Will the US suffer the same fate as the Soviet Union? Author Dmitry Orlov thinks it might and that peak oil could play a pivotal role in it's fall.
The Nation and On The Earth ProductionsDmitry Orlov, engineer and author, warns that the US’s reliance on diminishing fuel supplies might be sending it down the same path the Soviet Union took before it collapsed.
In this fifth video in the series “Peak Oil and a Changing Climate” from The Nation and On The Earth Productions, Orlov, who was an eyewitness to the collapse of the Soviet Union, asserts that as oil becomes more expensive and scarcer, the US will no longer be able to finance its oil addiction and the economy will hit a wall.
“Sixty percent of all of our transportation fuels are imported—a lot of that is on credit. A large chunk of the trade deficit is actually in transportation fuels. When those stop arriving because of our inability to borrow more money, then the economy is at a standstill,” he says.
Go here to learn more about “Peak Oil and a Changing Climate,” and to see the other videos in the series.
—Sara Jerving
The NationTwitterFounded by abolitionists in 1865, The Nation has chronicled the breadth and depth of political and cultural life, from the debut of the telegraph to the rise of Twitter, serving as a critical, independent, and progressive voice in American journalism.
On The Earth ProductionsOn the Earth Productions (OTE) is a media production company that is dedicated to informing the public about important educational, environmental and political issues that affect our everyday lives. Our Educational Video Series is available from any library in the world through WorldCat.org. The series is housed at UW-Madison. The team at OTE is led by owner, Karen Rybold Chin.