The Great Simplification

I have pointed out several of Nate Hagens' videos and some of his other work in the past, and I was critical of some of his ideas last year. Since then, his videos have been increasingly impressive; especially the series of Great Simplification videos he has done. The Great Simplification - Full Movie, which just came out last week, is really great AND not too long, at less than 33 minutes! I like the fact that he doesn't go into hopium or attempt to predict an overly optimistic outcome. Perhaps he has begun to realize that things aren't really getting better and that some dark clouds have begin to appear on the horizon? I agree with him that human society doesn't HAVE to go the way of the dodo, but certain outcomes have already been baked into the set of predicaments we now face as a result of our past behavior and I don't yet see any massive change of behavior which would result in a better outcome. 

One of the great qualities of this new video is how it explains not only WHERE we are as a species, but HOW we arrived at this point. It goes into WHO and WHAT we are as a species, and WHY we behave and make the choices we make. It really pinpoints why we suffer from a predicament with an outcome and not a problem with a solution. It doesn't offer false hope or a fairy tale ending where everything turns out great at the end. It instead provides the true reality of where we are and the obstacles keeping us from reducing the harm of ecological overshoot. 

Hagens frequently points out how most of society is "energy blind" and this is concomitant with a lack of comprehension of the difference between problems and predicaments and that the master predicament we face, ecological overshoot, caused by technology use, is the root cause of all the other symptom predicaments (climate change, pollution loading, ocean acidification, SLR [Sea Level Rise], loss of the cryosphere, species and biodiversity loss, etc.) which most people ARE at least somewhat familiar with. This video shows the connection between all of these and the hope behind it is to spur interest in reducing ecological overshoot, which will inevitably lead to reductions in severity of the symptom predicaments.

I think that most of the reductions of ecological overshoot will probably come from dieoff, the inevitable crash society will experience as catabolic collapse of industrial civilization deepens. Reductions of ecological overshoot COULD be accomplished by reducing technology use, but this doesn't currently seem like something that would be accepted by society, so reductions of technology use will probably happen according to nature's rules - as energy and resources to power it disappear, technology will slowly also die. 

I truly think that the absolute best ideas about what to do regarding the predicaments we face is to remain as flexible and resilient and fearless as possible. I have spent a great deal of time focused on the predicaments in an effort to explain them so others can understand why there is no real solution to the predicaments (in other words, we cannot think in terms of how the system works in today's world; we must think of how the system will operate in tomorrow's world). This tends to create an atmosphere of fear in anyone who hasn't already been exposed to these facts, and fear is natural but not generally helpful for the most part. We must stop thinking in terms of how to create or obtain more of anything (such as more electricity or more energy or more material items that aren't actual needs), but instead focus on obtaining or creating only what we really need (not what we want). In addition to this, we need to present positive ideas on how to accomplish these tasks in a sustainable manner (to the greatest extent possible). How did we obtain water and food before the industrial revolution? How did we transport waste products or deal with it? How did we provide heat in the winter? Knowing that some of these issues such as climate change are predicaments helps us to keep realistic goals in mind and not fantasy fairy tales which cannot actually be attained. Simply redefining what our goals of life are and what life is really all about is what is required. Once we have redefined our lives, our expectations will follow suit. Right now, most of society has unrealistic goals and expectations. While the new reality may be depressing at first, the truth is that what is coming will most likely be much better for our mental health. 

Problem solving and critical thinking are desperately needed qualities in today's society. A friend says that having the ability to debate with those we do not agree with is an excellent skill to have and also something that is clearly lacking here in the United States. Focusing on what is important and leaving the nonsense (technological dependencies fit into this category) behind will also be extremely important. That which cannot be maintained won't be of much use. These are a few of the qualities which will be desperately needed in the new world unfolding before us. These are just some of the tidbits of knowledge of this series that Hagens has produced and I think these videos are definitely worth the time; especially for those who haven't already been exposed to the reality of our upcoming impasse. 

The Great Simplification is a great series to explore and discover what I point out routinely - that civilization itself is unsustainable and collapse has already begun. I hope Nate will continue interviewing guests and then sharing these with us. I realize that only people interested in these issues will probably take the time to investigate and learn from them, but perhaps as time moves forward, more folks will realize the truth in this series and possibly help create a new awareness within society.