Herd hysteria is taking tragic social and economic tolls on formerly prosperous countries that have enacted climate alarm-premised anti-fossil energy and agriculture policies. Such self-inflicted misery can be attributed to a combination of influences: unwarranted fear based upon provably failed theoretical climate models; grossly misguided expectations of so-called “green energy” capacities and economies; and certainly not the least of these, powerful political activist agendas that exploit … [Read more...]
Inflation and “Inflation”
The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today that year-on-year “inflation” through June was 9.1 percent, meaning the basket of goods constituting the “consumer price index” (CPI) that cost $100 a year ago cost $109.10 last month. That’s bad news, for several reasons. First, of course, it’s bad news because it means life gets tougher for everybody whose income isn’t enhanced by precisely those things that drive such “inflation”—meaning the vast majority of people. Second, it’s … [Read more...]
Bad Ideas Have Bad Consequences
If you haven’t noticed rising prices here in America for the past twelve months, you’re either Rumpelstiltskin or dead. And if you didn’t expect rising prices, either you’ve not been paying attention to American monetary, fiscal, welfare, and pandemic policies or you’ve not understood basic economics. So, May’s year-on-year “inflation” rate was 8.6%, following April’s 8.3%, continuing a rapid rise that started in October. (Why the scare quotes around inflation? Because properly … [Read more...]
Analysis of Gas Prices
Gas prices: If you look at inflation-adjusted gasoline prices over the last century, there has been an overall downward trend, reflecting greater efficiency at finding, pumping, and refining petroleum. We are now at $5 a gallon, but that isn't a whole lot more than we've been in the past (for example, just before the 2012 recession). Still, the price is a lot higher than it needs to be given current technology, and the current spike could have been mostly avoided (COVID impacts being the least … [Read more...]
