Dmitri Orlov, an engineer by training, has written REINVENTING COLLAPSE largely about his observations of Russia after the collapse of the USSR. He found frightening changes there, once the central authorities ceased to assure the basics of life. These include the provision of water and the orderly outflow of sewage, the distribution of food and fuel, and the decay of money. He blames our “market fundamentalism” for our refusal to see possible breakdowns in the future—short term, profit-oriented views of all services and commodities. He found cities deserted, since so many people had gone to the country to grow food. A single dollar was worth 1000 roubles, yet average income was only several hundred roubles per month. Orlov compares conditions in Russia to those in the US, considering food, shelter, transportation, education, and finance. The USSR was a grain exporter, but after its collapse there were famines in the Ukraine, formerly its breadbasket. Since it was politically impossible to reexamine the assumptions of its political system (e.g. collective farming was the best system), the collapse became inevitable. We have similar, though opposite political shibboleths—which could destroy us.
It’s a frightening view of the future that needs to be fully considered; this future is now the present in Russia.
Tags: economic breakdown, future
