I think the argument in Ishmael is poppycock, but at the same time, it is absolutely true. I contradict myself with comfortable impunity, for I don’t chew raw leaves like our primate brethren.

Yes, we are different because we cook and have evolved Monsanto. Collapse also argues that food supply is an factor in the survival of civilizations, and like Ishmael, if the food runs out… population shrinks. But nobody sees shrinking populations as a good thing. People talk about the replacement birth rate of the United States as if it was a national security matter.

While it may be an important thing to keep the economy going by keeping the consumers coming, but what about long term (long term as in hundreds of years) sustainability? Why the hell doesn’t anybody in policy or government circles think about this?

The easy answer to my own question is that the structure of our society and government prevents that kind of thinking. Votes are cast for the peacock with the brightest tail, not the smartest brain.