Commodities, Supply-Chains and Structural Changes in Demand
COMMODITIES, SUPPLY-CHAINS AND STRUCTURAL CHANGES IN DEMAND Talk of a new commodity super-cycle may be premature Once GDP growth returns to trend, commodity demand will moderate Fiscal and monetary relief are key to maintaining growth and demand Structural changes in energy demand will prove more persistent As the spectre of inflation begins to haunt economists, […]
Welcome to the 21st Century Sequel of the Catastrophic 1600s
Welcome to the 21st Century Sequel of the Catastrophic 1600s As the chart below on ‘how systems collapse’ illustrates, the loss of stabilizing buffers goes unnoticed until the entire structure collapses under its own weight. Disruptive extremes of weather: check Rising geopolitical tensions with no diplomatic resolution: check Multiplying scarcities in essential commodities: check Domestic disorder accelerates as […]
The U.S. Shale Revolution Has Surrendered to Reality
The U.S. Shale Revolution Has Surrendered to Reality Fracking companies aren’t drilling as investment continues to dry up. Image: Fossil fuel oil well. Credit: CL Baker. CC BY 2.0 “Drill, baby, drill is gone forever.” That was the recent assessment of Saudi Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman of the American oil industry’s future potential. As Saudi Arabia’s energy minister, […]
Michael Klare, An All-American Path to War?
Michael Klare, An All-American Path to War? The single scariest night of my life may have been on October 22, 1962, when I thought that all the duck-and-cover moments of my childhood were coming home to roost. President John F. Kennedy appeared on national television (and radio) to warn us all to duck and cover. The Soviet Union, it seemed, […]
Weekly Commentary: Under Fire
Weekly Commentary: Under Fire The week had an ominous feel. Ten-year Treasury yields dropped another seven bps to 1.29% – completely disregarding much stronger-than-expected reports on consumer and producer prices. German bund yields fell another six bps to a three-month low negative 0.35%. Equities were down for the week in Europe, but the notable equities […]
Marti’s Corner – 25
Marti’s Corner – 25 Hi Everyone, NOTES: * Last year I posted about a remedy for bites: mosquito bites, bee stings, ant bites, tick bites. It uses charcoal to “draw out” the poison. I kept it in the refrigerator and used it all last year. I finally threw it away a few weeks ago. And […]
Biden Administration Completely Kills The “It’s A Private Company So It’s Not Censorship” Argument
Biden Administration Completely Kills The “It’s A Private Company So It’s Not Censorship” Argument Listen to a reading of this article: ❖ In what’s surely the biggest “Imagine the outrage if Trump had done that” moment to date, the Biden administration has admitted that it is giving Facebook a list of accounts to censor for […]
World in Chaos
World in Chaos In South Africa, the currency has fallen hard as riots have devasted the country. They looted the mall, except for the bookstore. The former South African President Jacob Zuma turned himself in to begin a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. This has sent the country into a tailspin. Contempt of court […]
The Ugly And Difficult Hunt For The True Economy
The Ugly And Difficult Hunt For The True Economy Good luck with acquiring a clear view of our economic future. It is shrouded and cloaked under an ocean of often irrelevant facts and figures. Somewhere between what we are told is occurring in the economy and what we see happening on Main Streets across America […]
Greed and Its Offsets
Greed and Its Offsets Farmland shouldn’t be used to expiate the carbon guilt of the rich, argues Simon Fairlie. — Bill Gates’s recently published book on climate change tells us little that anyone who is averagely well read on the subject didn’t know anyway.1 As one might expect, he advocates technological fixes, most of which have […]
Water: Garden Friend….and Foe? – Water, Relative Humidity, and Plant Diseases
Water: Garden Friend….and Foe? – Water, Relative Humidity, and Plant Diseases We all know that water is essential for life and that we have to ensure our landscapes, gardens, and houseplants all have a sufficient supply of the stuff. Forget to water your garden during a hot, dry spell and it could mean disaster for […]
No Time for Castles: From Closed to Open Democracy
No Time for Castles: From Closed to Open Democracy For proponents of deliberative democracy, today’s representative regimes offer nothing more than illusion. Real democracy means people’s power, and achieving it requires out-of-the-box thinking. We spoke to political theorist Hélène Landemore about her proposed alternative of open democracy and what this would look like at local, […]
The Climate Crisis: Interview with Social Psychologist Kelly Fielding
The Climate Crisis: Interview with Social Psychologist Kelly Fielding Kelly Fielding is a social and environmental psychologist and Professor in the School of Communication and Arts at The University of Queensland, Australia. Her research has included a focus on trying to understand climate change beliefs and identifying ways to address climate change skepticism and inaction. The […]
BC’s Methane Emissions Are Double What Government Thought: Study
BC’s Methane Emissions Are Double What Government Thought: Study The province’s own research has found flaws in how natural gas was detected and measured. Premier John Horgan in Kitimat announcing LNG Canada’s $40 billion investment in 2018. At the time, BC said fracked gas fit its climate action goals, but a new study doubles emissions […]
When climate breakdown goes nuclear
When climate breakdown goes nuclear Wikipedia Nuclear is on the front-line of climate change – and not in a good way. Climate models have run hot in the last year. As knowledge of climate sensitivity and polar ice melt-rate evolves, it’s become clear that sea-level rise is significantly faster than previously thought – which means more frequent and destructive storm, […]
