Chapter 15 - Playing Chicken with the Apocalypse

We seem to read quite a bit of Mark Sumner, which is just fine since he has a humorous, albeit rough around the edges, style of writing. If nothing else he knows how to hold a readers attention to an otherwise droll topic. His rambling about the PBS show Connections did seem a bit unnecessary to supporting his point though. I found the discussion about how the phrase ""tipping point" has replaced "the straw that broke the camels back" in our vocabulary" interesting because the expressions always seemed so interchangeable; however, "tipping point" does seem to have a more catastrophic tone/impact. Based on gladwells book though it appears that the verdict is still out on whether the "tipping point" constitutes a major event or it can be a series of smaller, significant events. The focus, for the purpose of this chapter, is the limited availability (and continually declining) of cheap energy. Sumner makes very strong statements about the effects of a lack of cheap energy. Sumner states that "People and institutions will not surrender their lives or their comforts willingly, and certainly not peacefully" and these wants are dependent upon the availability of cheap energy and "Cheap energy is going to end." My favorite line in the chapter is to "Live like their is a tommorrow" bvecause I truly believe that so many people live recklessly. Not in the traditional way but in the sense that Sumner refers to of not respecting and preserving resources in a way that protects our society.