The End of Suburbia: Oil Depletion and Collapse of the American Dream

[powayseller]

Previews of the documentary.

“Since World War II North Americans have invested much of their newfound wealth in suburbia. It has promised a sense of space, affordability, family life and upward mobility. As the population of suburban sprawl has exploded in the past 50 years, so too has the suburban way of life become embedded in the American consciousness.

Suburbia, and all it promises, has become the American Dream.

But as we enter the 21st century, serious questions are beginning to emerge about the sustainability of this way of life.”

What will happen to Suburbia when oil prices climb again? How will our life change?

[FormerOwner]

I saw this movie about a year ago. I’m a firm believer in Peak Oil and this movie makes some scary but not unreasonable projections about what will happen within the next few decades. I think a lot of the people on this blog would really enjoy this movie.

One thing the movie doesn’t touch on, as I remember, is “petrodollar recycling”. I think this is really the #1 reason why the US invaded Iraq and may end up doing the same with Iran. Both have threatened to start trading oil in Euros instead of Dollars. We need the rest of the world to pay for oil with Dollars so that we can keep printing more Dollars without causing domestic inflation. Do a google search on “petrodollar recycling”.

I think anyone who cares about the future of our civilization would find “The End of Suburbia”, “An Inconvenient Truth”, and “Soylent Green” very thought provoking. “The Corporation” and “Manufacturing Consent” are two other movies I highly recommendend; they touch on the reasons why the general public is so blissfully unaware of how bad things really are economically and environmentally.

[FormerOwner]

Here’s a link relating to oil wars that I think is very thought provking (Iran hasn’t yet started trading oil in Euros to my knowledge but they are still planning to do so):
Petrodollar Warfare

Here’s one that gives some reaons why petrodollar recycling is important to keeping the US economy alive, with a good example:
“Japan needs to import oil for domestic use. To do so it must first acquire dollars, as the dollar is the only currency in which oil can be traded. To acquire these dollars, Japan must sell goods and services to the U.S. economy. The Japanese build a Honda to sell to the U.S. The U.S. federal reserve prints a certain amount of dollars and gives these to the Japanese in exchange for the Honda. The Japanese buy oil from Saudi Arabia using these dollars. The Saudis take the dollars and reinvest them in the Federal Reserve Bank of the U.S., and from then on they will only be used as a reserve currency. Therefore, all the U.S. had to do to acquire a Honda, was to print dollars. In essence, it has its very own money tree. The result of this is that the total debt of the United States is somewhere in the region of $8.4 trillion and increasing by $80 million per hour.”
Petrodollar Recycling

[Nancy_s soothsayer]

doublepost deleted

[Nancy_s soothsayer]

The Carlyle Group (sp?), a super mighty private equity pool, is currently buying up semiconductor makers. Semiconductors are the materials that make solar panels. Is this a coincidence?

[FormerOwner]

Solar, wind, and nuclear power seem like the only viable options to reduce our oil consumption. I guess coal is another one, if someone could find a way to burn coal cleanly; of course, we’d eventually run into something like “Peak Coal”. There have GOT to be some smart people with $ who are investing in these areas already.

It seems to me that reconstructing the energy and transportation infrastruture of the United States may be the only possible underpinning for the next “boom” in the economy. I’m not quite sure how it would work economically or technologically but I’m going to be thinking about it.

[powayseller]

Former Owner, thanks for the movie recommendations. I will check them out. There is another way Japan can get dollars to buy oil: currency exchange.

Another very important resource is water. Peter Schiff of Euro Pacific Capital has 2 water companies he’s recommending. The developing world needs lots of water. My friend’s husband is in sales for Siemens, selling water/sewer treatment equipment, and his business and sales are just booming in the Far East.

[barnaby33]

Darn it, I thought you were talking about Mad Max!

Josh

[VanMorrisonFan]

Bike Riding…

Maybe people will ride their bikes more. I am not saying that will solve the whole problem, but it is one step that could, believe it or not, help in some important ways. Many trips that people take today in their cars are relatively shot (5 miles or less from home) and they are driving alone in their cars. You can go five miles in a bike pretty quickly. Even a trip of 10-15 miles in heavy traffic is pretty slow in a car, simply because there are so many cars on the road.

In Holland about 25% of people use their bikes for regular commuting, and there are bike trails EVERYWHERE in the country.

More bike riding would reduce oil use, pollution, and traffic congestion, aside from having positive benefits for the health of individuals. Obesity is a growing problem (pardon the pun) especially among the young.

I’m amazed that over the last 20 years or so our average fuel economy has declined. This isn’t a plot on the part of oil companies or car companies. It’s what people want.

[poorgradstudent]

“What will happen to Suburbia when oil prices climb again? How will our life change?”

There will be demand for mass transit, and people will use it.

People with families will always like the suburbs and be willing to commute to live away from the city.

[PerryChase]

Ride their bikes? Are you kidding? People drive to get accross the shopping center — like from Pier 1 to Barnes & Noble accross the way.

Yes, in Holland people ride their bikes. The city is small and you can get accross town in no time. The Dutch also live in apartments, not houses.

It’s too bad because San Diego would be a great bike city only if the urban planning permitted it.

I hate to say it but I can’t imagine an American mother biking to go grocery shopping. How would she get all the giant packages home? If you travel overseas, you can always tell the American tourists by the giant drink bottles they carry with them.

[FormerOwner]

I would LOVE to ride my bike, walk, or use mass transit if it were possible and get rid of at least one of our cars. I walk places as much as I can but the other two options really don’t exist in my area. Most of this country (especially post WWII) was built for automobiles as the sole mode of transportation. Everyone wanted the house with the yard and didn’t want to get on a bus or train or sidewalk with any inner-city folk. Now we’re left with urban sprawl, gridlocked roads, and the looming threat of Peak Oil.

My sense is the the suburbs will have to be re-engineered in some way otherwise not many people will be able to live in them when oil gets to $100/bbl and traffic gridlock becomes paralyzing. Even if we all drive Priuses, the roads would still be gridlocked. I don’t have the answer to this, but some type of mass transit system for the suburbs seems inevitable. A lot of the problem with doing this is that, not only are houses spread out but so are jobs. Maybe some of the far flung office buildings will become vacant. I don’t know. I just feel strongly that we can’t go much farther with the post WWII mentality. Whatever the solutions are for this country’s energy and transit problems will form the basis for the next boom in the economy. It’s about the only thing that can.

By the way, if oil prices get high enough, big-box retailers like Wal-Mart, etc. will cease to exist due to the high transportation costs on both the stores’ and buyers’ ends. We would go back to more localized production and distribution. Things would cost more and we’d buy less junk we don’t need. I’m all for it. I’m hoping oil shoots up to $100-$200/bbl so that we can get rid of some of the excesses and distractions in our culture. It would reduce the trade deficit as well.

Wal-Mart doesn’t seem to care what happens to the buildings they occupy anyway:
Vacant Wal-Marts Litter America

[kicksavedave]

I heard a recent article on NPR that talked about the enormous investment in alternative fuels taking place. A good chunk of the money that had been pouring into the high tech sector in the decade from about 93 to 03, has moved into alternative fuels.

There is a patent on a car engine that burns hay, invented by some engineers in farmland. Their biggest concern for mass production is how to distribute the fuel to drivers.

Currently there is also in existence right now, a car that runs on water. It used the H in H2O, and it’s only emission is water, which drips from the tailpipe. It’s MPG on water is multiples ahead of fossil fuel engines. Refueling is as simple as pouring an 8oz bottle of water into a spout inside the cabin – you could travel across the country without ever exiting the car. Water is available anywhere. It’s patent owner is in talks with the major manufacturers to mass produce it, but that’s a way off in the future.

According to the article, there are no less than 20 different continuously reproducable fuels being tested for automobile engines, with various patents on some. Mass production and availability to the public is a ways off, but they should be here in time for when the last drop of oil is pumped from the ground. Obviously the closer we get to outrageous (unmanagable) oil prices, the more the emphasis on alternative fuels will grow. Gas-Electic Hybrids already crowd the streets and that trent will continuue. Future automobiles will most likely be “Water-Electic Hybrids” or some thing similar.

The main point is, we’re already addressing a solution to the impending oil crunch, and it won’t be bicycles. We’ll still have our monsterous SUVs, you just might have to shovel a bail of hay into them to get to the mall:)

[blahblahblah]

“Currently there is also in existence right now, a car that runs on water. It used the H in H2O, and it’s only emission is water, which drips from the tailpipe.”

Yes, it uses water as fuel and produces only water as exhaust as it propels you down the highway at 80mph. It’s parked right over there next to that perpetual motion machine.

[poorgradstudent]

I’ll grant that many “alternative” fuels do have potential, although most aren’t anywhere near being cost effective.

The United States has vast quantities of Oil Shale deposits. The extraction process is expensive, but if oil gets up to $100/barrel, it would become cost-effective. My point on this is that the rising cost of energy is likely to be incremental rather than sudden, as there are sources that can pick up the slack as the price of energy rises, at least in the short term.

I’m extremely skeptical of the “car that runs on water”. Somewhere you need a chemical reaction that gives off energy, usually by breaking bonds. My guess is they’d be trying to create Hydrogen gas (H2) and then break the hydrogen-hydrogen bond (which gives off energy – hydrogen gas’s flammability is why the Hindenburg exploded). But you’d have to put energy into the system to turn the water into hydrogen gas.

Also, it’s not like water is an unlimited resource… remember, we have a SHORTAGE of water here in Southern California.

[Author]

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