It's quite interesting that our system of democracy and the need for a mandate actually works against us being able to take decisive action in this area.
Politicians are in the business for the most part to either achieve or retain power, and that involves a fairly short-sighted agenda with lots of pork barrelling at election time.
I seem to recall reading that centuries ago the Japanese realised that if they kept chopping down the forests they would be doomed. So,in very wise and far-sighted example of environmental stewardship, strict laws were decreed against deforestation.

*People outbreed their resources and overexploit their environment, so living conditions tend to get worse over time.*

Divergence, you summed it up in a nutshell.

*When people become desperate enough, they try to drive off or kill their neighbours to take what they have*

I agree once again. The veneer of society is pretty thin, when
hard times hit, eveyone focuses on no.1 and family.

Squeer's Kumbaya politics are all very idealistic, but thats not
how the real world functions, just look at human history, or
the history of other species, for that matter. We are not above
nature. I started on about this in the 70s, everyone laughed about
overpopulation. Many still do. Fair enough, humanity will learn
the hard way.

This notion of self sacrifice and leading by example is all very
romantic, but I have news for Squeers. The Chinese, the Arabs and
most of the rest of the world in fact, really don't care what
Australia thinks.

SBS showed an interesting genetics programme about wolves and
dogs. They tried to raise wolf puppies as dogs in various
human households. It was a dismal failure. Wolf pups reverted
to their instincts, no matter how much the environment was
changed, or attempts to teach them were tried.

So it is with human history, when it comes down to survival.
Kumbaya politics is not going to change that

Come off it, Yabby,

I've been playing the hard-boiled spoiler! I don't think for one minute the measures I recommend are going to come off. I was countering Ludwig's optimism, remember? Humanity seems bent on learning all its lessons the hard way--ad nauseam.
I'm with Forrest Gumpp, we're all going to have to learn how to dance. The cha cha might be a bit hard on my arthritic hip, though..
..what about a nice Pride of Erin?

* I don't think for one minute the measures I recommend are going to come off.*

Fair enough Squeers. I always did think that you kind of make it
up, as you go along.

Mind you, I love the term "Kumbaya politics". It hit me whilst
responding to your post. OLO is loaded with it and the term might
even catch on one day!

Half-truths continue to rain down, like pennies from Kevin, as to the onset of peak oil and what that will mean for Australians.



The first half of the remainder of popnperish' quote is of course likely to be true if we do what we think we see our politicians doing, to wit either nothing or deliberately to hide the truth from ourselves.

"Squeers is right on peak oil
- it will be highly disruptive as
our economy is so dependent on it."

However, the second part of the quote, to wit:

"So what we will need is a contraction
of population numbers (hopefully slowly)
as the economy contracts and shifts over
to renewables.";

threatens to lead us up the garden path. It is misleading because, but shut down the migration program and stop the boats, we, in Australia, will immediately be in the nirvana of a slowly contracting population. But to focus on the locus of our own population is to lose sight of the main game. There exist six billion potential tributaries to the coffers of our hegemony that we are at risk of viewing as a problem, rather than an opportunity for profit!



Just who's Industrial Revolution was it, anyway?



Winston Churchill would have known. It was that of the English-speaking Peoples'! There are residual intellectual property rights in that Revolution, and who better to claim those outstanding royalties from the six billion occupiers of space worldwide than Australians? Those outstanding dues are not called 'royalties' for nothing. They are so called because, industrially speaking, Australia has a king, an old one, called Coal.

From out of the merry old soul of Old King Coal can be made to flow oil, oil by the billion barrel full, out of its home under the Simpson Desert! Homer Simpson's revenge, the lurker in Pedirka, courtesy of innovation by Fischer und Tropsch: CTL! Just think. Goodbye 'Peak Oil' for the land of Oz, and, under the goad of the rationing of conditional exports of value-added hydrocarbon product, goodbye 'Climate Change' as six billion learn the Char Char.

Old King Coal is a merry old slob

He could provide the oilixir of life

For us Aussies he’d do the job...

And keep us all in terrible strife

.
He should stay in his earthly grave

We don’t need his oily mess

Give us power from sun, wind and wave

And relieve us of this fossil fuel stress