Customer Reviews

The Crash Course: The Unsustainable Future Of Our Economy, Energy, And Environment

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There are a limited number of good books that cover this very important topic - the relationship between population size, resource scarcity, and the competition that ensues from this struggle. And when this "struggle for existence" is tied together with major advances in medicine and relative world peace; the effect has been low fertility rates in democratic countries, people living much longer lives, and an unprecedented world wide population surge. Without what had been the traditional population checks in place (war, disease, and famine) the consequences will be devastating. The first person to have achieved any understanding of, and notoriety for articulating, this reality was Rev. Thomas Malthus with his, An Essay on the Principle of Population (Oxford World's Classics). And that was first published in 1798! The complete and total lack of those in political power to develop mechanisms to deal with this problem is the single greatest tragedy to befall the civilized world. Now, I simply said that to say this: Chris Martenson's book, The Crash Course, is the best book pertaining to this dilemma I have ever (yes, ever) read - and the most important book published since Garrett Hardin's, Living within Limits: Ecology, Economics, and Population Taboos, or Jared Diamond's, Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed: Revised Edition. I believe this for two primary reasons. First, everything I read in this book is factually accurate, sincerely delivered, and vitally important. Secondly, and what is honestly more important, the presentation is magnificent. Perhaps it is from Dr. Martenson's experience with developing the material, and making presentations over the years, but as Randy Olsen pointed out in, Don't Be Such a Scientist: Talking Substance in an Age of Style, presentation is (practically) everything. Here are some great quotes (from just the first twenty pages!):

- "In truth, our predicament goes far deeper than even these recent, disquieting economic events might suggest. It's time to face the facts: A dangerous convergence of unsustainable trends in the economy, energy, and the environment will make the "twenty-teens" one of the most challenging decades ever. The Crash Course explains this predicament and provides sufficient context to support the idea that it is well past time to begin preparing for a very different future."

- "The big story is this: The world has physical limits that we are already encountering, but our economy operates as if no physical limits exist. Our economy requires growth. I don't mean that growth is "required" as if it's written in a legal document somewhere, but it is "required" in the sense that our economy only functions well when it's growing. With growth, jobs are created and debts can be serviced. Without growth, jobs, opportunities, and the ability to repay past debts simply and mysteriously disappear, causing pain and confusion...It is only when we assemble the challenges we find in the economy, energy, and the environment - which I call "the three E's" - into one spot that we can fully appreciate the true dimensions of our predicament. The next 20 years are going to be shaped by fundamental resource scarcity in ways that we have never experienced in history. The developed world is entering this race economically handicapped, with no one to blame but itself."

- "The mission of this book is larger than helping people build more resilience into their lives and portfolios. At our current pace, we are on track to leave behind more than a few predicaments for our children, as part of a substantially degraded world with fewer opportunities than we ourselves were granted. If we make the right choices from this point forward, we have the opportunity to leave a very different legacy. This is what The Crash Course is about - helping us to individually and collectively understand that our choices matter significantly and that the time to make the right choices is running dangerously short."

- "We cannot beat around the bush on this "third-rail" topic any longer: We need to stabilize world population at a level that can be sustained. If we don't, then nature will do it for us, and not pleasantly, either. This means stabilizing world population in perpetuity, not only for a little while longer. We may not know what this stable level is just yet, and more study is certainly needed, especially in light of declining energy resources. But we should do everything we can to avoid badly overshooting the number of humans that can be sustainably supported on our planet while carelessly avoiding an examination of the role of petroleum in supporting those populations." (actually, this quote came from page 253)

- "To me, a world worth inheriting is one where the inhabitants are living within their economic and natural budgets. It is a stable world where people and businesses can plan for the future because they can trust what will be there when they arrive. It is a world in which the brittle architecture of our just-in-time food systems and businesses is replaced by robust, sustainable, locally focused operations. In this world worth inheriting, communities take on more responsibility for their destinies, and stronger and more fulfilling relationships develop among neighbors."

In sum, this book is a must-read for anyone who cares one iota about their own future. Everything everyone needs to know is in this one book. I really could go on-and-on extolling the benefits and advantages of this book - compared to others - but I won't. Some people just won't be convinced...and that's really their problem. I know that may sound harsh, but the fact is: it's time to get serious. Some further evidence can be found in: Nafeez Ahmed's, A User's Guide to the Crisis of Civilisation: And How to Save it, Ellen Brown's, Web of Debt, or John Greer's, The Long Descent: A User's Guide to the End of the Industrial Age.

This is a truly exceptional book. The author does an amazing job of explaining our economic problems in a clear, concise, easy to understand, and interesting way. Most importantly, you will learn why, with our debt based monetary system, hyperinflation is inevitable.

The author of this book has also made a 3 hour video of The Crash Course that is a condensed version of the book. It, too, is excellent. This DVD is available from Amazon or you can view if for free on the author's website, ChrisMartenson.com . Of course, it's not possible for a 3 hour video to contain nearly as much information as the book. So, if you really want to be fully informed, you should read the book. However, while you are waiting for it to arrive in the mail, you can get a terrific overview by watching the DVD.

Basically, The Crash Course (book or DVD), in a very compelling way, makes two fundamental points. First, that our present rate of consumption of oil, when correlated against an increasing world population and increasing demand from the industrialization of third world countries, is simply not sustainable. In fact, it appears that we are currently at the precipice of there not being enough oil to meet the demand. And, when we go over the cliff, our standard of living will be diminished overnight. (Imagine having to spend 50 to 70% of your income on food and gasoline.)

The second fundamental point made by the Crash Course is that our debt based monetary system must inevitably end with hyperinflation. The reason is that each year, enough new currency must be created to pay the interest on all of the previously created debt. As a result, there is an exponential increase in the money supply. It is like putting money in a savings account and letting the interest continue to compound year after year. For many years, your bank balance grows very slowly. But, you ultimately come to a point where even though the rate of interest is small, it is increasing your bank balance by amazingly large amounts each year. The author illustrates this with a graph shaped like a hockey stick. Well, it turns out that on this front, we are again at a precipice. In 2010, our government created more debt than the TOTAL of all the debt created in our history. In other words, we are on the verge of a financial Armageddon.

The author makes a compelling case for why the above outcomes are inevitable. And, based on the shortsightedness of our leaders, he is probably right. We've known about our problem of dependence on foreign oil for forty years and we haven't done anything significant to deal with it. However, I believe that there are technological solutions already in existence that would solve this problem. Unfortunately, it's not likely that we will employ any of them until AFTER the proverbial crap hits the fan.

With respect to the problem of having a debt based monetary system; the solution is not only simple, but proven. Change the system to a non-debt based monetary system and use non-debt created money to pay off the debt. Andrew Jackson did this and he not only balanced the budget, he also paid off 100% of the national debt. So, what do I mean by changing to a non-debt based monetary system? I'm talking about abolishing the Federal Reserve System and returning the power to create money to the Treasury Department where it belongs.

A complete understanding of the Federal Reserve System and why it is at the root of our economic problems is essential to a complete understanding of our economic problems. In this regard, The Crash Course falls a little short. This is not a criticism because, to fully explain this subject matter, another book is required. In this regard, I can recommend some excellent sources.

The Money Masters is very good video on this subject. It is available from Amazon or you can view it on YouTube.com by entering the title in the search bar. As for books, I recommend "The Creature from Jyklell Island" by G. Edward Griffin which is the most comprehensive book I've found on this subject. I can also recommend "End The Fed" by Congressman Ron Paul. This book does an excellent job of summarizing all of the moral, ethical, legal, and practical reasons for ending the Federal Reserve System. Last, and most important, is a book called The Naked Capitalist by W. Cleon Skousen. This book reveals the motives of the owners of the world's central banks and how they hope to wipe out the middle class and create a one world government. (I know, I know... This sounds like crazy conspiracy talk. Just take a look at this book's reviews and I think you will want to read it.)

First of all, I loved this book. In my opinion, it is the best book on World problems since The Long Emergency written by James Howard Kuntsler. Actually it is better. For one, it is more comprehensive. The author goes way beyond energy and then he ties all of the problems together at the end of the book. Secondly, he supports his analysis with many charts and statistics which I find speak to me in a whole different way than narrative.

The amazing thing is that as a society, we are standing on the edge of a cliff about to fall off, we know it, but for some reason, we just do not have the will to do anything about it so far. We are not even having a national dialogue. Our leaders are aware of the problems but I guess they look back at President Carter who lost the next election after he said: finding new energy is the moral equivalent of war. I hope we wake up in time to tackle these issues because the alternatives are not good. That is the core subject of the well written and entertaining book.

Around 2005/2006 I began thinking something was just not quite right with the economy and energy so I started reading everything I could find on the subjects. In about 2006, I read 'The Long Emergency' by Kunstler. It was an eye opener dealing specifically with peak oil and how it will affect us all. I read quite a few other books and articles too. 'The Road to Olduvai', 'The Coming Economic Collapse', 'Twilight in the Desert', and Matt Savinar's 'The Oil Age Is Over'. All of these publications are excellent in their own right. I also read and listened to a great many other news stories and opinions that were offered on the subjects. However, I came away feeling that each addressed only a portion of the problems that I was witnessing. It was almost as if the economists, energy experts and environmentalists were wearing blinders. They only addressed their particular specialty and never tied anything together.

In mid 2008 I found Chris Martenson's online presentation called 'The Crash Course'. He hadn't yet completed the entire work and so I waited anxiously as each subsequent chapter/unit of the presentation was published online. The entire presentation was like a breath of fresh air. He did not try to overwhelm his audience with his grasp of the subject matter by using a plethora of 'million dollar words'. He clearly stated how 'The 3 E's' (Energy, Economy and Environment) were intricately related and how they could not be compartmentalized.

The 'Crash Course' book picks up where the presentation ends. This is not a 'doomer' book but instead is positive. It apolitically sets out in a concise manner why we are where we are today. It is clear and easy to understand. It is a must read for those that want to know how and why energy, the economy and the environment converge to bring us to our current state. Even more, the book includes an entire section called 'What Should I Do?' which addresses what we can do to become more resilient and how this can be a very positive step. An outstanding book which I highly recommend.

You can save yourself alot of time by going to Chris' website and watching the Crash Course video series, but my hunch is that you will be right back here on Amazon buying this book. The reason is that the information in both the video series and the book are critical in developing the skills to navigate the next twenty years.

Martenson puts alot of emphasis on the fact that the next twenty years will be completely unlike the last twenty years. That's it. That doesn't seem like such a bold prediction until you dig through the pages and read as Martenson outlines the convergence of the three enormous predicaments that have no viable solution. Those three predicaments are called the three E's; Economy, Energy, and the Environment.

I read many books on the topics of Peak Oil, modern economics, and environmental unsustainablity (I'm the life of the party, I know) but no other book weaves these three topics together as well as Martenson. A good comparison to this book would be Thomas Homer-Dixons 'The Upside of Down', a truly phenomenal book and a must read but yet Homer-Dixon fails to capture the big picture in quite the same way as Martenson.

Probably most inspiring about this book is that there seems to be a practical everyman solution outlined in The Crash Course that doesn't leave you agonizing in despair. Many other books I have read leave you with a sense of hopelessness or steer you in the direction of getting involved with your local electorate (please shoot me now! that is not a solution, that is a cop-out half-arsed solution).

One strike against this book is that there is a lack of examining one chapter long real world examples that I typically like. An example would be to include a thorough examination of a just-in-time delivery system to point out Martensons notion that highly complex systems are fragile and are prone to unpredictable behavior. I also think if Martenson were to write a second book I would hope that he travels beyond the walls of his office to write it to give the reader a sense of excitement (afterall, that is why we read, to escape and learn!).

But I can't give this book anything less than five stars because the info is so valuable and nobody should mistake this book for anything other than a MUST READ.

I am not an economics minded person (or at least I wasn't). Reading Chris Martenson was probably the biggest eye opening experience in my adult life. Finding out that Santa Claus was really my parents as a kid is the only thing that compares. Please note this IS NOT a whack-job conspiracy theory book, if that's what you're after look elsewhere. If you want to know what's really going on, get it and read it.

As someone who has lived the good life for 73 years, living off the fat of the land acquired by earlier generations of capitalists, it is hard to face the undeniable truths so clearly explained in THE CRASH COURSE. But Chris' conversational style and sense of humor draw me on from chapter to chapter of crucial information so carefully synthesized. I would love to see it as the backbone of high school and college courses aiming to truly prepare young people for the future they have inherited. We who have messed it up surely have a responsibility to help them understand their predicament and learn how to prepare themselves for a very different future.

I own many books, very few are on a special shelf, and this is one. The hard part of reading this book is not jumping from on chapter to another. It is a smorgasbord
of useful thinking that can help all understand what is around the next turn of world events. Does it give you a step-by-step guide? No it does not, it does provide understanding that contains your fears. I had been reading Mr. Chris Martenson wisdom before this book and it has help me make solid decisions that lets me sleep better at night.
The one chapter that explains the difference between a problem and a situation will remain with me for the rest of my life. My best investment of the year.

Chris Martenson's new book "The Crash Course" is a much needed up to the minute savvy addition to writings that have been describing for over 40 years the intersecting demographics of population growth versus the human carrying capacity of Planet Earth.

One of the early harbingers of this trend, Donella Meadows et al in Limits to Growth (1972), were harshly lambasted for raising the idea that the consequences of a rapidly growing world population and finite resource supplies was a worthy subject of study for choosing paths to the future that could have been different than where we are today. Other worthy works that I admire and recommend include Lester Brown's Plan B and updates, the current book being Plan B 4.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization (Substantially Revised) and his most recent work World on the Edge: How to Prevent Environmental and Economic Collapse. Another excellent book is the Post Carbon Institute's The Post Carbon Reader: Managing the 21st Century's Sustainability Crises which includes a chapter by Chris Martenson written last year.

My review title, like Chris's book, is intended to offer hope for the future rather than doom and gloom, despite the fact that doom and gloom is certainly upon us. The worst part of doom and gloom is your state of mind. Helplessness is not a viable option. We have work to do and "The Crash Course" gives you a great action plan.

My wife and I have been preparing for the future described in Chris's book since the early 1980's when we purchased a small farm and learned the basics of growing and preserving our own food and tending livestock. When our four "farm hands" all graduated from high school we moved on from the farm to developing other self-sufficiency skills. Five years ago we purchased our second small farm and have learned to live completely off grid for the past four years. Today we are building a highly energy efficient small house at the farm which will be totally self-sufficient for water, solar electricity and heat from thermal solar. We will indulge our zero fossil fuel footprint with a little propane for cooking gas, but can get by just fine without it if we must.

We changed our minds over 20 years ago that our "retirement" would be totally different from our parents. My mother has lived her retirement in an Arizona golf course development playing golf four or more times per week and taking several lenghty ocean cruises around the world each year. I don't think there will be that many Baby Boomers like me who will be doing the same in the next 20 years? When I attempt to communicate with my mother about the here and now and the not too distant future, she refuses meaningful conversation. "I don't want to talk about this, Ronnie!" She thinks we have gone off the deep end. And we have!!!

Chris's book is intended to help you survive and prosper while going off the deep end because the deep end is where you need to be. And, you need to be creating a like minded community of family, friends and neighbors with mutual interests and skill and resource sharing. One of the things that is certain in my opinion is that the most important resources available to you will be local resources.

What we are doing at [...] and with our business [...] is creating a viable alternative for our children, grandchildren, our community and for anyone else who wants advice or assistance. Read "The Crash Course" and also visit Chris's website at [...] for daily news and information.

The world is changing. I want your world and my world to change for the better.

Ron Castle

PS TO THE PUBLISHER: Another major publisher error pricing the Kindle version of this book above $10. I have the hard copy, which provides significantly less profit to all involved in the book distribution. $14 for the Kindle version is a ripoff. Get your head out of the printing press and smell the digital world. Even though Amazon dings you 30% for the Kindle version, $7 revenue for the ebook is more than twice what you are profiting from the paper version? Stupid is forever, but ignorance can be fixed.

This book was recommended to me by a Finnish friend who knows a lot about sustainability. "There is a website called the Crash Course," he said, "just visit that and you learn everything you need to know". Actually the website is called chrismartenson.com, but it doesn't matter. You can watch the Crash Course there as a video (it is free) and then decide whether you also want to read the book.

Chris Martenson writes on the fields of economics, energy and the environment. The main thesis of this book is that we are on a unsustainable trajectory based on the assumption of infinite growth, but that the world is a finite place with finite natural resources that cannot sustain infinite growth. More importantly he argues that the peak use of natural resources is somewhere around now.

This book is very well written, concise, very accurate as far as I can see, carries in depth information, but also easy to understand for anyone without a background in either economics, energy or the environment. Many individual arguments and examples in the book have been developed earlier by others, but Martenson does an impressive job putting it all together and does give credits to others. Martenson has a financial background and that is where the book carries the most weight.

The main problem is that the book basically tells that infinite growth is not possible and that we are likely going into negative growth for the coming decades. It doesn't matter how well the arguments have been put together, that is a hard sell. In 30 years, Martenson and others communicating this message will probably be seen as stating the obvious. For now, Martenson choose to communicate a difficult message. On the pleasant side of things, I took a Finnish wodka when I finished the book, this was at least as good as the book but not to be compared.