Undermining the dogma of growth
June 12th, 2007 by Jim JustKurt Cobb writes that the peak oil movement has been focused mainly on selling a new narrative to the public without first dislodging the existing one. As long as people have faith in the existing official story about achieving American “energy independence†within the framework of a cornucopian future, it will be almost impossible to sell them on another story no matter how carefully constructed and supported. A coherent alternative narrative is not needed in order to discredit an official account. All one needs is a relentless attack on the credibility of the official story. The challenge isn’t to convince people that we have a problem with oil. People know we have a problem with oil. The challenge is to convince them that we don’t have the solutions—at least not ones that will allow us to go on living the way we are now. It is not necessary to demolish every single argument supporting a seamless transition to a cornucopian future. It is only necessary to begin by calling into question some of those arguments in order to start the process of undermining the official story. Questions lead to more questions which lead to openness to an alternative narrative about the future of society and the planet. Fortunately, the peak oil movement does have a coherent alternative narrative about the direction society should go, and that narrative is complete with action plans. That narrative generally includes emphasis on efficiency; conservation; relocalization of nearly every aspect of our lives; genuinely sustainable energy sources such as wind and solar; public transportation; compact development; redevelopment of cities; small-scale, low-input agriculture; and many other specifics.