Farming Ourselves to Extinction: The Great Tulip Uprising of 1822

For years I have marvelled at the sight of flame-red tulips returning faithfully each March right at the edge of the sea cliff my hideous block of flats is built on. Who planted these tulips here? I’ve asked my neighbours and tried to trace the history of the place, but never got anywhere with my … Continue reading Farming Ourselves to Extinction: The Great Tulip Uprising of 1822

Finding Meaning in An Increasingly Absurd World

Although society at large will never find the courage to acknowledge its existential descent, there is a growing unspoken feeling that something is fundamentally wrong with “The World”: it has simply stopped making sense. Today I pose the question: did it ever make sense? Many try to rationalise today’s state of the world as a … Continue reading Finding Meaning in An Increasingly Absurd World

Lifecycle of a Swasticar

Elon’s Swasticars did not become fascist overnight. They were all along part of a system which breeds fascism and green fairy tales in order to boost profits and keep fattening the oligarchs.  Replacing fossil fuel-powered cars with electric vehicles addresses neither traffic congestion nor carbon emissions.  Electric vehicles enter the market as brand new cars … Continue reading Lifecycle of a Swasticar

The Biggest Tariff of Them All

In my book In the Grip of Necrocapitalism I introduce the concept of conflict as a narrative for civilisation.  Throughout human history we have viewed the world as a series of conflicts rather than mutually beneficial collaborations between humans and other species:  an unprovoked conflict with nature, an unprovoked conflict with other humans, and a … Continue reading The Biggest Tariff of Them All

Invisible Dystopias

A dystopia is what happens to a civilisation when it has stopped paying attention to reality.  Then again, when were civilisations ever self-aware?   However real the climate crisis may get, escapism into the Mind Prison will always get the better out of humans.  By the time thousands perish daily, there will be too much hunger, … Continue reading Invisible Dystopias

Earthconomics 101: There Is a Killer on the Loose

The reason Earth’s economy never endures boom-and-bust cycles is that everything in nature is reusable: someone's trash becomes someone else's food, on a planet where it is impossible for an ecosystem to ever go bankrupt. The remarkable feat of 10 million species coexisting in a small planet has only been possible because Earth long ago … Continue reading Earthconomics 101: There Is a Killer on the Loose

In The Age of Infinite Consumer Choice, The Only Choice is Collapse

I was asked during an interview by an American institution what choices do we have in the current environment: Trump, fascism, etc.  As a determinist, I don't believe choice exists.  It doesn't mean we shouldn't fight for choice, but the chances of avoiding the inevitable demise of humans are slim to none.  The US political … Continue reading In The Age of Infinite Consumer Choice, The Only Choice is Collapse

The Extinction Tariff

The economic war between US and Canada, Mexico or China is only the fine script in the much wider economic war taking place between a bankrupt humanity on one hand, and an equally bankrupt Earth on the other.  The real war of tariffs is taking place between two much less known economies: the human Ponzi … Continue reading The Extinction Tariff

Live Fast, Die Young: The Great Procrastination

The short-term nature of this civilisation is evident in its short-term economic system: impulse buying, instant gratification, single-use commodities and single-use natural resources are all manifestations of a mindset that systematically ignores long-term repercussions.  Our psychological coping mechanisms and addictions seek short term relief in unhealthy foods, drugs, and habits that make us feel good … Continue reading Live Fast, Die Young: The Great Procrastination

The Biggest, Oldest Economy In The World Is Burning

With any economy, the faster you grow and expand, the sooner you die, just like an obesity patient.  There is, however, one economy in the world who has got it right.  It neither grows nor dies, and actually manages to stay the same, or at least it did, until recently.  It is the oldest economy … Continue reading The Biggest, Oldest Economy In The World Is Burning