Sorry, I meant the Prius is NOT very useful without well-maintained roads.

Bovine feces. Strong centralised states existed long before oil and coal became practical. And if they really, really need to, they can go back to existing that way. Not, perhaps, with the level and geographical spread of population we have today, but there are plenty of ways to reduce population short of civil war (non-civil war being one of the traditional favourites...).

You won't have armed tribes roaming the countryside looking to kill you and take your stuff. At worst, you'll have press-gangs roaming the countryside looking to ship you off to some hell-hole war of attrition in a country you never heard about and care even less about.

- Jake

If you only spend 20 minutes of the rest of your life on economics, go spend them here.

Why would a Prius driver attempt to escape a population centre?

When the capital development of a country becomes a by-product of the activities of a casino, the job is likely to be ill-done. — John M. Keynes