i think of our energy problem like skimming a flat stone across water

first there is a big bounce, then the bounces decrease until the stone loses all it energy and sinks without trace

yes there’s a lot of oil still in the ground, but whereas 100 years ago we got 100 barrels worth of energy back for every barrel we expended to get it, now we are down to 20 barrels or much less for every barrel we expend. (They are the best wells) Tarsands return only 6 :1 or less

that is the critical situation we face, and the one which we refuse to accept

our growth (the skimming stone) can go on forever, according to political promises

they correctly point out how much oil is still in the ground (and coal) but fail to mention the cost of getting hold of it.

Our current level of prosperity is sustained by debt, borrowing money on the promise of all that oil as collateral. That thinking is coloured by our past 100:1 returns.

Those days are over.

No fracked wells actually make money, only conventional wells make money. But because money has nowhere to go, it is poured into fracking in the hope of turning a profit in the future

Which it will not do

When the finance pot is finally empty, the oil economic system will cease to function.

But for the moment fuel pumps still work and supermarkets are still full.