Collapse: What is it? Can we avoid it? When it does occur, how can we best respond to it?

by Geoffrey Chia

This essay was written in April 2012 when Geoffrey Chia had given up any hope that systematic transformation of the GIMME establishment was possible and therefore became convinced that collapse was guaranteed (but had not yet come to grips with NTHE). His despair was summarised in these words: “In the past I was naive enough to think that if we used rational evidence-based argument to engage the wider public and the government with these issues, that it would be possible to effect change. Arguably my misplaced faith in the goodwill and good sense of humanity can now be regarded as a foolish notion, justification for a misanthropic viewpoint if ever there was one.”

Instead of talking about “stages of collapse” in the manner of Orlov, he categorised collapse as follows: “we can roughly grade the degrees of collapse according to the spectrum (narrow or broad), the duration (short, medium or long term) and the geographic extent (regional, national or global)”

Collapse will occur to different extents over different time periods in different locations but with the same long term ultimate global result — total collapse of all centralised service provision — everywhere, permanently.

View pdf here

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Trailer-A Man Named Guy from Pauline Schneider on Vimeo.

Support the making of Pauline Schneider’s film here
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Interview from about a week ago: Climate Changed: Dr. Guy McPherson to share findings on hot button issue, Brian Lorraine for The Uniter (Winnipeg), 5 February 2014

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Dave Cohen joins the “shoot the messenger” club with a series of unsupported, ad hominem comments rooted in his fear of the future. Check out his latest incoherent ramblings here. There’s no need to comment: As he indicates, he won’t allow disagreement. In the spirit of John Michael Greer, he exerts strong control over the commentary. And, as of this morning, he’s revised the essay and terminated comments.