If we only get 3% of our oil from Russia and we can easily live without it according to the news then how are our soaring gas prices related to Russia at all? How does Putin become the fall guy for Biden’s systematic destruction of our economy?
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Gas prices respond to demand. It's as simple as that.
What creates the demand? THAT is complicated. It has a million different possible factors, and those factors are interpreted by people, who decide which factors matter and how much.
Something as small as a supply line snag can increase the gas prices. Bad weather can increase the gas price. People aren't getting gas, they need gas, and they'll pay other companies more to deliver the gas they can't get.
In general, uncertainty increases demand, and wars involving major world powers and oil suppliers create uncertainty. That affects the GLOBAL demand and the resulting price through a complicated ripple of effects.
We can cut ourselves off of Russian gas and survive, sure. But that means our demand we placed on Russia is now being redistributed. Those vendors dealing with the new demand will raise their prices to get more money because, you know. That's how capitalism works. And these companies, by the way, are having the demand increased on them from all sides, since numerous different parties are working to isolate Russia.
Cutting ourselves off from Russian oil might affect it a little, but ultimately, it's kind of a drop in the bucket compared to the effect of the conflict itself anyway. If Biden wants to send a message, the damage to Russia's economy seems likely to be higher than ours through this move, but I suppose we'll see.
Maybe you're correct. This is an area where I think we can talk forever, come up with new theories every minute, and still, both be totally wrong tomorrow. Oil prices are tricky.
Which, honestly, is why I've never placed the blame for oil prices on any President, regardless of their party or how much I liked them. Oil prices respond to people, who are responding to demand. People are unpredictable and spook easily. People (and therefore, oil) almost always reacts to threats, and the vast majority of threats never actually become problems.
For what it's worth, many Democrats aren't going to see high gas prices and say, "Boy, I wish I had voted for Trump so we could drill in this country without environmental regulations."
It'll probably be, "Boy, I wish we hadn't had Trump backpedal our progress toward renewable energy because now we'll have to wait longer."
I know you likely have contrasting thoughts on climate change and renewable energy, but Democrats recognize the problem. They just don't accept your solution as the only viable one, or even as a viable one at all in the long term.
I'd be more willing to bet that high gas prices are going to drive Democrats toward pushing renewable energy, make them angrier at Big Oil, continue to stir anger at Russia for its apparent aggression that led to this conflict, and drive increased movement toward working from home rather than driving to a job that can't easily justify on-site employment.
But like I said, we'll see. Oil prices are tricky, and debating them predictively tends to be an interesting academic conversation and little more.
Trump backpedaled green energy and that's why we are having a tough time-Good lord, where to begin.
Green Energy Incentives were not even touched by Trump. He did however unchained the private energy sector to compete with the subsidized green energy. If you think competition is backpedaling renewables maybe there is something wrong with renewables that deserve some thought, like; you can't charge a high power high demand battery fast enough to fulfill industrialization requirements if you use renewables, you need generators to accomplish that. It's LEL that allows you to achieve that. However, by thermodynamic laws it will always be more efficient to run the diesel engine directly to the desired output instead of charging a battery and then use that energy to realize the desired outcome. Unless you only care about feeling good and not actually care about efficient ways to use energy and conserve the planet. Lithium mining is one of the worst things we can do to our environment. Mining for the materials needed for renewables are causing entire ecosystems to disapper and no one bats an eye. No one. Beyond ludicrous. The only energy source that really takes care of the problem is nuclear, but chicken shit political types have nothing to earn there so they regulate it to oblivion.