David Rauschenbach

At the 2009 Singularity Summit, Peter Thiel presented his views on the current global macro-economic situation, and made the case that, assuming the status-quo is to be preserved, new exponential growth in knowledge and technology would be required, in order to carry the growth requirements of the global economy.

On the one hand, knowing that Peter is a libertarian, he may have simply been making the case that the burdens of goverment and banking are a crippling factor, and dragging the economy into the abyss.

But on the other hand, what if the problem is not solely caused by the burdens of compounding interest and the stifling effects of the rise of the meddlesome state? What if we are witnessing a "peak technology", caused by a limited modern view of rational science, which as a result of its limited scope, has run its course?

My wife and I had dinner with a nice woman in Argentina last year, who at one point in the conversation asked about my world view. I answered that I am a reluctant participant in this world, and that, for the most part, what passes for "business as usual" on this planet turns my stomach, and makes me want to leave.

I am continually surprised to the extent that this theme recurs in both modern and ancient literature, some of which I will try and collect here over time.

A number of respectable men have recently pondered the fascist takeover of America, and have wondered where it is all headed. These men include Peter Schiff, Doug Casey, Glenn Beck, William Buckler, and numerous other personal sources of an intelligent and thoughtful nature. 

WHY did this happen? My opinion is that things are just as they must be. All cycles have a period, and the height of any peak merely forecasts the depth of a coming trough. Just as nature is said to despise a vacuum, so do all other natural laws conspire to restore imbalances (physics, gravity, karma, etc), where balance is temporarily lost.

Now the interesting part of the discussion is HOW and WHEN such balances are restored, because in this life, therein lies our opportunities. It is an interesting subject, and certainly worth pondering.