In a move that can surprise no one, oil prices are up this morning. This data is from Trading Economics:
All the forecasts that I have made about massive economic disruption resulting from the US/Israeli assault on Iran remain in place. The risks of recession or depression and of major shortages in the supply of resources essential for life itself, including food, remain relevant.
The risks of extreme poverty, and even resulting death, are real in the UK and right across the world.
I was pleased that over the weekend, some awareness of this appears to be creeping into our media. Action to address the consequences is absolutely essential, and I will keep saying so until it happens.
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It was encouraging to see that Al Jazeera had Steve Keen on its Inside Story podcast recently talking about the economic consequences for the production of food of the Iran conflict. The debate was measured, insightful and the guest experts were treated with respect unlike much of the political podcasts in the UK at the moment.
Al Jazeera don’t restrict just themselves to politicians and journalists or representatives of think tanks.
They turn to academics, NGO leaders, former ambassadors.
They are given time to explain their views and rarely interrupted.
Our TV could learn.
I saw Steve Keen on TRT World the other day. He talked about some of the principles of MMT and the interviewer clearly accepted them as a factual account of how money works. What a difference!
Do you think we should be on a war footing and introduce rationing immediately?
Yes
Other countries are
Just published and a “must read & learn” piece, Richard. The time for rationing was last month.
The map is not the territory
On either Sky or BBC News this morning (can’t remember which) an oil market expert said that oil might be listed at $103/barrel, but you’d currently have to pay $120-130 to actually buy any….
That’s the futre and spot prices
If Starmer and the STPs (single transferable parties) don’t take this situation sufficiently seriously and publish and implement immediately their contingency plans for rationing, we will be placed into such an unprepared state as we were when COVID hit us! I’m in Stornoway and due to the weather there have been no ferry sailings for a couple of days – the supermarket shelves for fresh produce are empty! Consider what might happen when there is no diesel for the trucks to transport food around the UK!!! We are thoroughly unprepared for this, but it’ll be so much worse for those nations if fertiliser doesn’t get out the Strait of Hormuz soon!
This security academic seems to validate much of your thinking as to what t we are facing Richard:<p>
https://x.com/ProfessorPape/status/2043500697526649019
He is right.