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March
04
2022

The Economic Balloon That May Finally End Progressive Leftism
Lewis Dovland

The Laws of Economics are as immutable as the Law of Gravity, but few leftists grasp this fact. When it comes to the Democrats’ energy policies, I believe this immutability will finally be the Democrats’ downfall. People are reaching a pain point that the progressives can no longer deflect onto others.

Based on the progressive left’s detrimental influence on President Biden’s energy policies, the resulting accelerated inflation and energy-cost rise are very visible to average Americans. The administration acts as if there is no causal connection between the two. But what can we expect from people who work from feelings and not facts? Just like they are amazed when we defund police and don’t jail criminals and then crime rates spike. No connection.

One can postpone the fatal effects of violating the Law of Gravity by jumping from a high building (as opposed to jumping from a low one), but that postponement lasts only until the instant one meets the pavement. Believing you can fly by flapping your arms still ends in disaster. Thinking one can control economies, prices, and the environment by violating the laws of economics is just as mad. I compare economics to a water-filled balloon. When you squeeze the economy’s balloon here, it must pop out over there.

We see this in the Law of Supply and Demand. Shortages initially result in price rises and inflation, and things get even worse. Demand will be filled one way or another. For the right cause, say a short-term need to defend the US against an aggressor to protect us, citizens do make sacrifices, as we saw in World War II with rationing. But sane Americans won’t do it for progressive, leftist, or Marxist authoritarian causes.

The energy policies of progressives and leftists are aimed at cutting fossil fuel use and driving us to alternative sources. Even if we believe there are viable solutions, that transition will take decades. In the meantime, people must drive to work, and trucks still need to stock grocery stores. Interim replacement energy must come from somewhere, so shortages merely increase prices for no good reason, except perhaps to punish us.

By way of analogy, wage and price controls aimed at curbing inflation in the mid-20th century led to workarounds that enabled companies to use benefits to increase compensation. Benefits also led to the exploding costs of healthcare, because the consumer was no longer tied to prices, so that, today, most people must be insured to afford care.

The climate movement, which most sane people understand has little to do with the climate but is, instead, just one of the progressive tools aimed at damaging Western economies, is extremely deleterious. John Kerry demonstrated this in an interview last Friday with BBC Arabic when he bemoaned “I hope President Putin will help us with respect to what we need to do to stay on track with the climate.”

In the middle of a freaking war, Kerry can only keep speaking the fool by appealing to the one player who couldn’t care less about the climate. This from an elitist who flies private jets to climate conferences.

Image: Balloon (edited) from rawpixel. Freepik license. 

When President Biden took office last year, the US was a net exporter of energy, and gasoline prices were low. Biden immediately reversed many US regulations; drilling permits; the Keystone pipeline; and ANWAR, all while greenlighting the Nord Stream pipeline in Europe. That’s the one that helps Russia sell its energy to Europe.

So, Joe, is energy good or bad? Or does it only depend on the venue? Our shortfall again makes us dependent on foreign energy, importing around 700,000 barrels per day just from Russia!

Russia’s GDP is heavily dependent on energy sales. When we were a net energy exporter, we had them over a figurative “barrel” because Russia’s breakeven price for oil production is $69/bbl (2021 figure). Below that, Putin struggles. With the price now approaching $100/bbl—again, because of the balloon—Russia is flush enough to invade Ukraine. All because of Biden—the same Biden who approached OPEC last November and requested they pump more oil to help us out...to fix a problem he had caused. Just insane.

Jen Psaki said last week that Americans should be happy to sacrifice through higher gas prices caused by this invasion. “Defending democracy and liberty is never without costs....” Which is laughable on its face. Neither Ukraine nor Russia is exactly a paragon of “democracy” or “liberty” as compared to America. But I guess we can all virtue signal. And note to self: When a Democrat uses the word “democracy” in a plea, alarm bells should ring.

Biden’s reversals of Trump policies (because we must erase the Bad Orange Man effects) plus this war have raised the cost of oil and exacerbated inflation, because of the balloon effect. And this oil price rise is also increasing the oil wealth of Iran, our next crisis pariah. So, Biden squeezed the balloon to follow the insanity of the climate alarmists and, by doing so, made the world many times worse. But of course, if you ask a progressive, there is no causal relationship between these issues.

The simplest solution is to reopen the drilling permits and the Keystone Pipeline and to let American industry solve it. Leftists cannot allow that.

In the end, Biden’s policies mean Americans are actually funding Putin’s Ukraine invasion. Imagine that! And we are being asked to take one in the shorts in solidarity. Thanks, Big Guy! The people are now awakened because you and your progressive buds have jumped the shark. The next sound you hear may be the popping of a balloon.

 

 

Lewis Dovland is a political observer and passionate about America’s future direction. His focus is on the “Big Picture” of the end goal of the Progressive Marxist movement (and it is not what most people think) and is in the process of publishing a book on solutions to our recovery. He can be contacted at [email protected].

www.americanthinker.com