Cuba Mandates 'Extreme' Cuts to Solve Energy Crisis

[Jason M. Hendler]

Cuba Mandates 'Extreme' Cuts to Solve Energy Crisis

Link

I stated years ago that commodities like oil and other minerals subsidize the existance of governments that otherwise could not stand. Turns out that Cuba's communist regime has been propped up by the USSR and now Venezuela through oil imports. As fossil fuels wane, these governments will face pressure to deliver a prosperous lifestyle through some other means.

[omnimoeish]

Very interesting point. It will be interesting to see what happens in the US as we are by far and away the most oil dependent for our lifestyle, combine that with the utter retardation of our government during the last several years and there's bound to be some changes. The changes will be argued about whether they should come in tax cuts, or more entitlement programs, and I think I can safely guess that most people will want entitlement programs still not realizing that nothing is free.

[Jason M. Hendler]

Originally Posted by omnimoeish

Very interesting point. It will be interesting to see what happens in the US as we are by far and away the most oil dependent for our lifestyle, combine that with the utter retardation of our government during the last several years and there's bound to be some changes. The changes will be argued about whether they should come in tax cuts, or more entitlement programs, and I think I can safely guess that most people will want entitlement programs still not realizing that nothing is free.

We've already hit a wall on entitlements. The Federal government and California face insurmountable liabilities and must cut their promises to remain solvent.

[Texas]

Cuba is a good example of a success story for what will happen when Peak Oil is acknowledged (I feel it’s already here but not acknowledged due to reduced demand)

Please watch the following YouTube video on how Cuba was able to survive the crushing reduction of oil supply when the Soviet Union collapsed:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7i6roVB5MI

I heard the average weight loss of a Cuban citizen was around 20 lbs but they made it though. They gathered their communities and started to farm wherever they could.

Today, they have a heath care system better than ours! Grow their own food and their energy use is but a fraction of what us American's use (per capita).

It's funny that Jason thinks Cuba is a complete failure. Just wait for what is going to happen when we finally admit that we have a major energy crisis (Peak Oil). It's not going to be pretty, folks. I hope we can pull though as well as Cuba did.

If you listen to the doomsayers, we are not going to make it anywhere near as well as Cuba managed. Firstly, they were not that dependent on petroleum energy for survival as we are. If it's cut, we are in a much more difficult situation. Anyone even know how to grow enough food for their family? Those that do prepare are going to be overrun by people that didn't prepare.

While I do forecast at least a decade of hardships that might seem unbelievable, I think we will evenly hit that bottom and crawl our way back to a very high standard of living. It will be though the use of sustainable and renewable life strategies. Not just technology but even the way our financial systems work and how we manage populations, etc. Yeast cannot grow in a vat of sugar forever!

[Jason M. Hendler]

Texas,

Glad you've finally admitted your love and admiration for communism - admitting the problem is the first step towards a cure.

You are absolutely correct that those who create provisions for themselves will be looted. When producers are looted, production ceases.

Population will only ever be controlled by disease, war, industrialization and the destruction of the family unit.

[Texas]

Originally Posted by Jason M. Hendler

Texas,

Glad you've finally admitted your love and admiration for communism - admitting the problem is the first step towards a cure.

You are absolutely correct that those who create provisions for themselves will be looted. When producers are looted, production ceases.

Population will only ever be controlled by disease, war, industrialization and the destruction of the family unit.

Easy there Jason, wouldn't want our free and open government to start an investigation. Oh, you didn't know they did that?

Just because a country does some things correctly and figured out how to deal with a crisis does not mean an endorsement of their political system. In fact, the government gave up much of it's control and the communities took care of themselves. You didn't even watch the video, did you?

It's a shame people close their eyes, ears and mouths for fear of finding out things that might conflict with their beliefs. We better learn to evolve past these primitive physiological states before we start launching thermonuclear weapons at each other. Thank goodness MAD brings the fear of self-destruction into the equation. I bet quite a few fingers were near those big red buttons more than once, only to be held back due to feelings of self preservation.

[Jason M. Hendler]

Texas,

.. And there we come to the crux of it. Diminishing resources and competition are going to cause evolution and revolution in countries and cultures. We will see subSaharan cultures fail, whether their native population change / grow or are displaced / die is TBD (the infection rate of HIV in South Africa is 20%, you can thank the greater availability of AIDS drugs for surpassing critical mass on their way to collapse). Nonviable government structures will collapse. Medvedev is calling for a cultural change in Russia to end corruption (black markets, mafia) yet they still jail their most successful entrepreneurs.

It will all work itself out, but as it stands, Frank Herbert is right - Islam will eventually dominate humanity.

[Geronimo]

Originally Posted by Jason M. Hendler

Cuba Mandates 'Extreme' Cuts to Solve Energy Crisis

Link

I stated years ago that commodities like oil and other minerals subsidize the existance of governments that otherwise could not stand. Turns out that Cuba's communist regime has been propped up by the USSR and now Venezuela through oil imports. As fossil fuels wane, these governments will face pressure to deliver a prosperous lifestyle through some other means.

Are you saying Japan would fall if the US did not guarantee its oil supplies ? Yeah, I heard something about that when I was in Japan... And the European Union is getting increasingly nervous about Russia propping up their governments with natural gas supplies - with economic power, comes political demands.

As to Cuba, they must be salivating thinking ahead to all that oil that will soon be produced in their waters:
http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest%...04-177708.html

Wed, Nov 04, 2009
AFP
HAVANA - Cuba and Russia signed an agreement Monday to allow Russian state oil company Zarubezhneft to explore for and produce oil in Cuba in their first post-Soviet oil pact.
"The contracts that were signed are tremendously important for Russia and Cuba, since they will guarantee cooperation over the next 25 years," said Nikolai Brunich, a Zarubezhneft official after inking the deal with the head of Cuba's state oil company Cubapetroleo (CUPET), Fidel Rivero.

Cuban authorities announced in October 2008 that Cuba had crude reserves of 21 billion barrels - more than double previous estimates.

An oil importer that relies heavily on oil-rich Venezuela for economic and political support, Cuba's communist regime would be able to sustain itself indefinitely if it were to become energy independent.

At least seven foreign companies - from Spain, India, Norway, Malaysia, Vietnam, Venezuela and Brazil - are currently working in the zone under contract. US firms are sidelined by the US economic embargo on Cuba, in place since 1962.

Huh, 21 billion barrels of oil - that's the same reserves the U.S. has. And Cuba only has 11 million people, about the same as Ohio. I bet Ohio would love to implement some extreme cuts for a few years, if that would be followed with 21 billion barrels of oil coming online soon.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/18/cuban-oil

Cuba's unexpected arrival into the big oil league could increase pressure on the next administration to loosen the embargo to let US oil companies participate in the bonanza and reduce US dependency on the middle east, said Jones. "Up until now the embargo did not really impact on us in a substantive, strategic way. Oil is different. It's something we need and want."

So much for the embargo against the evil Communists, once the oil comes online...

[Jason M. Hendler]

Geronimo,

You are correct. Cuba's new found wealth will sustain the Castro regime into the next generation.

Hopefully, the West will have transitioned to domestically produced alternative energy and fuels.

[omnimoeish]

Originally Posted by Geronimo

So much for the embargo against the evil Communists, once the oil comes online...

At this point, it's not the 1960's anymore. Communism isn't really threatening us, least of all Cuba. China...yeah, but for economic and environmental reasons. With China buying up all of the oil around Africa, the middle east and Russia, we'd better hope we can get all the oil we can if we want to survive peak oil without a complete economic melt down.