Comment 44487

By jasonaallen (registered) - website | Posted July 30, 2010 at 16:01:08

@FenceSitter - thanks for that, it's a great article (and I actually have an older Smart Phone that needs fixing, so I may take it to him!). The point I didn't make all that explicitly, is that the parts he is using to fix those phones, he is also getting from overseas.

If the price of bunker fuel (the dregs of the refining process that power our cargo fleet) goes through the roof as we bump our economy up against the global oil production cap - not only is it going to be unfeasable to ship brand new shiny iPhones from overseas, it's not going to make sense to ship their parts either.

At that point, some sections of the economy go into salvage mode, as has already happened with the modern day equivalent of beachcombers going into abandoned subdivisions in the U.S. Southwest and stripping the air conditioning units of valuable metals. To say nothing of all of the people I know who have had the catalytic converter hacksawed off of their car while parked somewhere for the day - all for a few lousy grams of platinum.

In an economy where repair of these precious electronic items is based on salvage, the incompatibility of their parts is a game changer.

Granted, this is probably quite a few years away, but really all it would take would be a good old fashioned coup in Saudi Arabia, or an all out civil war in Venezuela and Nigeria, and a comfortably distant future problem would suddenly be knocking at our door.

Comment edited by jasonaallen on 2010-07-30 15:05:35

Whatever you do, don't mention the Red Hill Valley Parkway!

Permalink | Context

Events Calendar

There are no upcoming events right now.
Why not post one?

Recent Articles

Article Archives

Blog Archives

Site Tools

Feeds