The Crash Course, Revised Edition

CHAPTER 1The Coming Storm

In 2008 and 2009, economic activity in the United States and most other developed nations tumbled off a cliff. At several points, there was real panic in the air. Stock markets around the world fell to levels that wiped out more than a decade of gains. Trillions evaporated in the housing market, and global trade plummeted.

In 2020, Covid struck and suddenly everything seemed to become chaotic all at once. Supply chains broke down and only very slowly recovered; central banks printed up roughly 20 trillion new dollars and distributed them into economies that were hardly growing, unleashing massive inflation not seen on the world stage for a half a century and a profound wealth gap without any historical parallel.

Later, in 2022, Europe was plunged into a historically unique energy crisis. Never before had a continent of 400 million people and complex manufacturing and supply chains been starved for energy. A lot of history is being made these days.

Why did these things happen—and will they happen again?

In truth, we face many predicaments that run far deeper than even these recent, disquieting economic events might suggest. It's time to face the facts: A dangerous convergence of unsustainable trends in the economy, energy, and the environment will make the next few years and decades the most challenging for the most people ever.

The Crash Course offers a framework for understanding this predicament and provides sufficient context to support the idea ...