As we lose faith in politicians and democracy, Dominic Sandbrook in the Daily Wail sketches out a possible scenario for 2012, relying loosely on 1932 has his historical model.

"The experience of 1932 provides a desperately valuable lesson" he writes. "As a result of the decisions taken in those 12 short months, millions of people later lost their lives". Today, he continues, "on the brink of a new year that could well prove the most frightening in living memory, we can only pray that our history takes a very different path".

The thesis thus set out is intriguing, and not dissimilar to the scenario posited by this blog, where we have been warning for several years that the necessary outcome of the decay in democratic governance would be violence.

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I agree, in the long term the problems with the euro will be turn out to be far more devastating to individuals than energy supply issues. However, they will play out over a long period and, therefore, not be immediately apparent nor will they occur to everybody at the same time. One good example of this would be underfunded pension schemes. Electricity, or the lack of it, is immediately apparent and, as you rightly state, we are far more dependent upon it than we were the last time we had power cuts (yes, I am old enough to remember that). As to whether it will bring people out on to the streets remains to be seen. I am cynical but I can think of no one thing that is more likely to jolt people into action than repeated power cuts.
Is it just my cynicism or are smart meters being introduced so that power cuts can be restricted to domestic premises?

Other way round ... they will keep the domestic lights on ... and the supermarkets functioning ... that way you keep the people fed and off the streets.

But in phase two, it does mean that there can be rolling cuts, and/or rationing. The latter will be interesting ... people being set quotas, which have the effect of cuts, but you won't get whole streets blacked out.

I noted the other day on Farcebook that for the 1st time I had seen Open Cycle Gas Turbines, (OCGT,) in use on the NETA site.
These very inefficient power sources are there purely because they can be ramped up to full power within 15 minutes, thus covering for the vagaries of wind.
How long can this continue?

EDIT:

They've been used again in the last 24 hours!

The lunacy of the EU is readily displayed in the following example.

The US and EU want to increase sanctions against the Iranian Central Bank. Thus the main Iranian main export - oil - is likely to increase in price. Who in Europe is now relying on Iranian Oil?

Step forward, Greece. As other countries now refuse to deal with Greece, it is now surviving on Iranian Oil.

Then we get the news that Petrolplus are closing three of its five Greek refineries due to the banks freezing a $1bn revolving loan facility used to buy its crude supplies. The ECB will prop up failed banks but not viable business with real impact on the populace. And thus it will first hit the Greeks badly, and then spread further into Europe.

So if more refineries in Europe close due to higher crude prices and closed lines of credit, and the lights start going out, then all bets are off.

Heh. We've got you beat over here on the west side of the Pond. Detroit is a prime example of your ungovernable degraded sections of society that have ceased to function. Many more like that around the country. And California is rapidly approaching the same destination. Yet still our politicians on BOTH sides of the aisle pursue the same end state. The Republicans, at least MOST of them, merely want to arrive there slightly later.

Of course, our Media as yours is enthusiastically behind the Big Government goals as well, so when they aren't hyping Dancing with the Stars or Jersey Shore, they spew their world view as "news". However much they must embellish it and censor reporting to make it appear credible.

As you rightly point out large scale electricity shortages will have a major effect. But don't fall into the trap of assuming the internet will always be available. The events of earlier this year in Eygpt show that it can be shut down very quickly if a government so decrees. I don't believe for one minute that "our lot" wouldn't try this in extremes, and they already have the means to curtail mobile phone usage, in localised areas.

Alternative 'net connections were quickly established in Eygpt, but could only carry a tiny fraction of the normal traffic. They also had the ability to set up point to point WiFi links across borders that we, as an island, don't. Methinks having a satellite broadband setup with an ISP in a different EU country would be a good move if things do start going downhill... And my satellite TV system with a steerable dish will be useful to see what is going on from a non UK viewpoint.

I like the idea of a virtual crowd. The crowd has finally moved to the cloud!

Of course, power cuts may drive people to the streets to get news, given that the internet will only be available whilst battery power survives. [p.s. This applies, a fortiori, if the latest, just posted, message applies about the gubmint closing down the internet!]

Please, dont mention buffhuhne again, i was enjoying my day till then!

It is interesting (and possibly even encouraging) to see lame street finally starting to discuss the full extent of our problems, including a tangential comparison between the present day situation and the Weimar republic.

But why does the whole point being made have to be undermined by the inclusion of so much guff?

To suggest that the Euro is the current equivalent of the gold standard is mindless. Is he unaware that you can't print gold?

Then we have: -

" . . . The difference is that in 1932, one of the greatest statesmen of the century, the Democratic politician Franklin D. Roosevelt, was waiting in the wings . . ."

FDR was personally responsible for an unprecedented elongation of the 1930s recession which would never have been titled the 'great depression' without his incredible and numerous statist/socialist policies, some of which (including the fixing of the price of milk) are still in place today.

If they want to be taken seriously, these people really should do their homework.

"The experience of 1932 provides a desperately valuable lesson" he writes. "As a result of the decisions taken in those 12 short months, millions of people later lost their lives". Today, he continues, "on the brink of a new year that could well prove the most frightening in living memory, we can only pray that our history takes a very different path".

That reminded me of a famous Woody Allen quotation:

“More than any other time in history, mankind faces a crossroads. One path leads to despair and utter hopelessness. The other, to total extinction. Let us pray we have the wisdom to choose correctly.”

Happy New Year, everyone!

Dr North said:-
Very true and what I would expect to actually happen.
However, there is a large and increasing dissatisfied underclass who would be ready to rumble against the State and the Police.

The first riots would just kick orff as angry riots and grand scale looting as we saw in the summer, but if the police do actually start to use plastic bullets and appear to be arming them selves with real weapons, things might just kick off big time all over the place.
For instance, A riot ensues, it starts going out of control and reinforcements are drafted in from elsewhere, this removal of police from one area to another will be an invitation to kick off a riot in the place where reinforcements were taken from.
Things could then go national and with the government reacting by closing down the internet and cell phone system the events could tend to spiral out of control.

Your analysis is rather good given the imponderables Dr North. Though I hold to the opinion that apathy has ceased to matter to the political classes: The only surprise is that the "elections" con has held up for so long.

My own view is the "Act of Registration" is what matters to these corporate puppets.

Registration. An act demanded by our government. So what do we get?

Register your car? Well ok, but by doing so you are reduced to a mere keeper who enjoys mere beneficial use of something you once paid for and owned. Registering a car places upon you the onerous burdens required by the state in return for the states' infinite bounty in permitting you to use the vehicle you purchased. Yes but the state requires by law that you fill in and return the new 'keeper' shackles? Does'nt it?

Well yes. But what you say on the form is up to you.

Registration is one of the states major cons: Whether you are registering your car or your child, you are giving up your rights to the state. That is how the state is able to crush your car, or steal your child.

I think that a revolution is likely to take the form of using the states rackets against it. Foisted upon their own petard.

There are currently hundreds of motivated men and women working hard deconstructing centuries of state mischief and the legislation laid down to permit theft from and of the people.We are largely governed by trickery and the dodgy use of constructive trusts. Now the people must stop watching TV and learn.

O/T but Newt Gingrich has dumped uber warmist Katharine Hayhoe, after much pressure from Marc Morano, Steve Goddard and me.

Katharine has a history of being , shall we say, economical with the truth.

This is a good place to start.

http://notalotofpeopleknowthat.wordpres ... s-drought/

Happy New Year to Richard and all you guys!

If I may, Harry............hoist with.