The End of Cheap Oil and The Rise of The Scythe

Run time: 07:51 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVv597m848s   Posted on YouTube: November 04, 2007 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: August 03, 2008 By DU Member: balantz Views on DU: 871

 

Love the Gandhi quote: "... time will come when we curse ourselves ..." so, so, sadly true, every second of our lives, with every obsolete behavior we repeat, which is by far MOST of our behaviors, and we are soooooo completely unaware of our own self-loathing, a truly Cthulu-enchanted culture, come to this point in time in which we glorify Death as the only way to give meaning to what we call life.

i.e. take us back 120 years or so.

What is the labor cost of doing the entire wheat (or other grain) crop with human power?

plow and disc the field (even with a horse or other draft animal).

plant the seeds... no fertilizer except what you disc in (horse manure).

hope for decent rainfall (or spend even more human and draft animal energy to irrigate the fields).

harvest (only one step of which was shown in the video).

separate the grain from the chaff, grind the grain into flour.

make the dough, again all by hand.

bake the bread (using what for heat source, wood?)

transport to market by horse drawn wagon.

Now do it for a population of 6.5 billion.

Think the price of a loaf of bread is high now? Try it without oil or other forms of power.

(btw, I grew up on a farm in Kansas. Every summer I would work cutting weeds out of soybean fields by walking the rows with a hand machete. It's killer work. The entire field must be done in less than 2 weeks (otherwise new weeds will appear and spoil the soybeans when combined). You start at 6am and work until past sundown. 90 or 100 degrees and your upper body is completely exposed, from the shoulders down, it's like a jungle and you have to hack your way through it. Bugs, snakes, and small rodents are everywhere. you must wear a long sleeve shirt and drink an enormous amount of water. I got paid $200 for 8 acres. It's something that only people who are young and strong can do... which is one primary reason why 150 years ago, people didn't live that long. Does anyone really want to go back? I don't.)

The times they are a changing, again.

We must balance with machines and human interaction.

It is very calming to watch and listen to the young lady's activity in this video. She exudes a calmness and a great strength. She seems quite competent and sure of herself. She is one with the Earth she caresses. Her labor brings forth direct reward from the great Earth, no middle-man involved here.

I'm familiar with making this kind of a living. It can be hard, but also rewarding. It can also be very meditative.

Do we really need a petroleum based economy?

Clearing scotchbroom, de-stoning the plot.

Huge garden going in next year. Chickens coming, goat research underway.

Nature's own lawn mower.

Goats == goodness.

Freinds for life, them goats.

Wow! I am speechless! I have NEVER worked that hard in my life!!! I work out hard in a gym but you see what you should be doing instead watching that powerhouse woman! A productive end to a workout (food!) and a hard body! I feel like a hamster in the gym...I guess the old ways are best.