The Black Death

The politics of oil are even worse than the economics

Udo Keppler, “Next!” (1904). Via Library of Congress (LC-USZCN4–122).

Yes, the old black goo has given us a lot since they first scooped it up in western Pennsylvania in the 1860s and said, “Hey maybe we can sell this stuff”. It lit up our growing cities and gave the whales a break. It greased our gears and then, later, drove our cars and flew our airplanes. Having so much of it and being the first to exploit it…