Fuel’s Errand

I spend a lot of time in this newsletter focusing on issues related to democracy, decency, deception, despotism, desecrations, deceit, delinquency, dereliction, defraudation, degeneracy, depravity, deplorables, despicables, demagoguery, derangement, and generally demented leadership. All of these (as well as the rest of the alphabet of nightmares) are worthy topics for your consideration, and projects like McSweeney’s tracking of the cruelties, collusions, corruptions, and crimes of this administration provide a vital record. But as much as I often wish they would, these issues will not decide the midterm elections. It’s going to come down to one word (according to Trump, a fake word and a con job made up by Democrats): Affordability. And, these days, the issue of affordability, as it often is, is inexorably linked to the price of oil. And there doesn’t seem to be much relief in sight. “Commercial fuel stocks around the world have been depleting for more than six months, and strategic crude reserves can’t be tapped much further. Attacks last week shut down a crucial crude pipeline in Saudi Arabia that bypassed the Strait, stranding at least 2.5 million barrels a day from an already tight global oil market, analysts estimate … It is hard to predict where oil prices will go, he added, but at the moment, it is difficult to envision prices coming back down quickly.” WSJ (Gift Article): Oil Executives Say the Great Fuel Crisis Is Here.

+ It’s a topic that unites the world. NYT (Gift Article): Rising Fuel Prices Set Off Anger and Protests Around the World. “The world is furious — again — over rising energy prices caused by the American-Israeli war against Iran. Since the latest surge pushed oil above $100 a barrel, protesters have burned tires and cars in Guatemala and Syria to express their rage. Portugal’s roads have featured cars crawling in protest with honking horns after diesel reached a record high of more than $9 a gallon. And especially in the developing countries of Asia, which are heavily reliant on Middle Eastern energy and deep in debt from earlier efforts to offset the war’s impacts, transport systems and governments are facing another round of enormous strain.”