'Peak oil' spells cataclysm for U.S., oil theorist warns

Sunday, August 21, 2005
ALEXANDER LANE

Think high gas prices are bad?

Get a load of what ex-oilman and ex-Princeton professor Kenneth Deffeyes believes are following closely behind:

'War, famine, pestilence and death,' he said, eyes wide and voice deep. 'We've got to get the warning out.'

The threat? Peak oil.

The term, probably unfamiliar to most Americans, refers to the time when the worldwide production of oil peaks and begins a rapid decline. From then on, this incredibly efficient fuel source, which still costs less than most bottled water, will be scarcer and more costly.
Highly respected sources, including the U.S. government, think that day is distant, and most mainstream economists think it won't cause much of a ruckus.

But Deffeyes says peak oil is coming in November, and could bring humankind to the brink.
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