Optimism

Business culture demands optimism. Peak Oil is not an optimistic scenario. Therefore it will be ignored, or denied, or ridiculed, or... explained away with fantastic optimistic notions of ever improving innovative technological solutions -- that haven't been invented yet... and are often simply impossible because they violate the laws of physics and/or geological/ecological limits.

But human business or human activity of any sort, if it is to be successful, also demands, actually requires, a solid footing in reality. Determining what is real is often daunting, especially when that reality isn't what we expect or want to see. That is basic human nature. We are happiest when living in a population that experiences an abundant environment, a cornucopia of food and resources.

Yet we are overpopulating, and depleting non-renewable resources to the point of scarcity and expense and contraction of the economy - making ourselves miserable. We need cultural acceptance of a population slim down plan, preferably via birth control, to the point where we can live in an abundant, sustainable way -- on renewable energy and resources. Yes that means big changes... for the better.

So we can be optimistic, we just have to look to the far horizon and understand what it will take to continue human life and all life on Earth deep into the future:
Balancing our demands with the limits to what the Earth and Sun can actually provide to us, virtually forever.

This was originally written as a comment to the article:
Here's What Peak Oil Prophets Are Failing To Consider
There are several very good comments there answering this absurd article of faith.

Deep Delusion

Delusion takes us down this path
Beneath the earth, below the sea
Beyond the reach of you or me
With steel fingered robots we do the math
With their spiny digits we unleash the wrath

Of a long sleeping dragon
Despite its' fire breath and toxic blood
We can't get off this crud
It hauls our wagon

So we go deeply now, and deeper still
So we can still crave the thrill
Of flying fast over the hills
Over the spills
Over the kills
Salivating over our grills
Where our flesh burns

Dream deeply, now only in our dreams
Are there ways to slay these Dragons
Now the answers only exist in our dreams
Wake up and remember them