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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsSuddenly Hormuz is less crucial... Paul Krugman
Is Russia burning?
Are we back at war with Iran? Did the war ever stop? The US is, once again, bombing Iran while Iranian drones strike shipping. Iran, giddy with its success in defying America, is demanding sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz, while Donald Trump is saying no, he owns the Strait and will collect 20 percent tolls.
Folks, this is bad. U.S. national security policy is now entirely in the service of one mans vanity. We got into this mess because Trump thought he could win an easy victory that would let him strut around feeling powerful. Now we cant get out because he wont admit that his war has been a humiliating failure.
The good news is that Trumps temper tantrum will probably do less economic damage than one might have expected because the cease-fire that is apparently over wasnt doing as much good as one might have expected. The fact is that there is now a disconnect between events in the Strait of Hormuz and the energy prices that matter. This disconnect is coming from a surprising place, another war that was supposed to yield a quick, easy victory but didnt: Vladimir Putins attempt to conquer Ukraine.
To see what Im talking about, start with a question: Why was oil so cheap just before this latest confrontation?
Continued https://open.substack.com/pub/paulkrugman/p/suddenly-hormuz-is-less-crucial-than
dweller
(29,113 posts)$79.44 up from ~$68 less than 2 weeks ago
$5/gal here we come
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multigraincracker
(38,484 posts)dem4decades
(14,778 posts)Fiendish Thingy
(24,826 posts)By fall we could see $7-8 gallon, and rationing.
dweller
(29,113 posts)for the midterms
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Fiendish Thingy
(24,826 posts)Every cloud has a silver lining, and weve got plenty of clouds on the horizon.
multigraincracker
(38,484 posts)I would avoid being anywhere near any building with his name on it
tanyev
(50,055 posts)MyOwnPeace
(17,714 posts)that was written by someone that actually knows what theyre talking about, doesnt that make you wish you had someone in charge that knew how to get those people to help run our country?
ILL HIRE ONLY THE BEST
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Fiendish Thingy
(24,826 posts)Hot takes get out of date real fast.
Im guessing the rest of Krugmans column talks about the destruction of most of Russias refineries, dropping worldwide refining capacity by up to 20%.
Its a BFD, especially since reserves are already dangerously low.
If you havent filled your tank, now would be the time.
If we see a return to the rationing and gas lines of the 70s, theres a good chance Dems will get a supermajority in the house, and will retake the senate easily.
House of Roberts
(6,774 posts)I was 17, and my parents paid me to go sit in gas lines with each car, odd tags on odd numbered days, even tags on even numbered days. You could only get ten gallons per trip, and I had the perfect station to use. It was on the downhill side of a hill, and you could coast down the shoulder, without having to crank the engine when the line moved. I'd sit there with a cooler full of cokes and play the radio, get my ten gallons, and come back the next day with the other car.
multigraincracker
(38,484 posts)when there was a price war in Texas, and gas got down to 5 cents a gallon.
House of Roberts
(6,774 posts)was on Sand Mountain near Albertville, at 21.9 for regular and 23.9 for premium. That was probably early 60s when I was a little kid.
OldBaldy1701E
(11,927 posts)Well, we got into this mess because some rich people just cannot stop waving their tiny dicks around.
The rest was just further issues that compiled after they started the waving.
The real reason we are in this mess is because we decided that the rich slowly tweaking and corrupting almost every aspect of our society was just not a big deal.
Surprise!