So, whoever invented this nonsense of supply and demand? I’m told when I pass a gasoline station and the price tops $5.00 (headed $6.00 by Independence Day), that I should curse the greedy oil CEOs. I don’t even know their names, so I’ll make one up. “Damn you Bruce! I’m sick and tired of filling your pockets while I fill my gas tank!”
There I feel better, right? Nope. The outburst would be empty, and so too my pocket. Nothing changed. Prices didn’t drop as I lambasted my make-believe “Bruce.”
Maybe I’m angry at the wrong thing. After all, we’re told that higher gas prices are Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s fault, the diabolical little chump who invaded Ukraine and condemned me to a life filled with resentment for “Bruce.”
I need a legitimate enemy. Like the one that Rocky and Bullwinkle had to contend with. Remember Boris Badenov and his female co-conspirator Natasha? They were useful opponents to Rocky the squirrel and his moose buddy Bullwinkle. Taking orders from their “fearless leader” who frequently crafted situations to ensnare Rocky and his antlered sidekick, Boris and Natasha would be ideal substitutes for Bruce. That’s what I need. Boris and Natasha. Someone I can really pin these higher gas prices on, not policymakers in the White House.
Our President thinks he’s helping by blaming others. Maybe that’s helping, like another cartoon hero, Dudley Do-Right, the Canadian Mountie. In each episode he rescues his true love, Nell Fenwick, from the evil designs of Snidely Whiplash when she can’t pay the rent. That’s like us when we can’t afford gas. So, Snidely decides to exact justice from Nell by tying her to a train track until she pays her rent. “Never fear, Dudley is here.” The hero rushes to her rescue. Unfortunately, for Dudley, Nell prefers his horse.
I’m so glad President Dudley is rushing to our rescue. Those evil oil CEOs have tied us to the tracks. Thank goodness our real life “Dudley” is demanding that they increase production. But we’ll probably wind up liking the horse more than all those demands will accomplish.
In fact, the entire discussion of what’s behind the huge spike in gas prices has nothing to do with cartoon characters, although our President acts more like them than a rational thinker.
America is facing a classic supply and demand situation. There is an abundance of post-Covid-19 demand in America to get out and travel. We are sick and tired of being sequestered, masked, closed down, and lectured. So, we want to travel. That means we need fuel. The problem is supply.
Of course, it takes oil, which in turn requires exploration to drill and pump it to be refined. That’s why we need more pipelines across the nation to pump that oil to refineries to be refined into gasoline for our cars, trucks and planes. Oh, did I mention that currently, our refineries are at 94 percent capacity? In fact, as of 2021, there were a total of 129 operable refineries in the U.S. And while there are newer ones that are smaller, the newest refinery with significant downstream unit capacity is Marathon’s facility in Garyville, Louisiana that came online in 1977, 45 years ago. Now Dudley is trying to save us without the expanded throughput we need to produce the gas we want in sufficient quantities to meet demand and in the process mitigate costs. Too bad he has cancelled pipelines and put oil-rich ANWAR off limits. Begging other unfriendly countries for oil is better. Right?
So, who should we really blame for this mess? How about the fellow who invented supply and demand? Sir James Steuart was the first person to use the term “supply and demand” in his 1796 work, Inquiry into the Principles of Political Economy. And of course, Adam Smith, John Locke, and Alfred Marshall added their two cents to the theory. We could blame them. If there were no such thing as supply and demand, all would be fine, right?
But why get bogged down in economic theory when it’s so much easier to blame Vladimir Putin, or the oil barons, like Bruce, or Wall Street investors. And of course, let’s not forget the Saudis. We need to blame them too. And while we’re at it, let’s blame you and me for not buying electric cars. That’s it! We’re to blame, greedy little commuters, businesspeople, and vacationers, are we.
No reason to focused on supply and demand when we can pin the problems on Boris and Natasha, Snidely Whiplash, Bruce, you, me, and evil oil sheiks! Blame them all. Heaven forbid, that we pump more oil, approve construction of newer refineries, build new pipelines, and return to energy independence! Nope. We’ll just wait for Dudley to untie us with empty demands.
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