The post–World War II global economy has experienced its share of crises, from the oil shocks and “stagflation” of the 1970s to the Asian financial crisis and “dot-com” bust of more recent memory. Each time, the economy has rebounded and gone on to bigger and faster global growth. But something changed in the summer of 2008. Global economic and energy trends started changing faster and more worryingly than even most pessimists expected. Framed by an oil price spike to nearly $150 a barrel in July and the beginning of the Wall Street collapse in September, that summer has proved to be a major turning point. Few, however, seem to fully understand its significance.