Saturday, October 08, 2005

Peak Oil Debunked: COLIN CAMPBELL criticised over racist remarks in ASPO newsletter: I've previously noticed how the British Nationalists seem to have jumped early onto the peakoil thesis. Perhaps they were there from the beginning. Its already clear that fascism will be a major challenge in the 21stC, perhaps as big a challenge as the energy crisis itself.

This is an example: "Here is our warning to you now. Those criminals, traitors, fools and fantasists that delay our rise to power will be treated as criminals when we [fascist party] take power. This Peak Oil situation will destroy our entire Nation and Western Civilisation unless the BNP are allowed to take power. The left and the liberals, the socialists and the environmentalists and the capitalists are all guilty of the same crime - of opposing the one part that can solve tis crisis , the one party that has the Wil and Vision to fight for our future.... You now have a clear choice - either join us or get out of our way. Our path to power is now clear before us.... You have one cance and one chance only. If you join us now we can forgive yo. Fight us and you will pay the price in the future.... The era of laxity and apathy is over - the Eraof Eco-Nationalism has begun. Repent your past and join with us or suffer punishment when the time comes for yor crimes."

When reading rants like this, one can never be sure that someone is not having a lend of you, but its probably safest to assume it is real.

5 comments:

Big Gav said...

Apparently a BNP member turned up to this year's ASPO conference in Scotland - it was noted he was a very unusual sight amonst the assorted oil industry, enviromentalist and leftist types who normally make up the attendees at these events.

http://www.energybulletin.net/5683.html

There is possibly a danger of fascists latching onto peak oil as an issue, though I tend to think there is a danger of fascism appearing regardless of peak oil - and if there is a crunch post peak we may be in for a dose of right wing authoritarianism which certainly wasn't generated by peak oilers.

JD has some weird agenda of his own pushing this idea and is probably best ignored...

Big Gav said...

I should note I thought that particular item in the ASPO newsletter sucked - but it didn't appear particularly racist and Colin Campbell himself is basically a "dieoff" believer, who thinks that society will collapse in the post peak era.

So misanthropic might be appropriate, but not fascist.

Bernard said...

gav, campbell's newsletter says:

"The scenario is: Immigration is banned. Unauthorised arrives are treated as criminals. Every woman is entitled to raise one healthy child. No religious or cultural exceptions can be made, but entitlements can be traded. Abortion or infanticide is compulsory if the fetus or baby proves to be handicapped (Darwinian selection weeds out the unfit). When, through old age, accident or disease, an individual becomes more of a burden than a benefit to society, his or her life is humanely ended. Voluntary euthanasia is legal and made easy. Imprisonment is rare, replaced by corporal punishment for lesser offences and painless capital punishment for greater."

To me, that inevitably involves racism, and is a kind of fascism bordering on Nazism. It says a lot about Campbell that he would publish such a thing in his newsletter.

JD makes some good points in his efforts to 'debunk' peakoil, but also has some unusual ideas, eg that the Iraq war is not about oil or that power can be generated from space and the moon. He also appears to be a nuclear and coal backer.

Big Gav said...

Well - I'm not going to defend the article because I was horrified by it, but I've read lots of Campbell's newsletters and he doesn't come off as a racist or fascist if you read his own writings so I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt - he's simply someone who believes the end of the world is coming (and showed bad judgement including that particular piece).

As for JD in general I don't think he's very credible on any level...

Bernard said...

gav, you may be right about JD. We'll see. I dont mind a contrary viewpoint if he has something to contribute. Certainly at the least he is right to raise the issue of crisis and fascism. This is something that will have to be closely monitored.