I have written before about the fact that I see progressive issues or morality in just about everything I watch or read. Tonight’s diary is about the same experience from the financial pages of Tuesday’s USA Today. I looked at the page initially because of the article on George Soros.
But what caught my eye was an article titled: Gas set another economic-battering-ram of a record. The subtitle, which is what actually got me, was: Reverberations rock consumers as analysts run out of reasons for rise.
(USA Today, 5/13/08, Page B-1.)
More below!
Most of the article wasn’t about the reasons, it was about the numbers and the records and the consequences for consumers, but it did include this line:
Analysts are beginning to exhaust logical reasons for prices to climb. “It seems momentum is carrying it up. It just doesn’t want to stop,” Beutel (Peter Beutel, head of energy-price consultant Cameron Hanover) says.
Ohhhhh!!!! IT doesn’t want to stop! One of the remarkable things about Adam Smith’s school of economics is the idea that things like prices are set automatically, as if by a law of nature. That would mean that the proprietors of your gas station come to work in the am and read the price of the fuel on the signs just as you do. As if no human agent participated in the determination of the price to be charged.
It is not so, however. There are surely legitimate factors they have to consider in the setting of the price, but the process is not public and it isn’t transparent. There is no full disclosure, and one of the few insights we obtain is from corporate profit statements from the fuel companies. Their profits are very high, big surprise.
With all due respect to Peter Beutel and all of the top analysts who cannot seem to figure out why prices are rising even while demand is sinking, I am going to give the answer, in two parts. First, there is no “IT.” Human beings are setting the prices. And second, they are raising them because they CAN. No one in this administration is going to tell them to follow market ‘logic’ in the setting of the prices, because conservatives LOVE profit more than they love human beings. It is their highest god, and no one, in today’s world, is worshipping that god so avidly or so well as the oil companies.
If you have a chance to speak to voters about gas prices, explain to them it is what you get when you have a government dominated by conservatives who idolize profit, who proclaim ‘free market this’ and ‘free market that,’ as they manipulate the market with impunity all the while. ‘Everyone’ knows that as demand goes down, supply goes up, and prices fall. Except, not now. And not because of Adam Smith’s proverbial ‘invisible hand.’ There is an invisible hand, alright, and it’s giving you the finger. (As it is me, and everyone else.) If you don't believe it, go look at your local gas prices!
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Now on to tonight’s comments! :)
From jnhobbs:
In Brandon Friedman's recommended diary, Obama Demanding Investigation over VA Email, Dallasdoc asserts that it is "A small part of a much bigger pattern."
From dadanation:
a bit strident, a bit caustic, but one comment that really captures the absurdity of the issue was this one by droogie6655321 in voila's diary rumor of "nuclear dirt bomb" against Michelle Obama.
From Cronesense
In the excellent diary by Cartoon Messiah, Who was Neville Chamberlian, Cantheist makes a stunning reply to Myrrhis comment that makes you wonder about our future with our enormous debt.
beachmom adds some enlightening history on the impact of WWI reparations from the Treaty of Versaille.
Great capsule summary by NCrissieB on what happened after WWI that led up to WWII because of a punitive treaty. Sheds a whole new light on the Neville Chamberlain appeasement meme.
More history in a nutshell that is fact-packed from Prince Nekhyudov.
This diary and these comments are the kind that make me long for the good old days before the primary wars took over the site! There was plenty of enlightening, if sometimes conflicting discussion and for the most part, very civil discourse to flesh out the history of that period and the backstory too. Dare I hope.....?
From SarahLee:
Great comment re Allan Keyes new political party by RickMassimo in the afternoon evening thread.
Other funnies in that thread include this one by Phlogiston Junkie.
From drchelo:
Rorgg tries to imbue Senate Democrats with some spine!
From jlms qkw:
mspicata comments: May I just say that Bush and McCain are two appease in a pod.
From opendna:
Hangingchad asked who gets to arrest Karl Rove for inherent contempt, and jhecht turns a profit in answering.
Tonight's Top Mojo courtesy of brillig! Please show appreciation with some mojo when she comments!
Top 30 Comments (Including ties) excluding Tip Jars, C&J and Mojo Friday:
1) Let's hope the Senate dems by Rorgg — 198
2) One more quote: by bawbie — 158
3) He could run on this slogan alone... by The Termite — 145
4) What does that have to do with this diary? by Sun dog — 133
5) Yet another Christian just doin' his thang.... by Ptown boy in NC — 132
6) HRC has become a symbol for a lot of by blue jersey mom — 129
7) also from the page by bawbie — 126
8) I would love, love, LOVE to see by MichiganGirl — 124
9) Silly me by Land of Enchantment — 118
10) Let's rec this up to keep it front paged by SeaTurtle — 112
11) Thinking by jiordan — 110
12) Hey...I Am. by Steve Singiser — 109
13) Are you kidding? by prikaza — 101
14) Nice statement by A Mad Mad World — 96
15) I just played the CNN video; they laughed by jhutson — 94
16) ok, if you feel that way by thereisnospoon — 89
17) 'Winter Soldier II' by jimstaro — 89
18) GOODBYE HUCK VEEP SPOT by Steven R — 86
19) MSNBC by DCLaw — 82
20) Maybe, but healing doesn't happen by itself. by Donna in Rome — 82
21) The Secret Service needs to give him a nice by HEAT — 81
22) at this point by DCLaw — 78
23) CNN reported that the NRA laughed by jhutson — 77
24) I'm from the Bobby MLK JFK MalcolmX by snackdoodle — 72
25) me too by thereisnospoon — 71
26) He was PERFECT! by jenontheshore — 68
27) Andrea Mitchell by DCLaw — 68
28) Iraq, Iraq, Iraq by dansac — 67
29) The last time a VP shot someone in the face? by bawbie — 67
Top 30 Comments (including ties) with no exclusions:
1) Tips, Comments, Recs, Love, Hate.... by Steve Singiser — 658
2) tips by thereisnospoon — 567
3) Tip jar by Brandon Friedman — 367
4) Thanks for reading! nt by Cartoon Messiah — 363
5) Tips by Jimmy Crackcorn — 358
6) This needs some national attention. by Troutfishing — 330
7) tip jar by DCLaw — 274
8) Tips for the Edwards Boost by ourhispanicvoices — 227
9) Tips for good news :) by karpaty lviv — 227
10) Please Recommend. by foxsucks81 — 220
11) tip jar by EmperorHadrian — 205
12) Let's hope the Senate dems by Rorgg — 198
13) Mojo Mug by TexDem — 166
14) Tips/Recs by kubla000 — 159
15) One more quote: by bawbie — 158
16) Mojo to all. by blue jersey mom — 153
17) The Lounge is Open by TexDem — 153
18) Tip Jar by Matt Keener — 152
19) He could run on this slogan alone... by The Termite — 145
20) mojo is appeasing by Steven R — 143
21) It's also appealling by Ex Con — 140
22) happy friday to you bjm! by a girl in MI — 140
23) I'll have a cup of joe with a shot of Jack please by David Kroning — 136
24) i'll take the shot by jlms qkw — 133
25) I have the same problem with my father in law. by David Kroning — 133
26) What does that have to do with this diary? by Sun dog — 133
27) Yet another Christian just doin' his thang.... by Ptown boy in NC — 132
28) But by discocarp — 131
29) Oh my. by Floja Roja — 129
30) HRC has become a symbol for a lot of by blue jersey mom — 129
31) In what order? n/t by mspicata — 129
Thanks for visiting tonight, everyone! Please add your comment finds, below!