Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Your Future: World Made By Hand

One of my favorite authors, James Howard Kunstler, has released his newest novel: World Made By Hand. He also wrote The Long Emergency, which I recommend highly.

I believe there are two types of people in this world - those who want to be amused and entertained and those who want actionable information to give them an edge in dealing with life as it is. I write for those grown-ups who want the whole truth so they can know what is likely coming. That way we can be prepared for the most likely scenarios. James Kunstler is someone worth listening to.

Kunstler's latest novel is no "light reading." It is heavy stuff, but believable if you are at all tuned in to the myriad catastrophes that are occuring everyday. If you can read between the lines of your daily news, you might have imagined a similar future. World Made By Hand only makes it more graphic and real.

When you put together the imminent potential of nuclear terrorism, a collapse of our economy due to the greed and arrogance of "the smartest people in the room," the end of American hegemony over the world, and therefor, the end of our preferred access to the magic elixir, oil, that makes our comfortable way of life possible, you'll get a glimpse of the future Kunstler envisions.

James Kunstler gives us the key to the puzzle of everyday events that brings the whole picture into focus. The trends that are in motion now, how they will interact to create dramatic changes in the near future. Like the illustrations that dare you to "Count the squirrels in this picture!", World Made By Hand will let you see the future that has been concealed in seeming random chaotic acts by separate actors.

Massive change can happen overnight, when tensions are released along fault lines that have endured pressure for centuries. Don't be caught unawares when it happens! I believe we are coming into an era of radical and unpleasant social/political/economic changes that have been stewing quietly for years. In hindsight, they will seem predictable, just as 9/11 does now.

If you want to find out where the juggernaut of world events is going so you can get out of the way, I urge you to read this book quickly. I did.

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