WHAT'S HAPPENING?

There's an oil shock going on. It started April 30, 2007. The world oil supply is falling short of demand - by 1.5% at first, but it's expected to increase to 3% or more throughout 2007.

WHAT'S THIS WEBSITE FOR?

We had a clue that an oil shock was going to happen, so we set up this website as a central point to assemble information about its effects. We don't want a repeat of the Hurricane Katrina debacle, where news from the government and media was spotty and often inaccurate. It’s our belief that truth comes from people telling their own stories. (To quote Gracesmom: "You gotta grow truth out the ground, coax it on up. Because it sure don’t rain down outta the sky.")

WHO ARE WE?

We’re a group of people that suffered together through a little mini-crisis, the December 2006 closure of the Denver airport. Most of us had never met until that episode. One of the things we discussed at length was how the Internet should be used to cover a crisis... and we discovered that it was nothing that the ten of us couldn’t do. So here we are, just doin’ it.

WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO?

Tell us your story. Fuel prices are sky high (see top of this page!) and the ripple effects are pulling at the seams of our society (see the latest Weekly Story). Everyone’s life has taken a hit - but how much of a hit are you taking? How much pain are you in? No one will know if you don’t add your voice to the collective shout. And who knows? If enough people speak up, maybe the force of collective truth will help prevent this crisis from ever happening again.

UM, CAN YOU SHOW ME AN EXAMPLE?

You bet! Here are other people’s stories: videos, phone calls and audio, images, and blogs and other writing. Pick one and see what you think!

I'M A TEACHER. CAN SCHOOLS HELP?

Yes. Students can be a big force in capturing the stories of the crisis. Guidelines are here.

I’M STILL CONFUSED.

Sorry ‘bout that. Try here.