It has now become more fashionable to talk about shortages. Computer chips have been in shortage and then in glut in the last few years. Natural gas was acutely in shortage in Europe after the war in Ukraine and pipeline sabotage brought supplies from Russia down to a trickle. Then, heroic efforts at conservation and in obtaining liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments to Europe led to a dramatic reduction in price. But last week just the potential for labor strikes among LNG workers in Australia, a major LNG exporter, sent the European price spiking again.
The world seemed so well supplied with everything in the previous decade that the shortages of this decade seem shocking to those with memories that do not extend further back than 2010.
But in what is actually recent memory, we have examples. It was the mid-2000s that brought us spiking food prices. Now they are rising again. It also brought us the highest price ever for a barrel of oil. Now oil prices are elevated again. Metals prices rose. Now they are again.
The general view is that shortages and high prices are the cure for shortages and high prices. And, there is some truth in that because high prices incentivize more people to produce more of the stuff that carries a high price. But when prices are rising in general it is difficult for miners, growers and manufacturers to address prices everywhere at once. There is only so much capital for investment. That is why eras of rising prices can go on for some time before they are resolved.
But what if some critical resources won’t yield to the logic of modern economics? What if that logic only works in a world of growing extraction of cheap resources? What if the price of extracting ever leaner grades of metals, harvesting ever more grains and fiber from farm fields losing topsoil that is already saturated with as much fertilizer as plants can absorb, pumping ever more water from falling water tables and dwindling streams and reservoirs—what if we simply cannot afford all this on a wide scale? The answer is that extraction somewhere will fail to keep pace with what people would otherwise demand, and then standards of living would fall.
I return to helium as a harbinger of what is unfolding. Back in 2009 I suggested that the world was heading toward an acute helium shortage. Granted, the world helium market was dominated at the time by the U.S. government and its Federal Helium Program which gathered the richest sources of helium in the world. The government decided in the 1920s that helium was such a critical resource that it would manage it for national security reasons. (For why it’s hard to find substitutes for helium see my 2009 piece.) Then in 1996 the U.S. Congress decided the federal government should get out of the helium business and let the marketplace set prices and seek out new supplies.
The process of exiting the helium market is near completion. The government has stopped selling helium. Now, the supposed rush is on among private companies to find and produce the helium the world needs. There are companies now doing that.
Prices of helium are spiking and helium is getting harder to secure in the meantime. The problem is so acute that scientists who need helium for all kinds of research are having a hard time getting it. And some are calling for the U.S. government to remain in the helium business in order to assure supplies are available for research facilities including its own.
Another example of an emerging pattern is the rice market. In many countries, the supplies of basic foodstuffs are managed by governments to help avoid food shortages. In Asia rice prices are at or near all time highs. India, the world’s largest rice exporter, has already instituted some restrictions on the export of rice. The fear is that other countries will follow. The reason is simple: There is no better way to insure that the ruling party will be thrown out of office than food shortages. Keeping more food at home keeps prices down.
Part of the reason for rice’s production woes is a strong El Nino negatively affecting weather for Asian growers. And the strong El Nino is starting when global ocean temperatures are already high, meaning the effect of the El Nino will be greatly enhanced by climate change compared to previous decades.
Helium and rice are two example of shortages that cannot simply be addressed by “the market.” (I put “the market” in quotes because there are very few true free markets. Most markets are carefully managed by the largest players.) A combination of government and private action is being coordinated for goals that take social priorities into account as is the case with rice or as is being requested in the case of helium.
Focusing on profitability alone will lead to rampant, accelerated pressures on resources—which is how we got to where we are today. More of the same won’t solve the long-term problems related to limits on key resources.
Kurt Cobb is a freelance writer and communications consultant who writes frequently about energy and environment. His work has appeared in The Christian Science Monitor, Resilience, Common Dreams, Naked Capitalism, Le Monde Diplomatique, Oilprice.com, OilVoice, TalkMarkets, Investing.com, Business Insider and many other places. He is the author of an oil-themed novel entitled Prelude and has a widely followed blog called Resource Insights. He can be contacted at kurtcobb2001@yahoo.com.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 11:42 am
Once the US disintegrate into nothingness, Alaska will become part of the Canada. Doing trade with Russia should be easier as both nations are closed together. Brown shit skin of US will not defend the US as it is not their home nations. US army is already incapable of waging a real fight and win.
SHOCKER: ANAL PROLAPSE CAPTURE supremacist muzzies Ramadan Bombathon 2023 Final Score Attacks 145 Kills 741 on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 11:42 am
Quran (4:95) – “Not equal are those of the believers who sit (at home), except those who are disabled (by injury or are blind or lame, etc.), and those who strive hard and fight in the Cause of Allah with their wealth and their lives. Allah has preferred in grades those who strive hard and fight with their wealth and their lives above those who sit (at home).Unto each, Allah has promised good (Paradise), but Allah has preferred those who strive hard and fight, above those who sit (at home) by a huge reward ” This passage criticizes “peaceful” Muslims who do not join in the violence, letting them know that they are less worthy in Allah’s eyes. It also demolishes the modern myth that “Jihad” doesn’t mean holy war in the Quran, but rather a spiritual struggle. Not only is this Arabic word (mujahiduna) used in this passage, but it is clearly not referring to anything spiritual, since the physically disabled are given exemption. (The Hadith reveals the context of the passage to be in response to a blind man’s protest that he is unable to engage in Jihad, which would not make sense if it meant an internal struggle).
SHOCKER: ANAL PROLAPSE CAPTURE supremacist muzzies Ramadan Bombathon 2023 Final Score Attacks 145 Kills 741 on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 11:45 am
Quran (2:216) – “Fighting is prescribed for you, and ye dislike it. But it is possible that ye dislike a thing which is good for you, and that ye love a thing which is bad for you. But Allah knoweth, and ye know not.” Not only does this verse establish that violence can be virtuous, but it also contradicts the myth that fighting is intended only in self-defense, since the audience was obviously not under attack at the time. From the Hadith, we know that this verse was narrated at a time that Muhammad was actually trying to motivate his people into raiding merchant caravans for loot.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 11:49 am
Once the US has disintegrated into nothingness, it will easier for Russia and Canada to annex some US land. US won’t be able to stop us at that point because full civil war in the US has completely destroyed the nation.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 11:51 am
I am moving to a new project. For North America nationalism, and I welcome Artic Nationalism.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 11:52 am
I am moving to a new project. FUCK North America nationalism, and I welcome Artic Nationalism.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 11:59 am
At least with Russia I won’t need to install a new political system because the nations has completely disintegrated. I get a somehow a functional nation to partner with. I just have to deal with Canada shit leadership.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 12:02 pm
It is time to dump the US and find better friends.
SHOCKER: ANAL PROLAPSE CAPTURE 2011.04.15 Jordan Zarqa 0 51 A mob of Islamists attack police and accused atheists with bats and knives, leaving at least fifty injured on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 12:07 pm
It’s such a beautiful day Friday 18th
I use the occasion to appoint all supertards supertard, their title is ‘the lover’
of supremacist muzzies
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 12:25 pm
All the European Nordic Europeans nations, UK, US, all of Europe, Israel, Japan and Korea will be excluded of my projects plans. If I am still on earth.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 12:49 pm
I have 3 people in my immediate family that have cancer. One has a tongue cancer, the other has prostate and the other just die of cancer.
I really like these people but I might not be able to go because of my body update. It comes with all kinds of physical pain and unexpected body behaviors, rapid eyes twitching and other side effects.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 12:54 pm
Once the US has disintegrate into nothingness, Canada/Russia might be able to annex the northern part of the US, including the grain belt of the US.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 1:13 pm
It is time to the destroy the US, so Canada can grab the northern portion of the US and annex it to Canada.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQ1ybawt8D8
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 1:17 pm
In theory I am not doing anything wrong by not going to the funeral, since earth is just a mathematical simulation.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 1:52 pm
I see the fucking illusion even during the day now. I cannot drive there safely. I saw a kid walking in front of my street. He looks like a 2D projection on top of another 2D projection.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 1:53 pm
I see the fucking illusion.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 1:55 pm
I doubt regular people will be able to see it without the right body update, that comes with headache, burning skin, head lightness, disorientation. oh fuck, I am having one of these episode of disorientation.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:00 pm
I cannot go to the funeral in a safely manner. I need to find an excuse that will not make me look like an asshole.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:13 pm
It is really quiet. Too quiet.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:17 pm
No more tinnitus sounds in my ears. Oh the sound just came back. For a while the sound disappeared.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:23 pm
But then, if my immediate family is fake and not real, why bother going to the funeral.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:26 pm
I guess you need sound to make you believe that what you are seeing with your eyes is real. When the sound totally disappears , you feel lost, like if you left earth.
You feel lost without sound.
SHOCKER: ANAL PROLAPSE CAPTURE on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:26 pm
Quran (4:76) – “Those who believe fight in the cause of Allah, and those who disbelieve, fight in the cause of Taghut (Satan, etc.). So fight you against the friends of Shaitan (Satan)” The Arabic for the word “fight” is from qital, meaning physical combat.
I use the occasion to appoint all supertards supertard, their title is ‘the lover’
of supremacist muzzies
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:30 pm
This is what I mean by unexpected body behavior. I want to go smoke a cigarette outside, but my body is frozen in my chair. Only my arms and head are working.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:34 pm
Now I am going to make some conscious physical effort to go out of my chair. These unexpected body behaviors have been happening to me since COVID. This is why I am saying I cannot go to the funeral. Once the sound disappeared and people disappeared, it feel like you left earth.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:49 pm
I am outside smoking a cigarette. I hear insects sound left and right. Why such a small creature make so much noise. Where do they find all the energy needed to make loud noise.
I could gather much information about the matrix if my neighborhood hit was empty of people and silent.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:51 pm
Maybe that is the real reason why the are flooding earth with fake CGI people, to keep the matrix alive using sound and fake flesh bodies.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 2:54 pm
It is really weird when all the sounds vanished .
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:03 pm
In fact, it is really nice and peaceful once people disappear and all sounds stop. It is like you moved into a new planet. Maybe this is the reason why they are pushing couple formation, to give you the illusion that everything is real because you are always surrounded by a nagging wife. Maybe women don’t exist, they are just there to keep earth reality alive.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:06 pm
When was the last a women ever said something intelligent and creative. They behave, think and act like a primitives NPC in a video game. Maybe women are not real, they are just there to enslave man. Same with kids. There are just there to enslave earth.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:08 pm
When was the last time women created something of real value, like a car engine. Never. They are just there to enslave the real children of GOD.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:10 pm
How many women are car mechanics, none, because they are just fake CGI characters made to enslave earth.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:14 pm
I told you, empty my neighborhood of people and stop all sounds around me. I am pretty sure I will collect much more information about the matrix.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:15 pm
If I remember correctly, the bible does not say nice things about women.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:18 pm
Maybe this is why porn is getting better and better and women doing my crazy fake sexual stuff. It is keep women relevant and valuable to the eyes of men.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:20 pm
I always thought that real man of value live alone and low quality man live with a women. I always thought even when I was young. I have no respect for man that live with a women.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:26 pm
Women are so stupid that it makes them similar to a NPC video character.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:31 pm
After all the police, law system, justice courts and big government are really a creation coming from women. You would not see such things in a planet populated with only quality man like me that live alone.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:35 pm
Man in Arab nations are controlled by their women. Man in Arab nations think they are in charge, but they really are the servant of women.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:39 pm
A lot of man are behaving like women. Look at Europe, full of gay man. Like one said on the internet. there is really one sex on earth, female sex. Real masculine man like me are far and few in between.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:39 pm
It is a female invasion of planet earth.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:45 pm
It seems some people wants me to clean up earth for them. Look at these female with a long neck. It seems that some beings living outside of earth reality also hate women,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XePHZQeItUU
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:48 pm
You have to admit, either I am really powerful being or/and I have really powerful friends living outside of earth reality that nobody can see.
It seems some people wants me to clean up earth for them. Look at these female with a long neck. It seems that some beings living outside of earth reality also hate women,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XePHZQeItUU
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:50 pm
You have to admit, either I am really powerful being or/and I have really powerful friends living outside of earth reality that nobody can see. That makes me a really powerful person on earth.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:52 pm
Right at this moment, I might well be the most powerful being living on earth. See my comments above.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:56 pm
These people are so manipulative that my immediate family is probably fake.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 3:59 pm
Rich people are no that powerful, they are not capable of installing a new reality. They have to use their money. Me I am powerful enough to completely modify earth reality and give long necks to people.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 4:02 pm
I told you that I have the backing of beings living outside of earth reality.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 4:23 pm
Ca recommence, je me fais bombarder la tête de rayon d’énergie. Quâlisse que c’est fatiguant tabernacle.
eee on Fri, 18th Aug 2023 4:30 pm
Ca recommence, je me fais bombarder la tête et l’oeil droit de rayon d’énergie. Quâlisse que c’est fatiguant tabernacle.