Jane, just wanted to say that it is awesome that you posted that! The Story of Stuff is fabulous at making the connections of what is needed and talks about important issues, like externalities, that most others leave out.
I finished the first article in a new series titled The Economy, Energy Consumption, and Upcycling. The first article is titled Putting the Pieces Together. It is an overview of how our economy depends on hydrocarbons and what affect energy conservation and upcycling could have. The following articles I will really sink my teeth into the details of all of this.
http://love2upcycle.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-economy-energy-consumption-and.html