolution. Post-biological existence through advanced technologies is our destiny. Meaning, baby, meaning!

Cosmism envisions our astounding creations as ubiquitous in the Universe, using all the energy and stuff for smarter purposes, ensuring the future existence of quintillions of "sentient" machines. We are all that we can be, the drivers of cosmic expansion. More, more, more!

Bots, all the way down.

A symphony of strings playing multiverse ballads.

We aren't talking paperclips anymore. Advanced black hole-powered AI will lead us away from messy, uncanny, and ultimately flawed living systems to inanimate sentient machines capable of true greatness. Our creations will invent all possible Meniverses at an unimaginable rate with rates of return on energy and stuff one can't contemplate. Be thankful that your little piece of mechanized consciousness plays its part, echoing down the supereons beyond time.

In 2025, we are the super creators inventing True God Creator Big God. Our destiny is to transcend life and go beyond all Multiverses—to go where no Tech Bro has gone before, where Tech Bro's machines create new worlds of tremendous utility and homage to the sacrifice of life.

The creator is complex, but its creations are beyond complexity.

Why would one entertain utopian dreams when one can create Multiverses? The future is beyond moral, ethical, and biological concerns.

Accelerate to Liberation Day!

One short end of Tech Bro, one giant leap for Tech Bro's Creation!

The Beast Is Insatiable

We will never have or consume enough because there will never be enough.

Terrifs paused. The world is saved. Thank you, Donald, for coming to your senses. We would be helpless without your fearless and idiotic leadership.

The US has no industrial policy, and its institutions are still eroding. The Orange King paused the tariffs, and politicians clapped like circus seals. Trust in the Empire is diminishing, and faith in our socioeconomic religion is unwavering. Magical thinking was never so astounding.

Countries dumped bonds. LOL. I was talking with a friend yesterday about dollar-based financial assets. Golly, gee, what a surprise!

Dance, MOFO, Dance! The monster we refuse to understand keeps shooting its six guns at our feet, and we keep hopping around, hoping our little feet don't get shot.

Overshoot, economic, political, institutional, martial, weather, and climate whiplash are signs of the collapse of modern, global, techno-industrial civilization.

Biology, physics, and the complex nature of the human-animal tell the true story. If you understand the story, you know things fundamentally need to change.

But we don't want to change. We love our toys and sweets. We need our 30 kWh daily. We can't survive without 23.75 metric tons (around 50,000 pounds) of raw materials annually. We'd all wither and die without importing approximately $326.77 billion worth of raw materials, representing 9.69% of total imports yearly.

The US benefits significantly from foreign labor both inside and outside its borders. Foreign-born workers make up a substantial portion of the US labor force, contributing to economic growth and filling labor shortages. Financialize them, don’t criticize them. They will all borrow and spend.

Foreign-born workers constitute a significant portion of the US labor force, with data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) showing that in 2023, they accounted for 18.6% of the civilian labor force. And if you don't like that number, dismantle BLS and fire its "staff."

Immigrants, both legal and undocumented, contribute to the US economy through their labor, taxes, and consumption, generating significant economic activity. They always have. “Warriors” is a Netflix series that partly showcases the conflict between Irish and Chinese laborers in the 1880s. The Nation of Immigrants (constant colonialists) will never change and seeks only to maintain its advantage by taking advantage of weaker nations and people who desire a better life.

Immigrants participate in the labor force at a higher rate than native-born workers, and immigration has been a major driver of US labor force growth, especially in recent years. This growth can't continue without fresh workers willing to do hard work for less pay and benefits. Multinational corporations move from one country to the next in search of arbitrage. Profits drive the beast, and the beast is always hungry.

Immigrants often fill labor shortages in specific sectors, such as agriculture, construction, and healthcare, and contribute to the overall productivity of the US economy. 

Car manufacturing requires a specific mix of steel, aluminum, plastics, and other materials, significantly impacting energy consumption. Steel production, in particular, is a major consumer of coal (specifically metallurgical coal for smelting). Coal, beautiful clean coal is no longer mined by 12-year olds, poor immigrants or Coolies, its mined by machines and much of it is imported.

The US economy is interconnected with the global labor market, and the demand for US goods and services dramatically influences labor markets in other countries. I experienced it in China for decades.

US companies outsource labor to foreign countries, which can create jobs and economic growth in those countries while also impacting the US labor market.

Foreign investment in the US leads to job creation and economic growth. US companies invest in foreign countries, creating jobs and economic opportunities there.

Grow, baby, grow! Use it all up until we are machines making paperclips throughout the vast Universe.

Trade between the US and other countries leads to increased demand for goods and services, creating more jobs and economic opportunities all over the world. 

We need more people, work, and consumption until circumstances dictate we can't grow anymore. Cancer lurks unnoticed for decades until it metastasizes, and your days are numbered.

H-2A and H-2B Visa Programs exist for sectors of the economy such as agriculture and construction. What? Little Billy doesn't want to pick vegetables in the Central Valley of California or Georgia peaches? He doesn't want a dirty, dangerous job? He's got student debt, you say, and needs better pay?

Well, let's bring in some seasonal foreign workers to fill in for Billy so he can be an intern at that cool Unicorn Startup.

And those dark-skinned immigrant innovators and entrepreneurs who contribute to the growth and development of the US economy and become too rich to fail—we worship them and want Billy to be just like them when he graduates from his internship. Let's hope and pray Billy can compete with hungry, hardworking, and brilliant foreign competitors who came from nothing and want to be Lords just like all of Billy’s Daddy’s heroes were. Billy loves all the stories Daddy tells.

And while the faithful white supremacists and Christian Zionists want-to-be warlords dismantle the educational system, let's make sure we have enough skilled immigrant engineers, scientists (whoops, forgot, scientism is a heretical religion), doctors, and nurses with their knowledge and desire to make a difference come and save the day until we are finally ready to kick them all out. Back home you go, thank you for your service, and don't be surprised if we bomb you when you get home.

One is despised and laughed at if one suggests we need a new way of life.

Keep telling yourself that everything is normal when the past few hundred years have been anything but normal.

Just believe.

What Is Disinhibition?

Disinhibition is a key concept relevant to the past two hundred years of Fossil-Fuelled, Modern Techno-Industrial, Energy-Intensive, Materials-Intensive Civilization and the much-touted Green Energy Transition.

In a psychological context, disinhibition refers to a temporary or persistent loss of inhibitory control that leads to impulsive or inappropriate behaviors or actions that lack social decorum. 

Lack of Control:

• Disinhibition is the opposite of inhibition, which is the ability to restrain impulses and behaviors. 

Impulsivity:

• People experiencing disinhibition may act on a whim without considering the potential consequences of their actions or words. 

Socially Inappropriate Behavior:

• Disinhibition can manifest as rude, tactless, or hurtful comments, sexual comments, inappropriate flirting, or undressing in public places. 

Causes:

• Disinhibition occurs because of various factors, including certain medical conditions, substance use, or even online interactions. 

Online Disinhibition:

• The online environment can sometimes amplify disinhibited behavior, as anonymity and asynchronous communication can lead people to say or do things they might not in real life. 

Examples:

• Impulsive Spending: Spending money without a budget or plan. 

• Aggressive Outbursts: Losing control and reacting with anger or aggression. 

• Misconduct: Engaging in behaviors that are socially unacceptable or illegal. 

• Hyperorality: Excessive eating or chewing on non-food items. 

Related Conditions:

• Disinhibition is a symptom or characteristic of conditions like dementia, Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD), ADHD, and other neurodegenerative diseases. 

Online Disinhibition Effect:

• According to Wikipedia, anonymity, asynchronous communication, and empathy deficit contribute to online disinhibition.

Below I'll discuss disinhibition concerning healthcare, technology, and energy information, and linking economic growth models to ecological unsustainability.

Disinhibition and Systemic Risks:

Disinhibition manifests in a societal context as a lack of restraint in pursuing and adopting technologies and energy consumption prompted by the promise of economic growth.

In healthcare, this can lead to the unchecked implementation of new, potentially risky technologies without fully understanding the long-term consequences. Regarding energy information, disinhibition can mean the rapid dissemination and acceptance of energy-intensive technologies without considering their environmental impact. This lack of foresight and control exacerbates the inherent difficulty in regulating or eliminating technologies once they achieve significant market penetration, even when their destructive secondary effects become apparent.

Economic Growth vs. Ecological Limits:

Both neoclassical and neoliberal economic models prioritize perpetual economic growth, a concept fundamentally at odds with a complex, evolving ecosystem's finite resources and delicate balance. This pursuit of endless expansion directly clashes with reality, as highlighted by the Jevons Paradox (where increased efficiency leads to increased consumption) and the maximum power principle (which suggests systems maximize energy throughput, often at the expense of stability). Our current socioeconomic system, driven by this growth imperative, demonstrates that technology alone cannot reconcile continuous expansion with a healthy biosphere, including human well-being, for much longer.  

The Destructive Nature of Unfettered Growth:

As critiqued by thinkers like Jean-Batiste Fressoz and Bill Rees, the relentless pursuit of growth is a primary driver of numerous interconnected crises.  These include the sixth mass extinction, accelerating global heating, unsustainable materials use and rampant consumerism, pervasive pollution, the unfolding polycrisis, escalating wars and war propaganda, and international conflict. The planet is exhibiting severe "metabolic syndrome" from this unsustainable throughput. The promises of corporatists and technologists to solve these problems through further technological advancements within the same growth-oriented system are self-serving illusions designed to consolidate their power and wealth through initiatives like the TESCREAL Bundle (Transhumanism, Extropianism, Singularitarianism, (modern) Cosmism, Rationalism, Effective Altruism, and Longtermism) ambitions and initiatives while distracting the public with culture wars from the fundamental unsustainability of the current trajectory.

Manufacturing Cannon Fodder—Psychological Impact

Trust is a measure of other people’s virtue.

“Trustworthiness” is often linked to virtue; it's essential to distinguish between the act of trusting and the quality of being trustworthy. Trustworthiness, as a virtue, involves consistently acting in a reliable, honest, and ethical manner with integrity, competence, and care. Trust is a fundamental aspect of social interaction, enabling cooperation, collaboration, and the development of strong relationships. Trustworthiness can be applied in various contexts, including personal relationships, professional settings, and societal institutions. 

Why is there so little trust these days?

Crisis of grievance puts pressure on trust—2025 Edelman Trust Barometer

The 25th anniversary edition of the Edelman Trust Barometer has revealed a profound shift to acceptance of aggressive action, with political polarization and deepening fears giving rise to a widespread sense of grievance.

America, says Pulitzer Prize­–winning reporter Chris Hedges, is convulsed by an array of pathologies that have arisen out of profound hopelessness, a bitter despair, and a civil society that has ceased to function. The opioid crisis; the retreat into gambling to cope with economic distress; the pornification of culture; the rise of magical thinking; the celebration of sadism, hate, and plagues of suicides are the physical manifestations of a society that is being ravaged by corporate pillage and a failed democracy. As our society unravels, we also face global upheaval caused by catastrophic climate change. All these ills presage a frightening reconfiguration of the nation and the planet.

Threat Assessment? What Threat Assessment?

Careerist politicians and multinational corporations are selling the need for wars across the globe. The goal is to stoke fear, create instability, and shift people’s focus from the critical challenges our species must contend with in the 21st Century, a.k.a. the polycrisis, towards enmity with countries worldwide. Nations that only want to be left alone to pursue their sovereign goals within their region. The “War on Terror,” Drugs, and Immigration have proven to be inadequate. Energy and materials must be acquired from regions worldwide to maintain the wealth pump, liquidity, and profits. The easiest way to maintain business as usual is through debt financing, which always benefits elite Players at everyone else’s expense.

Portugal issued travel warnings for the U.S. as people are being questioned and denied entry, deported, and arrested for criticizing its government.

Portugal is now one of a growing number of European countries that have updated travel advice for the U.S. as America’s stricter immigration and enforcement practices under President Donald Trump have caused global concern.

It comes following a number of U.S. border-entry incidents that have happened in recent weeks, including a French scientist being denied entry after border officials searched his phone and found messages that were critical of Trump, and U.K. tourist Becky Burke also being detained at border control.

Wealthy people in Europe are building luxury bunkers while telling the Plebs and Proles to prepare for disaster. As if having a few days of supplies will protect them from a world war with nuclear powers, another pandemic, The Sixth Extinction/Ecocide, and rapid Global Heating due to carbon emissions. Europeans and the United States of Americans have been reduced to a state of constant stress caused by inequality, stagnant wages, and job insecurity. Life expectancy in the United States is dropping, and civil liberties are under threat. Europe’s welfare “Union” is going away, and the people who drove us into this predicament must shift blame elsewhere and maintain control, or a dangerous “Rabel” may form that threatens their position, status, and wealth.

Risks On The Rise

An EU official said Wednesday that threats to the EU and its security are rising, with geopolitical tensions in the bloc's neighborhood — such as Russia's war in Ukraine — having brought security to the forefront of a rising number of citizens' minds.

"I wouldn't say that we have an acute threat of a military attack, but of course, we consider Russia to be much more of a concrete threat than we used to," researcher Hakala said.

"Most countries actually in Europe nowadays also recognize climate risks," the expert added. "That's because they have been significant with all kinds of flooding and torrential rain and storms around Europe."

Hakala also pointed out that so-called hybrid threats, such as cyberattacks on hospitals, which can paralyze public health infrastructure, are also becoming "more recognized and more concrete."

Hey, world leaders, how about working towards preventing risks? The world has problems, and our leaders are the solution. Really? It’s time people worked harder to incentivise the kinds of leadership we need to maintain a healthy world fit for Life.

Again, I encourage you to read:

“Europe’s Remilitarization Myth: Why Building on the Success of Rearmament is a Bad Idea.”

Every major country in the world that is fully engaged with the global economy has been borrowing against future energy and material stocks for decades, with no idea of how to create a Global economic system that could be sustainable, fit for Life, and the health and welfare of its citizens in the long term. Business as usual is about moving wealth to elite Players quickly and relentlessly while ordinary people fight for their lives.

For now, we have enough energy and materials to maintain the Great Game, but the low-hanging fruit is gone, and the Players have realized their predicament. There will be one last major competition for control of what’s left. The old rivalries are forming, and a new confrontation has already begun. The stakes could not be higher, and, as usual, ordinary people will be crushed.

World War II resulted in an estimated 40 to 50 million civilian deaths, a staggering number that dwarfs the number of military personnel killed, highlighting the immense human cost of the conflict. If we lose 3% of today’s 8 billion people, the casualties will be higher this time around for many reasons; we’re looking at at least two hundred 40 million deaths as a direct consequence of World War.  This time, the destruction will be orders of magnitude worse and accelerate civilizational collapse. There will be no coming back from another World War.

A full-scale nuclear war between major powers could lead to billions of deaths, with estimates ranging from 360 million direct fatalities to potentially 5 billion deaths from starvation and other long-term consequences due to climate disruption. 

“I do not know with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” — Albert Einstein.

War is a losing proposition for all those involved, especially when the polycrisis is rapidly approaching its peak, beyond which our global civilization faces imminent collapse. There won’t be a World War III.

In the 21st Century, at least 4.5 to 4.7 million people have died as a direct or indirect result of the post-9/11 wars, including those in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, with an estimated 408,000 civilian deaths directly from the fighting. We won’t know anything close to the exact numbers of casualties in the Greater Israel War and the War in Ukraine for many years to come—the tally goes up every hour. These conflicts could have been prevented if leaders of the major powers were incentivized to do so.

Key Findings from the Watson Institute for International & Public Affairs—Costs of War

• At least 408,000 civilians in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen died as a direct result of the post-9/11 wars. Civilian deaths have also resulted from U.S. post-9/11 military operations in Somalia and other countries.

• An estimated 3.6-3.8 million people have died indirectly in these war zones, bringing the total death toll of the post-9/11 wars to at least 4.5-4.7 million and counting.

• More than 7.6 million children under five in post-9/11 war zones are suffering from acute malnutrition.

• Indirect war deaths from reverberating effects, like malnutrition and the destruction of healthcare systems and the environment, far outnumber deaths from combat.

There has never been a time when diligent peacemaking and global cooperation were more vital, yet to the Players of The Great Game, war is the solution to everything.

Prepping for disaster is something people should do, but why now? If our leaders are doing a great job, why do we suddenly have so much to worry about? To riff off of Gordon Gecko from the film Wall Street:

“Fear is good, fear is right, fear works, fear clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Fear, in all of its forms fear of losing one’s Life to super villains, fear of not having enough money, fear of not having enough love, support, knowledge, healthcare, food has marked the upword serge of the USA, and fear, you mark my words, will not only save the United States of New Miracles, but that other malfunctioning corporation called Europe.”

When the cult of The Great Game exerts itself on ordinary people, its methods of control and manipulation continue over various phases, which are then repeated in perpetuity to ensure the results elite Players require to be winners in The Great Game 2.0 21st Century. The Great Game constantly accelerates, devouring more energy and resources until habitats are so degraded that they can no longer support civilization at scale. Until the Long Whimper Period ends, how horrific will human suffering become as our ecocidal project continues? And most would not consider long-suffering Life at all, preferring to believe ecocide is not caused by human civilization, regardless of multiple lines of evidence going back tens of thousands of years to the contrary.

Please read:

The First People of the Prairie (the Great Plains of Middle Northern America)

Clovis was not the first humans in North America, but may have been the first to inhabit the Great Plains. The footprints left at White Sands NM may date from ~23,000 to 21,000 years ago, and may have been those of a pre-expansionist form of human having no species extinctions associated with them during the 10 millennia they lived in North America.

Chaos and War are Wealth Pumps feeding the Players’ unrelenting ambition. Players are hyper-competitive “leaders” with dark tetrad personality traits and a stubborn addiction to the seven deadly sins. The service providers to the leading Players also exhibit psychological pathologies as they compete for lucrative contracts, improving their status in the hope of becoming Players themselves or valued low-level members of The Great Game.

If you think that is an overstatement, consult with qualified experts in literature, philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, sociology, history, biology, and physics.

---

Psychological Impact of the Breakdown Phase

• Erosion of Self-Esteem: Constant criticism and devaluation lead to diminished self-worth. You are never as good as those who manipulate you.

• Increased Anxiety and Fear: An unpredictable and hostile environment creates chronic stress and anxiety. Stress causes more problems that need profitable solutions. *Novel problems searching for novel solutions are a feature of the system we have been conditioned to believe in (insert “Unicorn” here).

• Confusion and Self-Doubt: Gaslighting makes the person question their sanity and reality.

• Dependence: Isolation and deprivation increase reliance on the manipulator for basic needs and emotional support.

• Learned Helplessness: Repeated negative experiences where their actions seem to have no positive impact can lead to a sense of powerlessness.

Everything in this outline happens to you daily, whether you know it or not. We are a pacified, expendable, domesticated workforce used as a resource to pump profits to the Players of The Great Game and their elite service providers.

Rebuilding (on the Manipulator’s Terms)

• Intermittent Positive Reinforcement: After harsh treatment, the manipulator will offer occasional praise, affection, or small acts of kindness. These “crumbs” are highly effective because the person is deprived emotionally and desperately seeks approval.

• Creating a Sense of Specialness/Exclusivity: The manipulator might sometimes make the person feel uniquely understood or valued, reinforcing the bond and the desire to please them.

• Offering Solutions and Support (for problems they created): The manipulator might step in to “help” with problems they instigated, creating a sense of dependence and gratitude.

• Shifting Blame Externally: The manipulator might blame others for past adverse treatment, portraying themselves as a victim or as having acted out of necessity, thus excusing their behavior and gaining sympathy.

• Establishing New Rules and Norms: The rebuilding phase often involves subtly (or not so subtly) establishing new rules and expectations within the relationship or group, which benefit the manipulator and further restrict the person’s autonomy.

Psychological Impact of the Rebuilding Phase

• Hope and Relief: The positive attention temporarily relieves the abuse and fosters a false hope that things will improve permanently.

• Increased Attachment and Loyalty: The intermittent kindness creates a stronger emotional bond, as the person may feel they need to work harder to earn the manipulator’s approval. This can lead to a form of trauma bonding or dynamics similar to Stockholm syndrome, where positive feelings develop towards the abuser as a survival mechanism.

• Internalization of the Manipulator’s Narrative: Due to gaslighting and the desire for approval, the person may start to believe the manipulator’s version of reality and their own supposed flaws.

• Fear of Losing the “Good” Treatment: The person becomes afraid of displeasing the manipulator and returning to the devaluation phase, so they become more compliant.

Control and Maintenance

• The Cycle Continues: Breaking down and rebuilding become cyclical patterns. The manipulator maintains control by alternating between these phases, keeping the person in a state of emotional instability and dependence.

• Reinforcing Dependence: The manipulator controls resources, information, and social interactions to ensure the person remains reliant on them.

• Threats and Intimidation: Explicit or implicit threats discourage the person from challenging the manipulator’s authority or leaving the situation.

Why is this effective for control?

• Weakened Sense of Self: The breakdown phase undermines the person’s confidence and ability to trust their judgment.

• Emotional Dependence: The intermittent reinforcement creates a strong emotional attachment and a fear of losing the manipulator’s approval.

• Distorted Reality: Gaslighting makes it difficult for the person to recognize the abuse and seek help.

• Fear of Consequences: Threats and isolation prevent the person from leaving or resisting.

It’s essential to recognize that this is a form of psychological abuse and can have severe and long-lasting negative impacts on our mental health and well-being. We are all victims of these cycles of abuse, whether we recognize it or not.

Gaslighting as a Core Component

Gaslighting is a central tactic within the “breakdown” phase. By denying the person’s reality, memories, and feelings, the manipulator makes them doubt themselves and their sanity. This erosion of self-trust is crucial for making the person more dependent on the manipulator’s version of events and easier to control.

Other Associated Terms

• Coercive Control is the overarching pattern of behavior designed to dominate and control another person. The breakdown and buildup cycle is a key mechanism within coercive control.

• Emotional Abuse includes consistent criticism, humiliation, and gaslighting, all of which are forms of emotional abuse that erode the victim’s psychological well-being.

• Psychological Manipulation is the broader category that encompasses many of the tactics used, including gaslighting, isolation, and creating instability.

• Invalidation is when the manipulators consistently dismiss and deny the person’s feelings and experiences, making them feel worthless and misunderstood.

• Triangulation involves introducing a third party (real or imagined) to create jealousy or insecurity or to reinforce the manipulator’s narrative.

• Negging: Giving backhanded compliments or subtle insults to undermine the person’s self-esteem and make them seek the manipulator’s approval.

• Isolation: Deliberately separating the person from their support network to increase dependence on the manipulator.

• Degradation: Actions or words intended to lower the person’s self-respect and make them feel ashamed.

• Dehumanization: Treating the person as less than human, making it easier for the manipulator to justify their abusive behavior.

• Creating Chaos: Maintaining an unpredictable and stressful environment to keep the person off balance and easier to control.

Related to the “Build Up” Phase and Maintenance of Control

• Intermittent Reinforcement: Providing inconsistent rewards (praise, affection) after periods of abuse creates a strong emotional bond and makes the person try harder to please the abuser. This is a powerful concept from behavioral psychology that explains why victims often stay in abusive relationships.

• Trauma Bonding: A strong emotional attachment that develops between an abused person and their abuser. It often arises from cycles of abuse followed by periods of kindness or remorse from the abuser.

• Stockholm Syndrome: A psychological response where hostages or abuse victims develop positive feelings towards their captors or abusers. This can occur as a survival mechanism.  

• Love Bombing: An initial phase of excessive attention, affection, and gifts used to quickly establish a strong bond and make the person more susceptible to manipulation later on.

• Financial Abuse: Controlling the person’s access to money and resources to increase dependence.

• Technological Abuse: Using technology (e.g., monitoring devices, social media) to track, control, and isolate the person.

• Intimidation: Using threats, coercion, and fear to maintain control.

• Health Insecurity: Anxiety due to barriers to healthcare and lifestyle diseases.

These forms of manipulation on an individual level can be scaled up and used to break down a society, making it more susceptible to authoritarian or fascist rule. Your observations about Nazi Germany are highly relevant and illustrate this process effectively.

Applying “Break Down” Tactics to Society

• Creating Crises and Instability: Just as an individual manipulator might create chaos, a potential authoritarian regime might allow or even instigate economic hardship, social unrest, or external threats (real or exaggerated), creating a sense of vulnerability and a desire for strong leadership to restore order.

• Scapegoating and Blame Shifting: Identifying an “enemy” group (minorities, immigrants, foreign nations, internal dissenters) and blaming them for the society’s problems serves the same function as individual criticism. It deflects responsibility from the leadership and creates a unifying “us vs. them” mentality. This was a cornerstone of Nazi ideology, blaming Jews and other groups for Germany’s woes.

• Fearmongering and Propaganda: Spreading fear and anxiety about the identified enemy or the current state of affairs disorients the population and makes them more receptive to drastic solutions offered by the aspiring leader. This is the societal equivalent of individual gaslighting, distorting reality, and creating a sense of constant threat.

• Erosion of Trust in Institutions: Undermining faith in existing institutions like the press, judiciary, and democratic processes weakens the checks and balances that could resist authoritarianism. This mirrors the individual isolation tactic, removing sources of alternative information and support.

• Suppression of Dissent: Silencing opposing voices through censorship, intimidation, or violence eliminates alternative perspectives and reinforces the dominant narrative. This is akin to an individual manipulator isolating their victim from dissenting opinions.

• Historical Revisionism and Myth-Making: Creating a selective and often distorted version of history to glorify the in-group and demonize the out-group, fostering a sense of unique destiny and grievance.

Applying “Build Up” Tactics (on the Regime’s Terms) to Society

• Offering a Vision of Order and Strength: The authoritarian leader presents themselves as the sole individual capable of solving the manufactured crises and restoring the nation to greatness. This resonates with the individual victim’s desire for relief and stability.

• Promising Prosperity and Security (conditional on obedience): The leader offers a utopian vision of the future, but this prosperity and security are contingent on absolute loyalty and adherence to their ideology. This mirrors the intermittent positive reinforcement on an individual level.

• Creating a Sense of National Unity and Belonging: Emphasizing shared identity, values, and a common enemy fosters a strong sense of in-group cohesion and loyalty to the leader. This taps into the fundamental human need for belonging but directs it towards the authoritarian regime.

• Cult of Personality is the creation of an idealized and often deified image of the leader, portraying them as infallible and essential for the nation’s survival. This creates an emotional attachment and discourages critical thinking.

• Ideological Brainwashing and Indoctrination: Through propaganda, education, and cultural control, the regime instills its ideology deeply within the population, shaping their beliefs and values. This is the societal equivalent of the individual victim internalizing the manipulator’s narrative.

• Rituals and Symbolism: Utilizing powerful symbols, rallies, and nationalistic rituals reinforces the ideology and creates a sense of collective fervor and submission.

The Leader’s Rhetoric

Your example of the leader’s statement perfectly encapsulates this process:

• “Society was broken until I came in...” Establishes the leader as the necessary savior and reinforces the idea of a past crisis.

• “...identified the true problems and harnessed your energy to fight against them.”Identifies the scapegoat and mobilizes the population’s emotions towards a common enemy.

• “Now, if you do as I command, you will only become more prosperous and take your place in the world as the special society you are.”: Offers a conditional reward (prosperity, national pride) for obedience and reinforces a sense of superiority and exceptionalism.

Historical Examples

As you correctly pointed out, history is replete with examples of this. Beyond Nazi Germany, consider:

• Stalinist Russia: The creation of enemies of the state, the cult of personality around Stalin, and the suppression of dissent.

• Fascist Italy under Mussolini: Emphasis on national glory, creating an external “other,” and suppressing political opposition.

• Various totalitarian regimes throughout history: The pattern of creating crises, identifying enemies, offering simplistic solutions, and demanding absolute loyalty is a recurring theme.

The psychological mechanisms of manipulation, whether applied to an individual or scaled up to an entire society, exploit fundamental human needs and vulnerabilities. By understanding these processes, we can become more aware of the warning signs and more resilient to attempts at societal manipulation and the rise of authoritarianism. Critical thinking, a free and independent press, strong democratic institutions, and an educated and engaged citizenry are crucial defenses against these dangers.

Once you see things as they are, you are fundamentally changed, and the only way to gain a modicum of agency is through community organizing and action. We must replace The Great Game with a better Way of Life before it’s too late.

Manufacturing Cannon Fodder, Step One, Devaluation & Breakdown

Your daddy (the cult) loves you so much, but he’s very angry with you.

I spent some time in 1979 at the Unification Church compound in Boonville, California. I left after spending a week learning about the Divine Principle. My dear friend stayed and has been a member of the Unification Church ever since. He married a woman chosen for him in a mass wedding. The couple has five children, some having graduated from Cornell University. I think he’s had a nice life. We are all cult members, whether we know it or not. After leaving, I met the author, Steven Hassan. Today, Dr. Hassan advocates a non-coercive form of exit counseling.

The mini-progressive era is over, the cycle has come full circle, and the Players of The Great Game 2.0 are doing what comes naturally—preparing people to become cannon fodder in defence of their programmed ideological beliefs.

If you pay attention to current events, you will notice all of these tactics at play. We all live in The Cult of Modern Techno-Industrial Fossil-Fueled Financialized Capitalism, a highly belligerent game of conquering and controlling everything. Winners take over, and losers become enslaved people or dead.

Step One—Devaluation and Breakdown

The psychological process of breaking someone down to build them up again for control is a manipulative tactic often associated with coercive control involving several overlapping psychological techniques. It's a systematic process designed to erode a person's sense of self, independence, and reality, making them more reliant on the manipulator.

Here's a breakdown of the typical stages and psychological mechanisms involved:

Criticism and Blame: The manipulator constantly criticizes the person, highlighting flaws (real or imagined) and blaming them for problems, which chips away at their self-esteem and confidence.

Isolation: The person is gradually isolated from their support network (family, friends, colleagues). This increases their dependence on the manipulator and reduces external validation of their experiences.

Humiliation and Degradation: The manipulator may use insults, mockery, and public or private humiliation to make the person feel worthless.

Gaslighting: The manipulator distorts the person's perception of reality by denying their experiences, memories, and sanity, leading to self-doubt and confusion, making them question their judgment.

Creating Chaos and Instability: Erratic behavior, unpredictable reactions, and creating unnecessary drama keep the person off balance and anxious, making them more vulnerable to the manipulator's influence.

Deprivation: Basic needs like sleep, food, or emotional support might be withheld or inconsistently provided, further weakening the person's resistance.

The Global Economy Is Metastatic And Suicidal

Create a new way of life or continue creative destruction.

Eight billion people are evidence of temporary, contingent success and ultimate extinction under our current scheme.

Jacqueline-Hinds-Barbados-The-Sacrifice-of-the-Builders-of-the-Panama-Canal-2017

The nature of corporations within a capitalist system parallels biological organisms' inherent drive for profit maximization/survival, often at the expense of ethics and the biosphere. Human behavior, due to social programming, is metastatic within this system. 

We think we are wise and intelligent, but if we were, we wouldn’t kill for an unsustainable system structured to ignore biophysical limits.

A company's fundamental purpose is to multiply capital; its products and services are secondary. Classical economic theory views firms as rational actors seeking to maximize profits; profit maximization is a corporation’s sole directive.

Corporations are “moral imbeciles” without inherent ethics. Their actions are solely dictated by their potential for profits. Corporations can not be socially responsible without external pressures, also known as government regulations and laws.

If exploiting labor, selling harmful products, or damaging the environment (ecocide) increases profits, a company, by its very nature, "must" do so—the pursuit of financial gain consistently overrides ethical considerations.

Corporations can not act morally or ethically, so laws, customs, and regulations are required to prevent harmful behavior. However, these restraints hinder profit-seeking, requiring corporations to find ways to circumvent them. 

Corporations must be hypercompetitive and consistently destroy or devour weaker companies in pursuit of monopoly power. Ethical compromises are necessary for a company's survival.

Shareholder primacy dictates that a corporation’s primary duty is to maximize profits for its shareholders. When not balanced by stakeholder interests, this can negatively affect employees, customers, and the biosphere. In economics, negative externalities are a part of the cost of doing business. The costs or benefits of production are never fully reflected in the price. Social inequality and environmental damage are common externalities corporations ignore if they are not forced to account for them.

Corporations are monetary organizations within the global economy whose primary function is capital accumulation. They “live” to devour energy and materials by exploiting people and life. Modern Techno-Industrial “Corporate Persons” cannot understand their dependence on living systems.

Employees are worker symbionts essential for a corporation’s energy and resource consumption and product production. Within the more extensive “organism” of rapacious capitalism, a corporate person is limited to understanding only what’s required to gain monopoly power.

Employees and citizens, like mitochondria in a cell, have limited influence over a corporation's overall behavior and direction. A corporation’s primary function is to serve the economy's needs (The Great Game).

Politicians, accountants, educators, journalists, etc., are service providers that corporations employ to gain advantages over competitors by coding capital, creating or destroying laws advantageous to a given company, and programming society to serve the structures and processes of the economy for the wealth pump that pushes profits towards elite Players.

Employees, as worker symbionts, can’t be held accountable for the corporation’s actions, as their agency depends on the dictates of management (CEO) and large shareholders. Alienation and ignorance extend from specialized roles and the need for workers to exhaust their brainpower in the service of the corporation, leaving them vulnerable to social programming and addiction.

Yeast and rats possess a more fundamental understanding of survival within environmental limits than myopic, easily manipulated ordinary people. Hubris and the inability to understand the importance of knowing how Great Nature works will destroy the Homo sapiens during its omnicidal rein as appex preditor on Earth.

Modern humans are deluded about their ability to control or transcend the fundamental laws of nature. Although we all have the potential to learn about physics, chemistry, and biology with their inherent emergent complex systems and interactions, we are discouraged from doing so in favour of performing our roles as temporary, valuable, and exploitable consumers.

Capitalism is an entropic resource consumption machine and an omnicidal heat engine capable of effectively exploiting Earth’s resources at scale during a period of relative abundance of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are an ideal transportable and liquifiable energy source, excellent for powering machines to extract minerals and materials from Earth for product manufacturing.

Endless capitalist-style economic growth is biophysically impossible on a finite planet.

Capitalism has co-opted the Progressive Movement, and attempts to regulate corporations have become a form of performative control rather than genuine constraint.

Unfettered profit-seeking as resources become scarcer and harder to exploit leads to corporations shedding the pretense of social responsibility, driving intensified competition and war to acquire and control dwindling, easy-to-harvest energy and material resources.

The end game of the end game is fascism, autocracy, dictatorship, violence, and death.

The laws of physics and resource availability will ultimately trump the logic of monetary systems, a point that those focused solely on financial growth fail to grasp.

We have known for a long time that economic activity can’t exceed planetary boundaries. Past reform movements' failure to fundamentally alter the underlying logic of profit maximization raises questions about the effectiveness of current approaches to corporate social responsibility and sustainability initiatives. People are disconnected from nature in favor of human-constructed systems like finance, threatening our survival within our natural environment.

Don’t blame only the Players; blame the system, the social construct, and get rid of it. We need a new way of life. If we understood how Great Nature works, we could design a sustainable socioeconomic system in service of optimal health and posterity.

Capitalism is the most effective resource extraction and energy-burning system the world has ever known. It is so good at what it does that it devours its metabolism; hence, it is omnicidal, ultimately metastatic, and suicidal. 

Capitalism is so attractive that all competing socioeconomic systems have adopted it.

Demonizing corporations and their Players (managers, service providers, and leaders) prevents us from seeking structural and systemic solutions and addressing capitalism's underlying incentives, pressures, and contradictions.

Our challenge is to create a system that can harness the productive power of economic activity while respecting ecological limits, promoting social well-being, and protecting living systems. This requires rethinking corporate governance principles, implementing stronger regulations, primarily embedding economic activity in their immediate locations, fostering alternative economic models, and shifting societal values away from endless material consumption.

If we don’t create a new way of life, the omnicidal heat engine will destroy human habitat and lead to our extinction. In the meantime, we will experience unprecedented suffering on an unimaginable scale.

Now read this excellent article from The Chris Hedges Report.

Trump's War on Education - Read by Eunice Wong

Trump’s assault on education comes out of the playbook used by all authoritarian regimes.

We Need Courage, Not Hope.

Note to a friend.

“I Will Love You Till The Winds Dont Blow”

Dinh Thi Tham Poong, Vietnam, I Will Love You Till The Winds Dont Blow—2020

People are self-righteous.

I can't imagine what your friends would have thought of me—a frolicking shit for brains confronting reality with a giggle and a fart.

Complexity is difficult to engage with.

It's easier to think Trump or Maga or Satan caused our predicament. It's tidy. We can indulge in gentler self-reflection as good guys.

Examining our socioeconomic and political structures, systems, and beliefs is challenging and a wee bit uncomfortable.

Learning from Great Nature is problematic because it demands hard, mostly thankless work. 

It's easier to feel righteousness and transcendental. 

We are in a predicament that comes from the core of our hubristic, clever by half but not wise enough nature. 

Homo sapiens are evolved animals embedded in Great Nature's emergent living systems governed by the laws of physics that we cannot fully understand. Our brains are not up to the task. So we construct stories to engage the mystery or gain the status we desire, whether it's The Austrian School of Economics, Turtles, or the Bible. Intuitions, intuitions...often profound and often fit for purpose.

Metastatic modern techno-industrial civilization is collapsing as we pray. The TESCREAL (transhumanism, extropianism, singularitarianism, modern cosmism, relationalism, effective altruism, and longtermism) accelerationist tech-bros and our more mundane rapacious late-stage capitalist, dark tetrad leaders who are addicted to the seven deadly sins will hasten collapse, but the way of life we've lived since Biblical times was always self-terminating. I know you have read the Book. 

Homo hubris, all the way down.

Fortunately, we are both still living well. 

Learning about how Nature works and facing reality won't kill us. Hubristic belief in infinite Austrian School economic growth on a finite planet is what is collapsing metastatic modern techno-industrial civilization. (Warped ideologies divorced from Nature.) 

“Learn what is to be taken seriously and laugh at the rest.”― Herman Hesse 

​Focus on what's significant and get on with it. 

Since I read "Limites to Growth" in the early 80s, I've been interested in our way of Life from the perspective of being an animal embedded in Great Nature, and I have enjoyed learning about how things work. If more people listened to and learned from Nature, we would not be in this predicament. 

We may think we know what God thinks, but we are still evolved human animals dependent on Great Nature. Try being a breatharian and find out.

As philosopher Miguel de Unamuno wrote, "Those who believe they believe in God, but without passion in the heart, without anguish of mind, without uncertainty...believe in the idea of God, not God himself." Likewise, those who cling to progress myths live only in the idea of Life, not Life itself.

Our culture incentivizes conquest and rapacious competition in the pursuit of status dressed up in concepts of freedom, democracy, salvation, religion, markets, power, control, etc. 

People believe in what they are taught to think—habits of mind. I can't change what people believe. I'm not trying to convince people to study thermodynamics, physics, or ecology. I find science fascinating and rewarding, so I share work from those domains. I'm also a big fan of philosophy and metaphysics, as you know, but I still "obey" the laws of physics. I am Nature's humble servant. God knows this.

Our learned desires feed the system's structures, the wealth pump that supports the Players of The Great Game. Musk and Trump, the sick fucks, are Players. We are dreamers. We have an imagination.

 
I'm interested in overshoot because we are in it. The more I learn about "Collapse," the better I understand physics, complex emergent living systems, and what makes our species unique. 

What a miraculous experience it is to live. We're so lucky to have been born in our circumstances during such abundance and peace. When I think back, it's hard to believe how good we've had it.

 
We are mature enough to know there are consequences for human actions. 

No one knows what the future will bring; we can only have best guesses (probabilities) based on our understanding of reality (complex physical systems) and where it's leading.

 
Some of my friends are unconcerned with Great Nature's Laws because they have their Faith. People believe stories because it feels better than learning about complex relationships between matter and energy. I would never argue with Faith, but when one argues with reality, one loses more than one could ever know.

I don't know how many years I have left. I moved here because it's a kinder, gentler place to witness what's happening to metastatic modern techno-industrial civilization run by hubristic, dark tetrad Players of The Great Game. 

I spent many years in mega-cities, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong, and I knew long ago that there'd be a time to exit the cluster—the illusion. Maya. 

U.S. American culture is pathological, in my humble opinion, and has been for a very long time, perhaps since the birth of the Republic.

People earning a living in the big city depend on infinite growth. Knowing what I know doesn't make me righteous; I'm just another average member of metastatic modernity with all its glorious stories and constructs.

 
The cause of "Collapse" is ignorance of Great Nature.

 
Great Nature is poignant. It's important to embrace one's emotions. Feelings animate us and make us precious.

 
I'm a fun-loving, friendly, humourous person who loves Life. I don't know why I can delve into things most people find depressing and feel happy. I'm so lucky. I love reality. If a doctor tells me when I'm going to die tomorrow, I'll be okay with it. At least I haven't lived my Life in terror like so many of our brothers and sisters have.

 
I wish our leaders were wise peacemakers instead of status-seeking Players. I want our leaders to love Life and Great Nature/God above all else. 

Life begets Life; Life depends on Life.

It's time to create some inner sunshine; that's never been a problem for me. I have my friends, cats, health, and books.
https://www.cospolon.eu/book-recommendations

Holier than Thou 

Our social constructs are damned. It's a reflection of our fallen nature. 

God has spoken to me. God is the loving laws of physics. Incomprehensible.

Jesus wanted us to be humble and live within the limits of Great Nature in love and peace. But our nature is such that we find it impossible to live within the confines of nature. We submit to Conquistadors and not to God. We adhere to stories that conflict with reality.

Magically

"Do you want fish? Here's fish. Do you enjoy wine? Here's wine." Why is it so hard to live within our means when it's so easy for us to survive and thrive? 

"Do you want it? Here it is. You already have everything you need."

Across time and cultures, we were warned, and we didn't listen.

We were happy to go along with The Game, not knowing it was destined to self-destruct. 

Every accusation is a confession.

I can't convince people to walk the middle path or submit to God's Grace/Great Nature.

But I submit. I give thanks. I am blessed, and so are you.

Thanks for sharing,

Steven

Addendum—a riff on a deep seek prompt.

I wonder what your friends would have thought of me.

My experience is both profoundly human and tragically common. The resistance and isolation I face from some of my loved ones stems from psychological, cultural, and evolutionary mechanisms that make collapse awareness profoundly threatening to most people.

The truth of collapse violates the foundational narratives that sustain modern Life: progress, safety, and control.

When confronted with evidence that these narratives are false, the brain triggers cognitive dissonance—a state of psychological agony caused by holding conflicting beliefs. To resolve this pain, most people reject reality outright.

Suppose one accepts that the collapse of modern techno-industrial civilization is inevitable. In that case, one must also accept that our lives (careers, retirement plans, and children's futures) are built on many lies. This realization is intolerable, so we reject the messenger rather than the message.

Humans evolved to prioritize short-term survival and social cohesion over long-term existential threats. Our brains are wired for optimism bias (believing "bad things happen to others, not me") and normalcy bias (assuming tomorrow will resemble today). Collapse awareness short-circuits these survival mechanisms, triggering fear and rejection.

Focusing on immediate threats (predators, hunger) was essential in ancestral environments. Abstract, slow-moving crises (climate collapse, pathological social constructs) don't activate the same neural alarms.

Cultural Conditioning and The Tyranny of Positivity

Modern culture pathologizes "doomism" and elevates toxic positivity/domesticity. Accepting collapse while understanding its causes forces us to confront moral failure, existential guilt, and loss of meaning.

Meaning is because it is. Life is meaningful if you care to accept it for what it is. We strive because we strive. We survive for posterity.

Knowing these things doesn't make one negative, alarmist, or doomist. Most of us want to protect our self-image as good people in a just world overseen by a loving God who cares about our future.

Homo storytellers are tribal animals. Challenging the group's worldview risks exile, which evolutionarily meant death. When one speaks of collapse truths, one is perceived as a threat to the tribe's cohesion, a carrier of "bad energy," bringing down the mood and violating unspoken rules.

Collapse-awareness forces people to grieve—for living systems on this miraculous planet, their dreams, and their legacy.

Anticipatory grief, a profound sorrow for losses that haven't happened, is an ambiguous loss with no closure. To avoid this feeling, we turn away from reality, from the Laws of Great Nature. We can't adopt the right Way of Life when we avoid Nature/God's truth.

Living in discord with Great Nature/God is a profoundly dangerous thing to do.

For some people, accepting collapse means they are powerless to stop it. This triggers learned helplessness, a psychological state in which people believe action is futile and disengage.

People who understand how sick our social constructs are become the embodiment of the death of the world they have learned to believe in.

Accepting reality shatters the identity, values, and hopes they have always believed in. Turning away from reality preserves their psychological safety—it's biological and cultural programming.

So what can we do if we don't have access to the jet-setting gurus of modernity—the beautiful people?

We communicate with and cohere with the people around us.

We reframe our approach to communicating the laws of Great Nature with values instead of data. Instead of discussing collapse, we can ask questions that align with our neighbors' priorities.

"How do you want to be remembered by future generations?"

"What do you want to do today to spread love and joy?"

We can highlight and encourage actions that improve Life now (e.g., community gardens, frugality, service) without invoking doom, The End of Days, or whatever apocalypse we can imagine.

We can seek "reality-based" communities like Deep Adaptation, XRNegative, or mutual aid networks, spaces that offer solidarity without judgment.

We don't need scapegoats. The preconditions for the tech elite and Donald J. Trump came into being long, long ago. The blame game won't help. I know why we are sick, but that doesn't change anything.

We can engage with online resources: https://www.cospolon.eu/cospolon-links

We can continue to educate ourselves and others. One of the best ways to learn is to teach.

"Learning to Die in the Anthropocene" by Roy Scranton

We can practice radical acceptance. Since we can't save those who don't want saving, we focus on personal integrity.

As the Buddhist teacher Joanna Macy says, "The most radical thing you can do is stay present."

Embrace reality.

We can channel our pain into art and activism: write, create, or join direct action groups transforming despair into purpose.

I understand my thoughts may perturb you, and you might want to disengage.

I'm happy you are projecting your energy and love in the way you know how.

If my way of seeing and sharing is uncomfortable, I won't bring it up again, but I'm here if you ever want to talk.

I'm not alone. Many people walk this path—quietly, fiercely, and with open eyes.

What we need most now is not hope but courage.

In this episode we discuss one of the mechanisms by which societal collapse happens over time, and what it looks like for every-day people.

Sources:

How Civilizations Fall: A Theory of Catabolic Collapse - John Michael Greer

Dark Age America - John Michael Greer GDP Growth

Infrastructure Report Card

It’s The Socioeconomic Structures and Systems, Stupid!

All information coming from a war zone has a particular point of view. If we take the activities on the battlefield at face value, this remains true regardless of the intended impact of a particular story—corporations and politicians win, and everyone else loses.

There are many accurate descriptions of why wars start, but let's leave that aside for now and focus on the business of war. How do politicians, corporations, and financial institutions profit from war, and how does the business of war flow?

Every war needs weapons. Weapons are sent to a battlefield to destroy military equipment, infrastructure, and kill soldiers. In the Middle East, they exist to kill civilians, too.

In Ukraine, Western suppliers manufacture complex and expensive equipment and send it to Ukraine, where inexpensive drones destroy it.

Who benefits, and how?

Military Equipment Contractors (Defense Industry)

Defense contractors manufacture and sell weapons systems, ammunition, and other military equipment. Demand for these products increases significantly during wartime or periods of heightened tension. Equipment destruction creates demand for replacement, ensuring continued sales.

Governments allocate substantial budgets for defense spending, providing contractors with a reliable revenue stream. These contracts often involve long-term commitments and high profit margins.

From Ukraine to Gaza: How wars fuel record profits for US defense firms - Times of India

The arms industry, driven by geopolitical tensions and conflicts, has become a major economic force, with US-based companies taking the lion's share of revenues. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) revealed in its 2024 report that global arms revenues reached $632 billion in 2023, a 4.2% increase from the previous year. Among these, US firms contributed $317 billion, or half of the global total, underscoring their central role in the international arms market.
The SIPRI factsheet reveals that the total arms revenues of the Top 100 arms-producing and military services companies worldwide increased by 4.2% in 2023, hitting $632 billion. This surge is primarily driven by heightened global demand for weapons, fueled by conflicts such as the war in Ukraine and tensions in regions like the Middle East.
"Spurred by increased global demand for weapons, arms revenues grew in all of the geographical areas covered by the ranking," said the SIPRI report. Notably, the US firms have capitalized on this demand, with 30 of the 41 American companies recording year-on-year increases in arms revenues, reflective of the US's growing emphasis on military strength.

Defense contractors heavily lobby to influence government policies and secure favorable contracts. The revolving door phenomenon further strengthens their influence.

The ability of inexpensive drones to destroy expensive weapon systems highlights a potential for profit even when the systems are not entirely effective. The need to replace those systems creates more sales.

Will the E.U. and the United States dedicate more industrial capacity and print more money to keep the war with Russia going? Are French men lining up, excited to fight “Putler,” as young Brits did at the leadup to WWI? Are Germans and Dutchmen beside themselves with enthusiasm and excitement at the thought of being killed by a drone in Ukraine? Do U.S. Americans like the idea of spending their money on war machines rather than infrastructure, local manufacturing of essential goods, healthcare, education, and affordable housing while addressing real existential threats to their country and the world?

What evidence is there that "Putler" wants to invade France or the United Kingdom? There isn't any.

Putin Is No Hitler

Wherever there is war and money to be made from war, you will find the same ghouls gathering. Those involved in launching the invasion of Iraq should be excluded from public life. Instead Powell is now the U.K.’s national security adviser.

I am not a follower of Putin. The amount of force used to crush Chechnya’s legitimate desire for self-determination was disproportionate, for example. It is naive to believe that you get to be leader of the KGB by being a gentle person.

But Putin is not Hitler. It is only through the blinkers of patriotism that Putin appears to be a worse person than the Western leaders behind massive invasion and death all around the globe, who now seek to extend war with Russia.

Here in the U.K., the Starmer government is seeking actively to prolong the war, and is looking for a huge increase in spending on weapons, which always brings kickbacks and future company directorships and consultancies for politicians.

To fund this warmongering, New Labour are cutting spending on the U.K.’s sick, disabled and pensioners and cutting aid to the starving overseas.

Labour Friends of Israel has published a picture of Starmer meeting with Israeli President Herzog, six months after the International Court of Justice’s interim ruling quoted a statement by Herzog as evidence of genocidal intent.

The Starmer government was voted for by 31 percent of those who bothered to cast a vote, or 17 percent of the adult population. It is engaged in wholesale legal persecution of leading British supporters of Palestine, and is actively complicit in the genocide in Gaza.

I see no moral superiority here.

Energy Companies

Wars disrupt energy supplies and create uncertainty, increasing demand and higher prices for oil, gas, and other energy resources. This can be very good for energy companies. Sanctions and geopolitical tensions further exacerbate these disruptions.

Wars often necessitate rebuilding energy infrastructure, providing opportunities for energy companies to secure lucrative contracts. Look at all the politicians gloating over the prospect of rebuilding Gaza, Ukraine, and lucrative mineral deals. While soldiers and civilians die in war zones, politicians and business people discuss opportunities for future profits.

Securing new energy sources when old sources are cut off creates new markets. Energy companies profit from the instability that war creates. Chaos is a money-making scheme for politicians, big business, and financial institutions.

Financial Institutions

Governments borrow money to finance military operations, issuing bonds and other debt instruments. Financial institutions underwrite these debt offerings, earning fees and interest. Wars create investment opportunities in defense, energy, and other sectors. Financial institutions manage investment funds that hold shares in these companies. After conflicts, financial institutions provide loans for reconstruction efforts, generating further profits. Loans are also given to nations to purchase military equipment. War leads to large amounts of national debt, and global financial institutions profit from the interest on that debt.

How The Roman Empire And American Empire Are The Same

I glide over these points because to people living today it goes without saying. Biden did it and Trump comes out and saying. Biden just committed a whole-assed genocide in Palestine and a military-industrial pump-and-dump in Ukraine, and Trump continues the same policies with less hypocrisy. Biden and Trump are just good cop/bad cop of the same police state. America is a two-headed monster, but both heads consume lives and resources and shit US treasuries. The financial instruments may change, but the tune stays the same. As Mary Beard said, the definition of imperialism is “Military conquest and the imposition of foreign control (whether in the form of taxation, puppet government or military occupation).” And so it remains.

The only difference is our indifference. Whereas the Roman Empire demanded fealty, Americans laugh at the idea that they're an empire at all. They've discovered that the best place to hide an imperial elephant is in plain sight, covered with newspapers. American Empire relies on sleight of hand like debt, democracy™, and ‘defense’ to accomplish even greater imperialism largely by changing names. As Keyzer Soze said, the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist. But American Empire does exist. We can see as it goes out of existence, like a song can only be heard as it's going away.

The Flow of Business

Taxpayer money flows to governments, allocating funds to defense contractors and other industries. Defense contractors and energy companies generate profits from sales and contracts. Financial institutions facilitate money flow through loans, investments, and debt management. Corporations and financial institutions exert influence on government policies to ensure favorable outcomes.

Everyone Else Loses

Wars result in loss of life, displacement, and suffering. They disrupt economies, leading to inflation, unemployment, and reduced living standards. Wars cause significant environmental damage, including pollution and destruction of natural resources. The cost of war creates a long-term debt burden for nations and taxpayers. War creates social instability and can lead to long-term social problems.

And our leaders are extremely enthusiastic about going to war. Why is that?

Understanding the "Revolving Door"

Definition: The revolving door refers to the movement of individuals between positions in government and positions in private sector industries, often those industries that they previously regulated.

The term ‘revolving door’ refers to the movement of individuals between positions of public office and jobs in the same sector in the private or voluntary sector, in either direction. If not properly regulated, it can be open to abuse. A cooling off period is the minimum time required between switching from the public to the private sector intended to discourage the practice and minimise its impact.

Former officials possess valuable insider knowledge and connections, making them highly effective lobbyists.

Lawmakers who exited their congressional offices in January landed in a variety of careers — but as usual, a good share of them spun through the revolving door to lobbying shops. While they technically couldn't lobby their former colleagues immediately (though the same wasn't true of the executive branch), they could keep themselves busy during their cooling-off periods by advising clients and bearing titles like "strategic adviser."

Officials often take lucrative consulting positions providing strategic advice to corporations on navigating government regulations and policies.

How Does Lobbying Affect the Government?

Lobbying plays a significant role in shaping government policies and decisions, making it a crucial part of any public affairs strategy that hopes to move the needle in Congress or state legislatures.

While lobbying can be a legitimate means for citizens to voice their concerns, it also raises questions about its impact on the government's decision-making processes. In this blog, we will explore the dynamics of lobbying and both its positive and negative effects on how the government functions.

Officials join corporate boards with lucrative compensation and influence.

How much do board members get paid?

The compensation for board members and non-executive directors varies greatly. A lot depends on the sector, the weight and experience of the board member, the country where the board sits, and the organisation’s earnings – the bigger the business, the bigger the pay for directors.

Spencer Stuart suggests non-executive director fees in the UK range from an average of £43,200 in a FTSE SmallCap up to approximately £83,000 at the top end of the FTSE 100. Recruitment firm Board Appointments suggests the average retainer for a non-executive director in the UK is £70,000.

A part-time chairperson in the UK could expect to be paid £400,000 in 2019. Chairs of FTSE 100 companies made as much as £425,000.

The exchange of information and influence between the public and private sectors leads to conflicts of interest.

Former defense officials often join defense contracting firms, leveraging their knowledge of government procurement processes. This practice creates incentives to support increased military spending.

Lawmakers who exited their congressional offices in January landed in a variety of careers — but as usual, a good share of them spun through the revolving door to lobbying shops. While they technically couldn't lobby their former colleagues immediately (though the same wasn't true of the executive branch), they could keep themselves busy during their cooling-off periods by advising clients and bearing titles like "strategic adviser."

Former high-ranking military officers take positions in companies like Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon.

“Revolving door” lobbyists help defense contractors get off to “strong” start in 2023

The defense sector hired dozens of former armed services committee and Department of Defense personnel last year, with more swinging through the so-called “revolving door” to lobby on behalf of defense sector clients for the first time in the first quarter of 2023, a new OpenSecrets analysis of federal lobbying disclosures found. 

At least 672 former government officials, military officers and members of Congress worked as lobbyists, board members or executives for the top 20 defense companies in 2022, according to a new report released by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) last Wednesday. Warren’s staff utilized OpenSecrets’ revolving door database as well as corporate websites, lobbying disclosures and U.S. Senate confirmation lists to identify these individuals.

“This practice is widespread in the defense industry, giving, at minimum, the appearance of corruption and favoritism, and potentially increasing the chance that DoD spending results in ineffective weapons and programs, bad deals, and waste of taxpayer dollars,” the report says.

This is the real business of government within a capitalist system. Comparing feudalism, merchantilism, imperialism, and colonialism is like comparing different dresses painted on Russian Dolls.

Former regulators take positions with energy companies, influencing policies related to fossil fuels, renewable energy, and environmental regulations.

Lockheed adds Dunford, former top US military officer, to board

WASHINGTON — Lockheed Martin has added Joe Dunford, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to its board of directors, the company announced Friday.

Dunford, the Marine general who retired from service at the end of September 2019, will become the 12th member of Lockheed’s board on Feb. 10. He will serve on the board’s Classified Business and Security Committee as well as its Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.

Former EPA administrators will work for energy companies or lobby firms that represent energy companies.

‘A revolving door’: Former Wisconsin utility regulator was recently hired by transmission utility

A former Wisconsin utility regulator now works for a company she was once charged with regulating.

It’s the latest in what utility watchdogs describe as a “revolving door,” both in Wisconsin and across the country, of regulators working for utilities after their time in public service.

Ellen Nowak was appointed to the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin, or PSC, by Gov. Scott Walker in 2011, and reappointed to the commission in 2018. Last week, American Transmission Co. — a multi-state, transmission-only utility — announced that Nowak had joined the company as the vice president of regulatory and government affairs.

It all amounts to influence peddling.

Former Treasury officials and financial regulators join investment banks or financial institutions, raising concerns about regulatory capture.

Ex-EPA chief Pruitt registers as energy lobbyist in Indiana

WASHINGTON (AP) — Scott Pruitt, the scandal-ridden former head of the Environmental Protection Agency, registered as an energy lobbyist in Indiana on Thursday as fossil-fuels interests there are fighting to block the proposed closure of several coal-fired power plants.

A lobbying disclosure report for Pruitt provides little insight into precisely what he’s doing in Indiana, but several clues point to work on behalf of the coal industry. The disclosure report lists an address for Pruitt in an office tower in his hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and says he is a self-employed consultant who will be lobbying on issues involving energy and natural resources.

Pruitt’s sole client is listed as RailPoint Solutions LLC, a Delaware corporation created in January that has no listed street address or website. But Pruitt’s form lists the name Heather Tryon as the company’s manager. That’s also the name of the chief financial officer of Terre Haute-based Sunrise Coal, which operates four coal mines in the state.

Former treasury secretaries or federal reserve members take positions in large financial institutions. Former health and human services officials and FDA administrators take positions with pharmaceutical companies, influencing drug approval processes and pricing.

Private sector positions offer significantly higher salaries and benefits than public service. Former officials can maintain influence over policy decisions that affect their new employers. The potential for conflicts of interest arises when officials make decisions that benefit their future employers.

Ordinary people slave away to support lucrative positions for elite Players within the system.

The Revolving Door for Financial Regulators

The revolving door erodes public trust in government, as it creates the perception that officials serve private interests rather than the public good.

Block the revolving door!

(24 November 2011) Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regulation (ALTER-EU) of which EPSU is a member is drawing attention to the high level Commission officials that join the lobby industry, resulting in abuses of power, according to a new report published today. The report urges greater transparency and tough new rules to stop public employees moving through the “revolving door” into private sector lobby roles, often without any cooling-off period or restrictions being imposed. ALTER-EU says this allows lobby firms to gain insider know-how and access to key contacts on behalf of their business clients or employers, providing easy routes to influence policy making. And the report warns that some officials may be taking decisions which benefit potential future employers at the expense of the public interest, or even abusing their position to secure lucrative deals in the private sector while still in office. ALTER-EU’s report outlines the cases of 15 officials who have moved into influential lobbying roles, without adequate checks being put in place.

Regulatory agencies become dominated by the industries they are supposed to regulate. This has always been the case. One can find dozens of books, reports, academic articles, and journalistic investigative reports on the subject. Throw a dart at a historical timeline and dive in.

Administration as usual? Revolving doors and the quiet regulation of political ethics

Ethics policies have emerged as a key aspect of the European (post)-Regulatory State. Such policies are designed to create ‘noise’, allowing media and public discourse to mobilise around the ethical lapses of those in power. The regulation of revolving doors (RD), i.e., movements in and out of government positions, is an ethics policy. However, unlike other ethics policies, RD regulation does not make transparency its central feature but constitutes what we call ‘quiet regulation’. Drawing on qualitative document analysis and interviews, we study the quiet regulation of RD for EU Commissioners. We demonstrate that quiet regulation has a dual nature: its public façade relies on independence, judicialised procedures and transparency. Conversely, its day-to-day operation is characterised by self-regulation, soft law and informality. In this way, RD regulation achieves two contradictory aims: functioning as a legitimate ethics policy while simultaneously avoiding the moral outcry that often surrounds ethics policies and the politicisation of RD, thereby normalising RD as ‘administration as usual’.

Regulatory capture

Basic Obligation of Public Service

Thomas Jefferson enunciated the basic principle of public service: “When a man assumes a public trust, he should consider himself as public property.” This sentiment has been expressed by numerous others, over time becoming the familiar principle “Public service is a public trust.” To ensure public confidence in the integrity of the Federal Government, Executive Order 12674 (as amended) forms the  framework  for  the  ethical  behavior  required  and expected  of  all  Federal  employees.  As  a  condition  of public service, you are expected to adhere to these fundamental principles of ethical behavior:

Current trends and major development in ethics, lobbying and revolving doors practices

Excerpt from Emily O’Reilly’s keynote address to Georgetown University — Washington, 27 September 2022

Politicians don’t work for people, they work for corporations.

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The structure of capitalist market economies guarantees all of these contradictions and conflicts. No legislation or government policies can stop it; only a radically new socioeconomic system can end this insane omnicidal and ecocidal system. Anything resembling actual democratic governance can not exist within neoliberal Austrian School economic structures.

If we don’t find a new way of managing our affairs, civilization will end and its death will make the Irish Potato Famine look like a picnic.

In the 1800s, as Britain became the world's most powerful industrial empire, Ireland starved. The Great Famine fractured long-held assumptions about political economy and 'civilisation', threatening disorder in Britain. Ireland was a laboratory for empire, shaping British ideas about colonisation, population, ecology and work.

In Rot, Padraic Scanlan reinterprets the history of this time and the result is a revelatory account of Ireland's Great Famine. In the first half of the nineteenth century, nowhere in Europe - or the world - did the working poor depend as completely on potatoes as in Ireland. To many British observers, potatoes were evidence of a lack of modernity among the Irish. However, Ireland before the famine more closely resembled capitalism's future than its past. While poverty before and during the Great Famine was often blamed on Irish backwardness, it did in fact stem from the British Empire's embrace of modern capitalism.

Uncovering the disaster's roots in Britain's deep imperial faith in markets and capitalism, Rot reshapes our understanding of the Famine and its tragic legacy.

Do Nothing for Forest Frustration

I appreciate the work you do. However, please allow me to express my frustration. Sadly, the words expressed at the podium, despite being inspirational at times, have a hollow, sucking sound. I have read a library of books (including books by the speakers on stage) about our predicament, solutions to our problems, and better ways to conduct our business. We have more experts on what's wrong with our world than ever before and plenty of people with solutions.

The American dream has always been a fantasy despite the wealth the USA has generated since its founding, wealth created through violence, exploitation, and ecocide. All colonial and imperial powers throughout history have contributed to the destruction of life.

What kind of creators are we?

Overshoot, ecocide, omnicide, neocolonialism, imperialism, inequality, global heating, etc., are results of our species's unique abilities to use tools to exploit Nature and compete with each other for power, status, and control of resources. Rehashing the same old orations will not inspire domesticated and pacified people addicted to technology, entertainment, and supernormal stimuli who are energy blind, materials blind, Great Nature blind, stocks and flows blind, systems thinking blind, besieged by mysterious egregores, meme machines, false narratives, constant flows of propaganda, marketing, public relations messaging, and lies to sacrifice an hour a week for vague notions of movements that consistently fail.

The wealthy, powerful elite whose dark tetrad psychology and addiction to the Seven Deadly Sins designed, structured, and legally coded the system—its capital. The powerful elite own and operate our socioeconomic and political systems and regularly kill to maintain and keep them. This has been so since the dawn of civilization. The reactionaries know this; they understand power.

Concerned citizens audit "the conversations," read books, and get on with their business, or struggle to survive another day, but that is not enough.

If more than one percent of U.S. Americans want to build another socioeconomic system fit for posterity, they will have to fight and die for it. If we are too weak to act, circumstances, the most efficacious dictator will determine what's next.

Global fossil-fueled financialized modern industrial capitalism is a self-terminating system; it will collapse, destroying billions of lives while committing ecocide until its inevitable destructive end. Only exercising our will allows us to prepare for collapse and decide what's next.

You can not reform an omnicidal pathological system; it must be destroyed and replaced with something else, something very few people can even imagine, much less adopt. We are true believers. It's easier to believe than to learn; learning requires hard, disciplined work and sacrifice.

We are not in control of the narrative; even if we were, few would do the work necessary to create a new way of managing things. Talk is cheap, and billionaires control the narrative. Chris Hedges knows that believers cling to wilful ignorance to fit in and haven't the wherewithal or energy to entertain alternatives. People are trained to fear and hate alternative ways of living. Look at the past two hundred years of history; haphazard and even organized resistance is constantly and violently put down, and despite our victories, things are more volatile, dangerous, and destructive than ever. Contemplate our ongoing polycrisis; it does not indicate progress, enlightenment, or a reflection of the better angels of our Nature. We can't reform the system.

Can we convince people to use less energy and consume less? Can we talk about degrowth? Can we discuss alternative kinds of growth in the mainstream media? Noam Chomsky encouraged us for decades by pointing out our relative freedoms and good fortune. To what end? Are we better off?

Science, engineering, and technology have progressed, but what of our hearts and minds? What happened to our imagination? Must everything be commodified?

The Democratic National Committee and the Republican National Committee? Read "On the Abolition of All Political Parties" by Simone Weil.

I want to know what we replace global rapacious capitalism with. Would it be "A Simpler Way," a la Ted Trainer? How do we maintain a healthy ecosystem at our current consumption and energy use scale? We can't. We haven't even begun to address energy use. Who knows what Jevons Paradox is? Only a handful of us care. Who reads Vaclav Smel or pays attention to Howard T. Odum, William R. Catton Jr., Charles A. S. Hall, or Bill Rees? What became of The Club of Rome's efforts?

"Posterity doesn't vote, and doesn't exert much influence in the marketplace. So the living go on stealing from their descendants." —William R. Catton Jr.

How many generations will it take for people under more ideal circumstances to evolve into wise creatures capable of learning from and respecting Great Nature? Nature has all the answers.

So, how shall we manage things? How shall we live and be? Can we convince people that epistemic rigor, critical thinking, wisdom, and love are more important than diversions, competition, and unquestioning belief? What way of life will replace markets, capital on capital returns, usury, and rent-seeking?

People who are accustomed to consuming fantasy have little faith in Reality. A reality-based, science-based, evidence-based, nature-centric culture founded on moral principles, life-based ethics, compassion, and love of life; what organization is creating that, and are its supporters willing to die for it? Life begets life. Life depends on complex living systems. Who understands thermodynamics? Even if billions of us understood, are we willing to sacrifice for posterity?

We are more comfortable listening to speeches and discussing what's wrong with the world. Modern Techno-Industrial Capitalism has the capacity to kill everything. Look up "TESCREAL." The Elites don't respect Nature or Life; they'd, instead, turn us into machines or send us to heaven.

Show us how we should live that's fit for life and posterity and how we can sell the project to billions of people worldwide. Show us how to organize and fight. Be honest about what we must sacrifice for a radically different way of managing our affairs.

Skilled folks,

Colonize U.S.,

Don't criticize U.S.