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Blogging around 12.03.09

by Paula | 3 December 2009 | permalink | comments [1]
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I normally can’t stand the Archdruid but last week he made a good point:

…the statisticians of some imaginary Bureau of Honest Figures might sort things out something like this:

The gross primary product or GPP might be the value of all unprocessed natural products at the moment they enter the economy – oil as it reaches the wellhead, coal as it leaves the mine, grain as it tumbles into the silo, and so on – minus all the costs incurred in drilling, mining, growing, and so on. (Those belong to the secondary economy.)

The gross secondary product or GSP might be the value of all goods and services in the economy, except for raw materials from nature and financial goods and services.

The gross tertiary product or GTP might be the value of all financial goods and services, and all money or money equivalents, produced by the economy.

He goes on to state that, “the chance that any such statistical scheme will be adopted in the United States under current political and social arrangements is effectively nonexistent.” Yep. However, there’s no reason these can’t be calculated at all. Lots of people have econometric know-how. I think the Oil Drum puts forth a good model for open-source stats calculations, how about a similar blog dedicated to econometrics? The Gross Domestic Blog, anyone?

Back in November, Gregor asked:

As I’m quite interested in energy transition more generally, the electrification of transport, and also the reintegration of agriculture into cites, I find the work of MIT’s SENSEable City Lab quite compelling. The social and economic question I have, however, is who will capture the savings from continued advances in efficiency? Will benefits accrue to city government budgets and city dwellers, or, to those who own the Big Data? Or will it be shared?

Astute readers will note this is fundamentally the same question Catherine Austin Fitts asked back in the 90s — and she ended up being hunted across the country by thugs for her audacity. Her Solari business model would optimize local efficiencies to the benefit of absolutely everyone involved: local residents, global investors, Solari staff and officers. I’m still all doe-eyed over Solari. ‹insert little floating hearts here.›

Here’s some doomer pr0n from the Denver Post.

Martin attempts to answer George Monbiot’s question: why is climate change denial spreading?

There seems to be a megatrend signalling that the emergence of the modern connected man is accompanied by a decreasing belief in truths which is instead replaced by the more pragmatic and quick concept of truthiness — the kind of truths you don’t look up in books but search your guts to know if they are true!

I would add that media manipulation by uberfunded denial-based and so-called “intelligent design” organizations also plays a very strong role. ‹cue up Glenn Beck tears here.›

comments

1. Just a quick word of congrats on your blog as a source of good info and interesting reading. Sorry not to have tuned in before. Glad to have caught you just as you have returned. Keep it up!

   — Joseph · 3 December 2009, 13:36 · #

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