Over at Chiasm, John Atkinson reveals his true feelings for that annoying peak oil guy...

James "Clusterfuck" Howard Kunstler, "one of peak oil's bigger showmen," has been busy getting as much press as possible before "The Long Emergency" gets moved over to the 'classic science fiction' bookshelf in a few years. His cartoonish apocalyptica would be just ignorable if it weren't for all the genuinely misanthropic, hateful venom and oblivious self-righteousness with which he delivers his sermons, which make him just about as insufferable as any other fundamentalist nutjob...

Mr. Atkinson has been gifted with an admirable clarity of expression. He was very pleased to discover some similar thoughts over at Crumb Trail.

It's been amusing to watch pseudo-environmentalists tip-toeing around the crushingly stupid work of Howard Kunstler. Those with broken socio-political readers and a profound lack of techno-social knowledge have endorsed Kunstler (see Grist interview). Others with better sense cautiously distance themselves, trying to find a place upwind of the stench while remaining nominally a member of the herd (not a pack). Some fellows have the knowledge and self-confidence to call a spade a freaking shovel.

Crumb Trail is a product of Gary Jones, who also blogs at Muck and Mystery. Both blogs are very fine, especially if you're looking for informed and sardonic environmental commentary. I particularly liked his post on terra preta soil. Plus, any man who describes Paul Ehrlich as a "politicized pseudo-environmental wanker" is well on his way to free beers in my book.

Mr. Jones in turn points us toward a post at The Ergosphere which takes exception to the Kunstlerian vision.

The problem with Kunstler's thesis is that you don't even have to look to fiction to find the counterexamples. For one thing, we're not going to quit using oil if we really need it; we can make it. Nazi Germany had industrial coal-to-liquids plants over sixty years ago, and apartheid South Africa kept the technology alive while dealing with oil embargoes...

I'm indebted to The Ergosphere for introducing me to a delightful concept in transport which was totally new to me.

It's the Blade Runner, a railroad and truck combo. Apparently, the idea has been kicking around for decades in one unworkable version or another, but various groups of innovators think they may now have reasonable solutions.

This has been done before but has been heavy, complicated and expensive because of attempts to drive the rail wheels. The Silvertip dual mode does not do this. The driving and braking power comes from the road-mode tyres still contacting the rails.

Weight sharing between rail and road wheels is automatically varied according to the power transmission needs. Only light rubber-tyre contact is needed for normal motion because the rolling resistance on rail is a fifth of that on road much less power needed, so there is also less consumption of fuel.

For acceleration or braking more weight is transferred to the tyres. That speeds scheduling, as less time is spent accelerating from stops. Moreover, regular stopping distance is more than halved because of the enhanced grip. Emergency stopping distance could be cut by about 75 per cent, representing a veritable leap in ability to avoid rail collision.

How anyone can look around at this modern world and not feel just the tiniest bit encouraged is beyond me. But then, lots of people lack historical perspective. Kunstler's idea of the good life would probably involve sitting on the front porch of an evening, knocking back corn liquor and strumming on the old banjo.

Hey, that's fine as far as it goes, but looking at the big picture, is it really enough? The ecotopian vision has long struck me as lacking ambition.

I wrote a couple of posts not too long ago that emphasized the diversity of interests to be found in our society, and the role that enthusiasts play in fostering innovation. I believe the term plenitude was mentioned. I think we're heading for a world with more options, not fewer.

Play your damn banjos. Other people have their own notions of fun.

Rand Simberg links to a project that seems tailor made to illustrate my point.

Considering the short operational life of the aircraft in an already lost cause, the popularity of the Me 262 has endured with surprising fervor.

Still, despite the obvious interest, none of these planes have taken to the skies in well over 50 years...The few originals (less than 10 worldwide) that still exist are now cloistered in museums, never to fly again. They are so rare and so valuable that to risk them in their natural element is considered by many to be nothing short of foolhardy...

The Me 262 Project was launched in 1993 with a single objective: to reproduce flying examples of the legendary Me 262...

Great pains are being taken to produce aircraft which are not simply replicas...Virtually rivet for rivet, the new aircraft are duplicates of the original Me 262. With the ability to examine and copy components from a vintage source, the standard of authenticity has been exactingly maintained.

Of course, the original design suffered from some well-known weaknesses, most notably dealing with the engines and landing gear systems. These areas were studied carefully, and certain subtle modifications have been directed for operator safety and reliability. A cursory visual inspection would never reveal them, however...

In essence, the new Me 262s are simply representative of a natural evolution of the airframe. They are being manufactured using many of the same techniques as the originals...The only noteworthy concession will be in the area of engine selection.

Clearly, an engine change was necessary to make this project viable, as the original Jumo 004B powerplants were decidedly temperamental and prone to frequent failure...the General Electric J-85 / CJ-610 was selected as the replacement for the vintage Jumo powerplants.

Thanks to an innovative engine mounting concept, the J-85s are to be buried deep inside carefully-engineered castings of the original engine, so that correct visual appearance will be retained. The Jumo housings are also necessary to maintain the correct nacelle weight since the J-85 is a much lighter engine than its German predecessor.

Here's their FAQ page and image gallery.

Western civilization has been a fountain of innovation (relative to others) for over a millenium.

Often it's been forward looking innovation, the sometimes maligned notion of "progress", but it works backward just as well. In the fields of conservation, preservation, the collation and protection of rare artifacts and knowledge, the West has traditionally excelled.

Viking longships, Greek triremes, Drake's Golden Hind, the Swedish warship Vasa, all have been the subject of reconstruction or restoration projects in their time.

Wonderful, isn't it? Reassuring too. A civilization that can afford such pleasant frivolities is not even close to the edge of sustainability...