Who else is wondering when Trump will declare yet another "national security emergency" and issue an executive order prohibiting the export of oil from the U.S.? Even if the courts block the order Trump will attempt to shift the blame for persistently high gasoline prices to "lunatic Democrat judges."
The U.S. oil companies (and their shareholders) won't be happy about an export embargo, but Trump will just portray them (us) as "unpatriotic." The domestic oil companies will point out that their refineries are geared towards imported heavy sour crude and not the light sweet crude produced in (and then largely exported from) the U.S., and thus an export embargo would most likely further increase the price of gasoline in the U.S. because of inadequate refining capacity.
Trump's inability to foresee (or even comprehend) the second- and third-order consequences of his actions has never been on display more than it is now.
While I do think corporate price gouging should get some of the blame, American consumers forget that they have at least some power. Food and fuel have fairly inelastic demand (though people still waste money on energy drinks), but what about non-essentials?
My local Costco has scads of new TVs on display every time I go. Somebody must be buying these 80” monstrosities or they wouldn’t be in the store. Best Buy is still in business. Lowe’s and Home Depot are selling plenty of expensive power tools even while ICE goons are harrassing every customer darker than Rick Scott.
I guess my point is, at what point do we respond to inflation by purchasing less crap? You might need a new drill or circular saw, but probably not. You most likely don’t need a new phone unless your battery is cooked. You definitely don’t need that massive television.
Although water does not flow uphill, money certainly does. Expect supply and demand to take care of the price of a given commodity. Greed influences but is not likely to be solely responsible for price 'adjustments'. Fortunes to be made and lost in a dynamic economy where a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. YMMV.
Greed is allowed if you donate to Trump first. Ticketmaster and Live Nation were convicted by the DOJ of monopolizing and price fixing. But since before the trial they made nice to Trump, there were fined 1/10 th of the money they made. A good deal for everyone except the millions who bought tickets.
"I am watching fertilizer prices CLOSELY during our FIGHT FOR FREEDOM in Iran. The United States will not accept PRICE GOUGING from the fertilizer monopoly! American Farmers, we have your back! President DONALD J. TRUMP [sic]"
* Why has no one been to explain to XFG that random words in all-caps doesn't make what he types any less meaningless? (Rhetorical question) All such posts from him detract from any gravitas he believes he is projecting; this is a double plus problem since he also does this in every policy announcement he makes on "Truth" Social.
* The only times that Trump [sic] watches the price of anything is if he's got skin in the game. If it won't increase his net worth he's a big picture kinda guy and watches his underlings... to be sure they don't take any lucre that his rightfully his.
* It is not our fight for Iranian freedom. The economic woes reverberating around the world are a direct result of his meddling in another country's government because, unlike every other world leader throughout history, only he can institute a regime change that will last for centuries.
* Someone please correct me if I'm mistaken but it appears as if prices keep going up because of the kleptocracy he has been leading and not by the 100,000 independent gas station owners, the multitude of bodegas in the cities, G-dess only knows how many farmers markets, small businesses, etc... etc... etc...
* "American Farmers, we have your back!"
"American Farmers, we have your back [because we've stabbed you enough from the front]!" FIFY
Regarding price increases, I think supply and demand AND corporate greed each plays a role. Specifically, I think that during periods of inflation, like the one that followed the pandemic, some producers of consumer goods realize that consumers have lost their sense of what a “reasonable” price ought to be. The corporations take advantage of the situation by raising prices more than would be justified by simple supply and demand.
This comment is not exactly about the current posting, but it occurred to me that "someone" in the legal profession should document the administrations crimes. Just make a list and update it daily. Don't argue about it or cry how bad it is, just document it. There could be several categories: International Law, Civil Rights Violations, etc. Whaddayall think?
As much as we democracy loving liberals don't want to believe the depth of faith Trump's cultists have in his "who cares about democracy or an equitable melting pot society" ethos. America is all powerful therefore America can do whatever it wants, to whoever it wants, whenever it wants. Period. That's the Trump piratical doctrine, pure and simple. Anything he says or does to promote American Dominance is AWESOME! (they firmly believe). And if things are not looking good or working well, multiple enemies are to blame, including corporate "greed" aka..Capitalism! A foundation of the GOP.
Hopefully, the chaotic cognitive dissonance Trump has caused leaves him with a small enough minority of Americans that we will win majority victories in the midterms. It will be a VERY noisy victory on both sides when we do.
Those 7-10 million Democrats who sat out the 2024 election to give us Trump had better show up in Nov.🙏
Another data point for my unfalsifiable belief that if every human too all the energy they spend resenting how they have been cheated and channeled it into work or some hobby, the newest baby in the poorest village would be swaddled in silk.
Trump could rant and rave about the global class of war profiteers but that would require his voters to care about the countries with much lower domestic oil supplies than us.
> But rather than offering boring, technical explanations about supply and demand (which might in some circumstances implicate specific policy decisions), politicians have decided that it’s more politically useful to blame greedy corporations.
Haha. Exactly zero average American voters would give a flying millisecond of their TikTok-saturated brain power to these technical explanations. They don't care, and they don't want to learn. I don't blame the politicians.
Secondly, corporations wouldn't be such punching bags, if so many of them have not shown repeatedly that they will screw over the welfare of consumers, employees, and the public, by any means necessary, to maximize their profits and the executive bonuses. The honest corporations are driven into bankruptcy because they can't compete with the dishonest and immoral ones. The best example of this right now: private equity. They are destroying every industry that they touch.
>> "Given that those rising fertilizer prices are expected to feed into food prices soon, it’s maybe not the best idea for the Trump administration to propose cuts to nutritional assistance for low-income pregnant women, moms, babies, and toddlers."
Trumpism is kleptocracy. Does feeding moms and babies make Trump richer? No? Then the Trumpist says to cut the program.
The farmers who need fertilizer are not going to wait to buy what they need in hopes that the Federal government will come to their help. All of this is also different by locality and seasonality. Gas prices on the west coast are higher due to taxes and refining capacity. Bland facts that don't make "clicks" occur but are going to roll thru all of our pocketbooks. Sadly we will likely see this impact in 6 -9 months thru the harvest season and subsequent increase in prices at retail. But don't worry : Remember Brooke Rollins ( 1000 simulations!) says we can live on $3 per serving per day. I guess that means I will be eating a dozen eggs a day for the foreseeable future. I can't afford the chicken!
Who else is wondering when Trump will declare yet another "national security emergency" and issue an executive order prohibiting the export of oil from the U.S.? Even if the courts block the order Trump will attempt to shift the blame for persistently high gasoline prices to "lunatic Democrat judges."
The U.S. oil companies (and their shareholders) won't be happy about an export embargo, but Trump will just portray them (us) as "unpatriotic." The domestic oil companies will point out that their refineries are geared towards imported heavy sour crude and not the light sweet crude produced in (and then largely exported from) the U.S., and thus an export embargo would most likely further increase the price of gasoline in the U.S. because of inadequate refining capacity.
Trump's inability to foresee (or even comprehend) the second- and third-order consequences of his actions has never been on display more than it is now.
While I do think corporate price gouging should get some of the blame, American consumers forget that they have at least some power. Food and fuel have fairly inelastic demand (though people still waste money on energy drinks), but what about non-essentials?
My local Costco has scads of new TVs on display every time I go. Somebody must be buying these 80” monstrosities or they wouldn’t be in the store. Best Buy is still in business. Lowe’s and Home Depot are selling plenty of expensive power tools even while ICE goons are harrassing every customer darker than Rick Scott.
I guess my point is, at what point do we respond to inflation by purchasing less crap? You might need a new drill or circular saw, but probably not. You most likely don’t need a new phone unless your battery is cooked. You definitely don’t need that massive television.
Although water does not flow uphill, money certainly does. Expect supply and demand to take care of the price of a given commodity. Greed influences but is not likely to be solely responsible for price 'adjustments'. Fortunes to be made and lost in a dynamic economy where a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. YMMV.
Greed is allowed if you donate to Trump first. Ticketmaster and Live Nation were convicted by the DOJ of monopolizing and price fixing. But since before the trial they made nice to Trump, there were fined 1/10 th of the money they made. A good deal for everyone except the millions who bought tickets.
"I am watching fertilizer prices CLOSELY during our FIGHT FOR FREEDOM in Iran. The United States will not accept PRICE GOUGING from the fertilizer monopoly! American Farmers, we have your back! President DONALD J. TRUMP [sic]"
* Why has no one been to explain to XFG that random words in all-caps doesn't make what he types any less meaningless? (Rhetorical question) All such posts from him detract from any gravitas he believes he is projecting; this is a double plus problem since he also does this in every policy announcement he makes on "Truth" Social.
* The only times that Trump [sic] watches the price of anything is if he's got skin in the game. If it won't increase his net worth he's a big picture kinda guy and watches his underlings... to be sure they don't take any lucre that his rightfully his.
* It is not our fight for Iranian freedom. The economic woes reverberating around the world are a direct result of his meddling in another country's government because, unlike every other world leader throughout history, only he can institute a regime change that will last for centuries.
* Someone please correct me if I'm mistaken but it appears as if prices keep going up because of the kleptocracy he has been leading and not by the 100,000 independent gas station owners, the multitude of bodegas in the cities, G-dess only knows how many farmers markets, small businesses, etc... etc... etc...
* "American Farmers, we have your back!"
"American Farmers, we have your back [because we've stabbed you enough from the front]!" FIFY
TYFYATTM
fnord
Regarding price increases, I think supply and demand AND corporate greed each plays a role. Specifically, I think that during periods of inflation, like the one that followed the pandemic, some producers of consumer goods realize that consumers have lost their sense of what a “reasonable” price ought to be. The corporations take advantage of the situation by raising prices more than would be justified by simple supply and demand.
Thanks Bruce. Who's doing it? Do you know where it is posted?
Can't wait to hear you and JVL discuss this tomorrow.
This comment is not exactly about the current posting, but it occurred to me that "someone" in the legal profession should document the administrations crimes. Just make a list and update it daily. Don't argue about it or cry how bad it is, just document it. There could be several categories: International Law, Civil Rights Violations, etc. Whaddayall think?
I think that might already be happening.
As much as we democracy loving liberals don't want to believe the depth of faith Trump's cultists have in his "who cares about democracy or an equitable melting pot society" ethos. America is all powerful therefore America can do whatever it wants, to whoever it wants, whenever it wants. Period. That's the Trump piratical doctrine, pure and simple. Anything he says or does to promote American Dominance is AWESOME! (they firmly believe). And if things are not looking good or working well, multiple enemies are to blame, including corporate "greed" aka..Capitalism! A foundation of the GOP.
Hopefully, the chaotic cognitive dissonance Trump has caused leaves him with a small enough minority of Americans that we will win majority victories in the midterms. It will be a VERY noisy victory on both sides when we do.
Those 7-10 million Democrats who sat out the 2024 election to give us Trump had better show up in Nov.🙏
Another data point for my unfalsifiable belief that if every human too all the energy they spend resenting how they have been cheated and channeled it into work or some hobby, the newest baby in the poorest village would be swaddled in silk.
Is that so, eggs are generally a loss leader for stores
Trump could rant and rave about the global class of war profiteers but that would require his voters to care about the countries with much lower domestic oil supplies than us.
> But rather than offering boring, technical explanations about supply and demand (which might in some circumstances implicate specific policy decisions), politicians have decided that it’s more politically useful to blame greedy corporations.
Haha. Exactly zero average American voters would give a flying millisecond of their TikTok-saturated brain power to these technical explanations. They don't care, and they don't want to learn. I don't blame the politicians.
Secondly, corporations wouldn't be such punching bags, if so many of them have not shown repeatedly that they will screw over the welfare of consumers, employees, and the public, by any means necessary, to maximize their profits and the executive bonuses. The honest corporations are driven into bankruptcy because they can't compete with the dishonest and immoral ones. The best example of this right now: private equity. They are destroying every industry that they touch.
>> "Given that those rising fertilizer prices are expected to feed into food prices soon, it’s maybe not the best idea for the Trump administration to propose cuts to nutritional assistance for low-income pregnant women, moms, babies, and toddlers."
Trumpism is kleptocracy. Does feeding moms and babies make Trump richer? No? Then the Trumpist says to cut the program.
The farmers who need fertilizer are not going to wait to buy what they need in hopes that the Federal government will come to their help. All of this is also different by locality and seasonality. Gas prices on the west coast are higher due to taxes and refining capacity. Bland facts that don't make "clicks" occur but are going to roll thru all of our pocketbooks. Sadly we will likely see this impact in 6 -9 months thru the harvest season and subsequent increase in prices at retail. But don't worry : Remember Brooke Rollins ( 1000 simulations!) says we can live on $3 per serving per day. I guess that means I will be eating a dozen eggs a day for the foreseeable future. I can't afford the chicken!