Reinventing Collapse

Posted on 19 June 2017 by Dmitry Orlov

In the waning days of the American empire, we find ourselves mired in political crisis, with our foreign policy coming under sharp criticism and our economy in steep decline These trends mirror the experience of the Soviet Union in the early 1980s Reinventing Collapse examines the circumstances of the demise of the Soviet superpower and offers clear insights into how we might prepare for coming events.Rather than focusing on doom and gloom, Reinventing Collapse suggests that there is room for optimism if we focus our efforts on personal and cultural transformation With characteristic dry humor, Dmitry Orlov identifies three progressive stages of response to the looming crisis Mitigation alleviating the impact of the coming upheaval Adaptation adjusting to the reality of changed conditions Opportunity flourishing after the collapse He argues that by examining maladaptive parts of our common cultural baggage, we can survive, thrive, and discover meaningful and fulfilling lives, in spite of steadily deteriorating circumstances.This challenging yet inspiring work is a must read for anyone concerned about energy, geopolitics, international relations, and life in a post Peak Oil world.Dmitry Orlov was born in Leningrad and immigrated to the United States at the age of twelve He was an eyewitness to the Soviet collapse over several extended visits to his Russian homeland between the late eighties and mid nineties He is an engineer and a leading Peak Oil theorist whose writing is featured on such sites as www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net and www.powerswitch.org.uk. Best Read Books Reinventing Collapse by Dmitry Orlov – kino-fada.fr Dmitry Orlov has a distinctive voice I have heard it before it is an European voice, a voice that has seen big ideas and the empires founded upon them crumble into dust He reminds me of my fathers generation that left Europe after the war He reminds me especially of a Hungarian man I met at work It is world weary, cynical yet profound in its own way A perfect example is the 107 year old man that we encounter in Catch 22 ,OLD MAN IN WHOREHOUSE But I live like a sane one I was a fascist w Dmitry Orlov has a distinctive voice I have hea...One of the most influential books I ve ever read, VERY highly recommended to everyone I know and care about It describes what will likely unfold as the great empire of the US falls on its face, similar to how the USSR did in the late 80s, but with much less preparation in our case Shocking, disturbing, hilarious and actually heartening, in some ways I m looking forward to the low energy version of the USA.For an idea of the gist of this book, you can read a transcript of the author s presentat One of the most influential books I ve ever read, VERY highly recommended to everyone I know and care about It describes what will lik...Dmitry Orlov grew up in the Soviet Union USSR , before it collapsed and was reborn as the Russian Federation In the mid 70s he moved to the US On extended visits to his Leningrad home, he directly observed the unpleasant process of a powerful empire collapsing On later visits he observed how the Russians had adjusted to living in a post empire society It s very clear to him that America is also a rotting powerful empire socially, politically, economically We spend far too much on the mi Dmitry Orlov grew up in th...As Orlov states himself, his book is an exercise in imagination stretching Whatever degree of confidence you may have in the proposition that the economy and society of the USA will collapse soon, from zero most Americans to nearly 100 the author , a few sessions with this volume will assuredly lead you to think thi...I gave Dmitry Orlov s Reinventing Collapse one star out of five, but that could be too generous This book is not worth reading and should never have been published It s not about economic collapse as much as it is the author s argument that the US is inherently no better than the former Soviet Socialist Republic To say that Dmitry Orlov is pessimistic is such a gross understatement in scope and scale that it s almost not useful like saying the ocean is big or the sun is far The only thing D I gave Dmitry Orlov s Reinventing Collapse one star out of five, but that could be too generous This book is not worth reading and should never have been published It s not about economic collapse as much as it is the author s argument that the US is inherently no better than the former Soviet Socialist Republic To say that Dmitry Orlov is pessimistic is such a gross understatement in scope and scale that it s almost not useful like saying the ocean is big or the sun is far The only thing Dmitry has in greater abundance then pessimism is arrogance He makes Tom Friedman look like a humble friar His writing is so pessimistic and arrogant that it completely distracts from any useful point he may be trying to make This book contains numerous errors in logic Many issues are portrayed as black and white when the reality is farcomplicated He arrives at many conclusions which simply are not or cannot be explained And nothing is backed by evidence Take this passage for exa...Awesome Russians are badass Americans are screwed What s new Pass the home brewed vodka.Orlov wrote at the end that he had set out to write a serious book about the collapse of the American economy society in its present form that would be fun to read he succeeded He writes from the rare perspective of a person equally familiar with, and at home in, Russia and the U.S.In this book he describes in concrete details the things he saw traveling in the former Soviet Union during and after that government s implosion and offers his thoughts on why things fell apart there He then poin Orlov wrote at the end that...Orlov is a kind of Dave Barry of collapse pundits His snapshots of informal economies that grew in Russia during and after sovietism are useful to think about he makes fairly coherent arguments on how a collapse of our economies might not play out as in Russia However, his speculations of a post collapse America tend toward the extreme, and suggest an overnight transformation into our worst dystopian nightmares without providing any logic for assuming this.The advice in the book is also vague Orlov is a kind of Dave Barry of collapse pundits His snapshots of informal economies that grew in Russia during and after sovietism are useful to think about he makes fairly coherent arguments on how a collapse of our economies might not play out as in Russia However, his speculations of a post collapse America tend toward the extreme, and suggest an overnight transformation into our worst dystopian nightmares...The preview text on the back cover pretty much addresses most of the content of the book The book was accessible, owing to the anecdotal experience of the author, as opposed to a detached and academic feeling that could have easily been used But to do so would have lost the charm There s a sort of slow motion immediacy presented in Orlov s predictions Collapse is an inevitability, if not an eventuality this is not debatable The questions lay in the Why and the When I think that too many p The preview text on the back cover pretty much addresses most of t...Dmitry Orlov s Reinventing Collapse is about the United States falling in on itself and what may come after the dissolution of the so called empire It is rather upbeat and even quite funny at times something you wouldn t expect from a book about political and economic breakdown In spite of several really good one liners, the general tone isserious and the perspective of the author on the subject is quite unique in that he was born in Russia and was an eyewitness to the dissolution of Dmitry Orlov s Reinventing Collapse is about the United States falling in on itself and what may come after the dissolution of the so called empire It is rather upbeat and even quite funny at times something you wouldn t expect from a book about political and economic breakdown In spite of several really good one liners, the general tone isserious and the perspective of the author on the subject...

English
19 June 2017

Dmitry Orlov