Highstreet
Member
- Joined
- Nov 6, 2007
- Messages
- 1,786
Yes, Hubbert predicted peak oil in 1956 as occurring between 1965 and 1970. Didn't happen. This is just a small example of extrapolations that ignore future technology, just like the world-wide famines and mass starvation predicted by Malthus in the previous century.
I am not an optimist. The economic future looks extremely dim, but not because the world is running out of oil. It is because we (the U.S.) are simply consuming and spending more than we are producing and the global credit cards are almost maxed out.
It did happen in 1971, here in the States, just as he said.
It has already happened in the World. It doesn't mean we are running out, it means we have to live with a little bit less each year. This will just keep driving prices higher and eventually affect demand by creating recessions. We are already in a Recession, so that may slacken our demand for a while. We shall see.
Alternatives like Coal, wind and solar will become more and more competitive, but will never be able to fill the shoes for Transportation.