Thought this was a great read, Dmitri Orlov on parallels (and non-parallels) between the collapse of the Soviet Union and where we are today:

http://cluborlov.blogspot.com/2009/02/social-collapse-best-practices.html

Kunstler has a similar post this week:

http://jameshowardkunstler.typepad.com/

(Read the "Poverty of Imagination" entry.)

Nothing entirely new in either one, but more and more evidence that what they and Nicholas Nassim Taleb have been predicting is looming ever closer, with a lot already come to pass.