The Natural Philosopher wrote:
Jeff wrote:

The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Morris Dovey wrote:

Eeyore wrote:
| The Natural Philosopher wrote:

|| But essentially what has to happen at government level is simple:
|| just tax oil. More and more, Until its usage is under control. You
|| can use the revenues to fund all sorts of useful stuff.
|
| Not going to happen in the USA is it ?

Good guess.



Don't be so sure.
First of all with an oilman in the seat of power, no. not yet.

Not until they work out that swingeing margins on more expensive fuel
make just as much profit.

However is ultimately a PR thing: Hence Al Gore. If the thought gets
stuck in the voters brain that paying $10 a gallon of gas is the way
to stop their towns being devastated by storms, it might well be the
that gets someone elected.


I can not see a large tax increase on gas. It just won't happen. Even
Al Gore couldn't do it.

Not yet, but t will de fact happen anyway as you point out..


And anyway OPEC and Bushanomics* is doing it for them. Except the
money doesn't end up in the govt, it ends up in Q'ran toting islamic
fundamentalists pockets instead.

*seen the dollar valuation recently?


It's amazing how little Americans care about the value of the
dollar. Not even to the point of realizing that much of oils rise has
been due to the dollars fall.

Indeed, and the very real danger that the dollar will cease to be the de
facto unit fr international transactions. That ll be a huge loss to the
USA, since in a sense they prnt all the dollars, and take a cut n the
dollar transactions.

This has escaped much notice:

URL:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/mai...cnchina116.xml
/

Japan and China led a record withdrawl of foreign funds from the United
States in August, heightening fears of a fresh slide in the dollar and a
spike in US bond yields.
# Fears of dollar collapse as Saudis take fright
# China threatens `nuclear option' of dollar sales
# Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: This bear is not capitulating


The US requires $70bn a month in capital inflows to cover its current
account deficit

Data from the US Treasury showed outflows of $163bn (£80bn) from all
forms of US investments. "These numbers are absolutely stunning," said
Marc Ostwald, an economist at Insinger de Beaufort.

Asian investors dumped $52bn worth of US Treasury bonds alone, led by
Japan ($23bn), China ($14.2bn) and Taiwan ($5bn). It is the first time
since 1998 that foreigners have, on balance, sold Treasuries.



But not to worry. If this was serious problem, our president would be
doing something about it! But someone else will buy our debt, those
Iraqis owe us a favor.


If China unlinks the Yuan remnimbi from the dollar...by bye cheap
chinese imports, hello cheap USA produced stuff.

Which is exactly the policy that is being pursued.


This is a consumption driven economy and no amout of good sense will
change that. Who is even talking about the Hubbert Peak?


But a rapidly rising energy price and huge inflation will.

If you cannot afford a new car, you will run the old one. It's that simple.

Well that may be true for me, and sales have slowed for US
automakers, but I think consumerism is far from dead. The US economy is
huge and I don't see massive inflation coming. I see danger all around
though. Weak Dollar. Credit Crunch. Housing Bubble. Shifted weather
patterns. Access to energy not secure. Undervalued risk.

Think wimper, not bang.

Jeff

Oddly, it is the insurance companies that will drive global warming
investments. Those guys are no longer sitting on the sidelines, their
business is dependant on either alleviating the risk or charging a
whole lot more for it.


Indeed. They make their livings out of common sense and analysing
statistics.


There's a lot on the plate for the next president. All the issues
that George W Bush made worse.


Yup. The man who made stupidity kewl.

Borrow and spend..sooner or alter is payback time.

Today, it looks sooner.

Jeff