Futurist-Author James Howard Kunstler

Warren Edward Pollock interviews and has an open talk with leading author James Howard Kunstler. We are at a cultural moment where we are incapable or understanding reality. We are in a massive cultural denial. We must be sensitive to the hardships we are moving towards so we can make better choices. We are going to be dragged kicking and screaming to our destination. Technology Narcissism and Organizational Grandiosity are both movements of denial of what resides in the future paradigm. The hallmarks are denial the inability to tell the truth to ourselves are unfortunate symptoms of our times. We have a highly integrated economy with most of our activity reliant on cheap energy availability and inputs. The public has been bombarded by propaganda aimed at the voting public but biased to vested interests trying strenuously to loot and gather other peoples money for speculation. We are entering a period where we are going to have investment capital scarcities. Investment capital will be very scarce. Its going to become impossible to develop a technological solution set. Risk in our society has been wrongly priced.. I talk about oil being the collateral of the reserve currency which requires sea empire. We just don't want to know. There is a physical world and the monetary constructs are just a construct and esoteric layer. Complex systems we depend upon will break in the future and we see that process underway. Under these stresses all our systems are destabilizing at the same time with the money and banking system proving to be the most fragile complex system because its the most abstract. The Long Emergency and the Witches of Hebron talk about a world without a steady energy input. With MF Global we have a physical world effect due to monetary breakdown. I talk about the North Korean failed idea or Juche "Self Reliance in Depravation," comprehensive anticipatory design science and ephemeralization, or breakdown crisis. We debate the idea of technological advantage and disadvantage. What is a job? What is necessary for life support? How many people (and workers) are needed today? Will we see a great reset (the long emergency) which will kill off lots of people as we migrate into a low functioning society in the Witches of Hebron? There will be a great deal of human attrition with the Soviet Collapse being illustrative of the process. We talk about the reduction of population in Russia (and reduced life expectancy) as background noise in life. Disease starvation and a slow death will take the population down. Perhaps Dmitry Orlov is correct regarding the process of society collapse. James suggests that we will not see policy or protocol to correct the condition of earth being over its life-support capacity.

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[kileer7]

Great job Warren. I'm sorry that you're being attacked for your views. It's really a shame.

[wepollock]

@kileer7 James and I had a great time; we continued on talking offline for about an hour. I don't need everyone to align to my viewpoints. I simply need to gather elements that complete a story-puzzle. The only thing I find curious is that early in JHK made a statement on conspiracy theorists; those frozen in that mindset just could not consider all the other elements in the story. The fact people are frozen in narrow mindset is the disappointment.

[ChezKritta]

Excellent Kunstler interview!

That was the best interview of JHK I have seen. Way to dig below the surface that most hosts don't venture into. I don't know if you follow Chris Martenson, but I would (and I'm sure your subscribers would as well) love to hear you interview him. I think he has the best grip on where we are headed, (not including you of course.)

You are doing a great public service my friend! Keep it up.

[wepollock]

@ChezKritta Please send Chris an Email in that regard..

[YouSayYouWantA]

@freeunitedusa If you listen to the end Kunstler takes responsibility for destroying the world for the next generation instead of blaming it on a small group of war profiteers as you would do.

[cfpup]

Brilliant!!!  But I am still going to shout from the highest treetop about overpopulations. . . :-)

[publicme]

Why aren't you repeating the worries expressed by Malthus that we are destined to run out of resources and that we can't deal with population growth. He has been proven entirely wrong. When prophesy fails they just delay the day or reckoning. Here, they maybe be you.

[NovusChaoMundi]

@NovusChaoMundi Statistically stupid

[NovusChaoMundi]

Sum it up the majority of the human population is stupid

[trainluvr]

Well done my men!

[1x93cm]

Maximum denial- I always wondered what life and people were like during the last days of the roman empire...

now i know

[NovusChaoMundi]

The FED is pushing down the long end of the bond rates by buying them up and controlling the yields.

[NovusChaoMundi]

Awesome interview JHK knows where were going

[mcgrawtim123]

Great interview. I agree with Mr. Kunstler that the future is in small towns and local access to the communities' needs.

[kileer7]

The extent to which humans can gather resources for their own use depends on their geographical reach. Think about that for a moment.