Michael Ruppert

Former policeman, writer, and activist

He was born in Washington in 1951. His father had served in the air force, partly working in the intelligence domain, and his mother had been a code-breaker during the war. His family moved several times, but his latter schooldays were spent in California, where he went to the university in Los Angeles, taking a degree in political science in 1969. He liked to collect evidence and solve mysteries, and in due course joined the Los Angeles police force. Perhaps due to his family background, attempts were made to recruit him into the secret service, but he a declined when he became aware of some of the clandestine activities that were being undertaken. A growing sense of frustration in the face of this knowledge led him to resign from the police force in 1979. After a difficult period, he became an investigative freelance journalist, using the skills he had learned as a detective. In 1998, he started a newsletter, From the Wilderness, which unmasked all manner of sensitive matters, including the Peak Oil issue and the background to the Gulf War. It attracted a growing following, and he also wrote a book, Crossing the Rubicon, which documented the evidence. But these activities in fact exposed him to serious threats and risks, which culminated in the destruction of his office in 2006 by persons unknown. He then fled the country fearing for his life, but eventually returned and wrote another book, Confronting Collapse: The Crisis of Energy and Money in a Post Peak Oil World. He has built a new organisation, drawing attention on the internet through collapsenet.com to the serious impact of Peak Oil. He has by all means had a colourful life, exhibiting a remarkable courage in his convictions.

I specifically warned our readers to get out of debt as much as possible, avoid exposure to the housing bubble, buy precious metals and liquidate investments in the stock market.