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The Collapse of 2020
In this short, powerful, and thoroughly documented book, Kirkpatrick Sale, who has been on the cutting edge of American social commentary for fifty years, makes a compelling case for the dangers that this world faces now and the real possibility of the imminent collapse of civilization as we know it. It is a work that is a must-read for those who are prepared to figure out how to survive this coming catastrophe.
38 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 11, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 4, 2020
A Bit Misanthropic & Hysterically Pessimistic
I had high hopes for this book, that Sale would speak to the issue of destructive materialism. Instead, what I read was a invective against the blight of humanity in the name of a pagan Greek god.
After reading "Emancipation Hell," I was under the naive assumption that Kirk would continue the theme of cultural destruction as it relates to technocratic dependence, and the vision of Utopia foisted upon Americans at its founding.
I will say, I do appreciate the total absence of Whiggish optimism; the impending eschatological "Golden Age" to be wrought by man, in the culmination of nature's dominance. Sale makes an implicit, but salient point, that nature is untamable, despite man's best efforts.
The persistent pessimism reminded me of my own cultural tradition that teaches the gravity of responsibility as it corresponds to rights. Man has for so long depleted, damaged, and disregarded all matters of our world, from our environment, to the people who dwell in it. The danger hasn't been man's excess so much as it's been his refusal to temper progress with measured responsibility and gratitude.
Granted, I believe this book's purview to be short of moral imperative; instead consisting only of prognostications concerning the destruction of mankind -- a judgment against man's attempts to reach heaven, but resulting in his own unfortunate destruction and dispersion from the Tower of Babel by the hand of the One who controls, provides, and sustains all things, regardless of man's failings.
I had high hopes for this book, that Sale would speak to the issue of destructive materialism. Instead, what I read was a invective against the blight of humanity in the name of a pagan Greek god.
After reading "Emancipation Hell," I was under the naive assumption that Kirk would continue the theme of cultural destruction as it relates to technocratic dependence, and the vision of Utopia foisted upon Americans at its founding.
I will say, I do appreciate the total absence of Whiggish optimism; the impending eschatological "Golden Age" to be wrought by man, in the culmination of nature's dominance. Sale makes an implicit, but salient point, that nature is untamable, despite man's best efforts.
The persistent pessimism reminded me of my own cultural tradition that teaches the gravity of responsibility as it corresponds to rights. Man has for so long depleted, damaged, and disregarded all matters of our world, from our environment, to the people who dwell in it. The danger hasn't been man's excess so much as it's been his refusal to temper progress with measured responsibility and gratitude.
Granted, I believe this book's purview to be short of moral imperative; instead consisting only of prognostications concerning the destruction of mankind -- a judgment against man's attempts to reach heaven, but resulting in his own unfortunate destruction and dispersion from the Tower of Babel by the hand of the One who controls, provides, and sustains all things, regardless of man's failings.
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October 8, 2020Way back in 1995, Kirkpatrick Sale, secessionist, environmentalist author and Neo-Luddite, bet Kevin Kelly (editor of Wired magazine) that by the year 2020, three disasters would occur: global currency collapse, significant warfare between rich and poor and environmental disasters of some significant size. Now in THE COLLAPSE OF 2020, Sale reconsiders the wager and its terms, the state of the world today and argues that, if we put aside our unrealistic hopefulness and our unwillingness to see the truth, we will see that he was actually correct. Haven’t each of these collapses already begun?
Read our full review here:
https://booktrib.com/2020/10/08/kirkp...
Read our full review here:
https://booktrib.com/2020/10/08/kirkp...
March 29, 2023
Short book. Mainly a long read essay of 31 pages. The rest is citations to support facts he elucidates. Even if half of what he writes is the truth, then anyone reading this should be terrified especially if you'll be alive towards the latter half of this century and what will happen to the world's climate. If you're as old as I am, approaching 80, you might just not care. I care. I have relatives and my friends all have children and grandchildren. And I meet people all the time who are much younger than I am. I'm afraid, very afraid. I have a weird thought that one day there will be a hurricane or hurricanes 1500 miles in width and it will just destroy the east coast. Look what's been happening on the west coast. Look what happens in the pacific region. We're screwed. Empires fall and civilizations die and soon we'll all be forgotten. So it goes.
April 30, 2022
Repent sinners! Repent, repent, repent! Pastor Kirkpatrick has a sale now: buy into his fear, and earn the good after life for your offspring. Ignore the gospel, and you and your next of keen you will have the burning of the eternal climatic hell.
April 20, 2023
Looks like Sale was taking note for a future book. Amazing that he was writing it when COVID was already unfolding, maybe finishing off the last draft in March 2020, and there's no mention of it whatsoever.
June 1, 2021
Another climate fearmonger
Sale has supported subsidiarity but this is 90% climate nonsense. He can do much better and I hope he does.
Sale has supported subsidiarity but this is 90% climate nonsense. He can do much better and I hope he does.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews