I think this topic has run its course, and since politics were just thrown into the ring (thanks to TheK4Kid), I'm locking it.
Bergie
Sorry guys, my sense of humor just took over and I couldbn't help myself!
But I DO have a new idea on how to make BIG MONEY!!!!
Sean Hannity gave me the idea. A NEW TRAIN named the
"Stop O'---a Express!!!!
LOL!
Yep, life is tough all over.My company downsized and cut my salary almost in half.
Now I only make $300,000 per year for doing essentially nothing( "im a campaign tactics consultant to the Democratic Party), but they really ticked me off when they took my 25 foot by 30 foot HO layout out of the lunchroom and it was conveniently located next to the junk food machines.Now it's in the executives lounge next to the bar.Then they took my taxpayer paid for SUV ( and gas too) away from me.Now I have to walk almost 3 blocks to the LHS!!!What a bummer when it rains!!!!
The final insult was when they told me I could no longer go over to the LHS shop and play with the trains over there or go railfanning on "company time."
They really cracked down on me!
I start work at 9 am, go on morning break at 9:01 to 11:01, the go on lunch break from from 11:01 to 1:01, the work until 1:02, and go on aftrnoon break from 1:02 until 3:29 pm, then work until 3:30 pm, and then go home!
It's TOUGH GRUELING job, but somebody has to do it!
Dag nabbing Democrats, they'l take it all away from you fellas, so WATCH OUT!!!!
Hey looookeeeeee over there, there's John McCain!!!
Psssssst hey John, do you need a campaign tactics advisor???You say you like my trains do you????Hey John, come on over here , let's talk!!!!
You say I can put my trains in the lunchroom eh???Yeah John, walking 3 blocks to the LHS is tough on an old man like me.You say I can use the Lincoln Towncar over there eh???
It's full of gas too eh???Oh, okay, if it runs low on fuel just use that John Doe taxpayer credit card to fill it back up you say?
Yeah fellas it's just REAL TTOUGH all over!!!
IF ---- You all believe this I have an HO layout, triple decked, and 125 feet by 50 feet I'll sell you too!!!!
I have been listening to the oil use and milage driven statistics adn both are down signifigantely throughout the world except in nations where the fuel price is subsidized. I have read reports that expect the miles driven in the United States to be down 3% to 6%. In addition the average milage per gallon of fuel is rising dramatically. From what I have heard, the overall demand globally is down and headed lower.
OPEC came out today and expressed concerns about the future supply due to a lack of investment. The media jumped all over the story and claimed that this was justification for higher prices. When you read more of the story, OPEC expressed concerns about justifying increased supply due to falling demand. Apparently someone at OPEC is concerned the the prices have been too high for too long and that alternatives are being more feasible. The US is livid and looking to any alternative to lower energy prices. I think that the price of oil will drop because the commidities market is an unjustifed bubble. If it is not a bubble it will only be because the US has failed to develop its own resources.
loathar wrote: Angus99 wrote: Saudi Arabia and other OPEC countries signalled short term increases in production - with virtually no impact on price. The only debate currently occupying our scenario planners is the question of how long it will take gas price to double again. These are the two things that are really bugging me. When the supply goes up, the prices are staying high. (artificially??)Look at how many decades it took for gas to hit $1. Then it took less than a decade to hit $2. Then less than 5 years for $3. Now it's gone to $4 in less than a year. And probably up to $5 in the next 6 months. You start expecting it to go up 10 cents/month for the rest of your life and that's a future that doesn't seem real rosy to me. It won't be long before our economy looks like Germany's did before WWII.
Angus99 wrote: Saudi Arabia and other OPEC countries signalled short term increases in production - with virtually no impact on price. The only debate currently occupying our scenario planners is the question of how long it will take gas price to double again.
Saudi Arabia and other OPEC countries signalled short term increases in production - with virtually no impact on price.
The only debate currently occupying our scenario planners is the question of how long it will take gas price to double again.
These are the two things that are really bugging me. When the supply goes up, the prices are staying high. (artificially??)
Look at how many decades it took for gas to hit $1. Then it took less than a decade to hit $2. Then less than 5 years for $3. Now it's gone to $4 in less than a year. And probably up to $5 in the next 6 months. You start expecting it to go up 10 cents/month for the rest of your life and that's a future that doesn't seem real rosy to me. It won't be long before our economy looks like Germany's did before WWII.
ouengr wrote the following post at 06-30-2008 10:34 PM:
I have seen and read a number of models predicitng all sorts of scenarios for the oil market. I have haeard several analysts say that the oil market is highly unstable and a signifigant downward force would break the bubble. I have heard the exact opposite as well. Truthfully, no one on this planet can tell you for sure.
I know that a couple of years ago I was watching the real estate market and there were analysts who said that the gravy train would continue forever. Others thought that the market was overblown. I was in the second catagory. The price of a good can only go so high before alternatives become practical. If the markets sense that we are all looking to alternatives, then the market will shift.
Right now we are dealing with a bubble in the market. Individuals invested in the dot com bubble and then went to real estate. Now they are ar commidities whether oil, grains, etc. Some of the speculators are afraid that they will get caught short and are starting to pull back. Some of the reportst that I have read indicate that the new commidties dollars are down singifigantely. At this point, I would not put one red cent in the commidities market. Simply put, everyone is there and competing for dwendling profits. I am looking at other investment sectors. If the areas that I am interested in investng in become the next thing, I will sell out of them. The hard part is not knowing when the bubble will burst
Demand is not down. Globally, it's increasing at the fastest rate ever recorded. Demand is flattening in the US - the US is no longer the only 500lb consumer gorilla at the global table. That's the key point about comparing this to the energy crisis of the 70's - that was a political event, and did not reflect the real price of oil as set by the law of supply and demand. This time, it's all about supply and demand. In my previous post, I noted that the increase in cost for fuel for airlines means they would have to quintuple profitability to achieve last year's performance. It's fascinating to speculate the impacts on the rail industry - both positive and negative.
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/01/news/economy/oil_speculation/index.htm?cnn=yes
loathar wrote: SteamFreak wrote:I was reading a National Geographic article today about kids in Ghana burning the insulation off of wiring stripped from dead computers and breathing clouds of black, poisonous smoke just to make a few bucks from the scrap copper. NEWSFLASH! They're doing that here in Lawrenceburg Tn. I was at the dump the other day and there was dump truck sized load of wire insulation someone had stripped off with a razor knife to get at the copper. (guess they couldn't afford the diesel fuel to burn it.)
SteamFreak wrote:I was reading a National Geographic article today about kids in Ghana burning the insulation off of wiring stripped from dead computers and breathing clouds of black, poisonous smoke just to make a few bucks from the scrap copper.
NEWSFLASH! They're doing that here in Lawrenceburg Tn. I was at the dump the other day and there was dump truck sized load of wire insulation someone had stripped off with a razor knife to get at the copper. (guess they couldn't afford the diesel fuel to burn it.)
I'm sending Packers#1 to Tennessee to be your life coach.
Nelson
Ex-Southern 385 Being Hoisted
Detroit Too.. And it doesn't matter where the wire comes from. Some small businesses find they have no power and it's because someone pillaged the copper wiring from the side of the building. Only in this case, you aren't likely to see a truck load of wire insulation dumped anywhere, it's all gone up in a cloud of black smoke (to pay for another kind of smoke).
What most people don't relize is that there is a good amount of oil left, some examples are in Russia, Canada, Oil sands in canda or alaska. But one solution is more US drilling, Americans rely to heavilly on imported oil, from the middle east which, it seems like there is always a issue, like wars, fighting, and just unrest. Americans Should be happy that gas is not $8 a gallon like it is in European Countries like England. Personally I believe that this whole thing will blow over, but we will never see gas under $3 a gallon ever again. One thing that i'm asking myself is why are we wasting so much money in Iraq, and wasting gasoline in Iraq. One solution is Iraq Paying us back for what we have risked and done for there people, paying us back in the oil in Iraq, but hey will that ever happen? Oil Will hold out for 150 years i bet, and we will gradually decrease the use of it, until we use other sources of energy. Also the USA has ALOT of coal, coal can not only be used for energy, but can be exported to other countries. There will never Be a clean coal, but we can make it "cleaner", by using filters, and other ways. Nuclear energy doesn't look so bad ethier, people are just afaird of another Three Mile Island.
Well just my view on this topic.
Tjsingle
Right now we are dealing with a bubble in the market. Individuals invested in the dot com bubble and then went to real estate. Now they are ar commidities whether oil, grains, etc. Some of the speculators are afraid that they will get caught short and are starting to pull back. Some of the reportst that I have read indicate that the new commidties dollars are down singifigantely. At this point, I would not put one red cent in the commidities market. Simply put, everyone is there and competing for dwendling profits. I am looking at other investment sectors. If the areas that I am interested in investng in become the next thing, I will sell out of them. The hard part is not knowing when the bubble will burst.
The oil market will bust. The world supply is growing and demand is down signifigantely. Many OPEC nations have expressed concerns about the global glut of oil. Libya had stated that they want to cut production to avoid a crash. OPEC leadership said a few weeks ago the the economic models they use indicate that there is no reason for oil to be more than $60/barrel. When the oil executive testified before Congress one of them stated that the oil market indicators show oil at $35 to $70 a barrel. Why is the market so high? Right now many people are investing in the market out of the belief that they are a safe refuge during challenging times. The second that investors feel confident in other investments or feel that the commidities market will fall they will sell out of commodities. The commodites market has historically not been the best place to make money and is described by my financial analyst as gambling by another name. My understanding is that the president of OPEC expected the market prices to rise due to speculation and not market fundementals. The situation that we face right now globally is a maket where demand is falling, reserves are growings, and supply is increasing while prices continue to increase.
There are a few things that Congress could do today but is unlikly to do to stablize things. One is make the tax cuts permanent. Many investors are scared about the outcome of the elections and are not willing to take long term investments out of fears of new regulation. The second thing we could do is continue domestic energy production for both renewable and conventional sources. We need domestic production of conventional energy. If we tap our own resoureces we can take a lot of fear out of the market and calm things down. The oil does not have to be available today. I just needs to be in the pipeline in the near future. If we stated drilling today within the continent we could have additional oil within six months to a year. Will it solve the problem? No but it will help. We also need to reauthorize the regulations allowing for the construction of wind farms which expire early next year. No matter how the election turns out this fall we need to be very aware of the causes for the great depression. We face challenges much as we did in the 30's. Government meddling and threats turned a downturn into a depression. We can avoid this by limiting the power of government.
The world is full of challenges right now and I doubt that the issues we face today will be the leading issue on our minds six months or three years from now. We need to calm down and scale back so that we control our spending. The next few months or years will not be as easy as time in the past. Hopefully we can take this opportunity to realize the we need to live within our means both personally and governmentally. As a nation, we have been on a drunken spendng spree for decades and we cannot afford to continue this way. We need to be stewards our of personal fortunes and our liberty.
Dave Vollmer wrote:I think a modicum of optimism will do us all some good. Might be nice to turn off CNN or Foxnews for a day and turn a deaf ear to the fear-mongering. After all, we Americans still have it AMAZINGLY well. I've been to war zones and seen real suffering, and it's more than just having to sell your SUV for less than Blue Book.
I work in strategic planning for a large corporation, with global interests. Part of what we do is model future economic conditions - obviously, the reason being trying to predict trends that will impact our profitability. No surprise there. I referenced that site because aspects of the supporting data, particularly the petroleum production data and curves, have fed some of our scenario development. It is most certainly not all the snake eating its tale - the data comes from many, many reliable and authoritative sources.
You can take shots at the authors of that site - I won't argue about its tone. If you want to dismiss all of it, feel free.
However, I'll share that there is no scenario in our modelling, currently, where the price of gas drops significantly in the future. We build and use statistical models that manage tens of thousands of variables - and leverage significant computing power to predict such costs. The key difference between this energy crisis and previous ones is the global stage - in the past, the US was the clear and only mega-consumer. Now, four decades of consumption later, there are industrial engines in China and India that will require similar or greater levels of energy - I'm not agreeing with the end of the world scenario, but if you can't force yourself to look dispassionately at the impacts of the industrialization of China on global oil resources, you're hiding from the facts. The issue of global peak production capabilities is very, very real - in the last two weeks, both Saudi Arabia and other OPEC countries signalled short term increases in production - with virtually no impact on price.
The only debate currently occupying our scenario planners is the question of how long it will take gas price to double again. Is our analysis perfect, or infallible? Of course not. But the problem with the "this too shall pass" philosophy is sometimes, it doesn't.
Your mileage may (literally) vary. :)
Chris
Kansas City
sfcouple wrote:Wish those folks in DC could get together for a change and start doing something constructive instead of blaming everyone else for the economic problems we face.
<begin nastygram>
The people who CAN "do something constructive instead of blaming everyone else" are usually the ones who get driven out by the other residents of The System.
<end nastygram>
Despite the above, I have noticed that conservative Republicans are slightly more likely to do something helpful than any other group in politics. And ex-hippies are the least likely to do anything at all helpful. When voting, I look to eliminate the worst of the bunch. At this rate (1 Congressman per 2 years) I should be able to clean up the House of Representatives in 870 years !
loathar wrote:The sad thing is when domestic spending tanks like it has, the Fed changes how it counts things to artificially prop the numbers up. Groceries never used to be counted in domestic spending. To keep from having negative growth for 3 quarters in a row, (which would OFFICIALLY be a recession) the Fed counted groceries in the last quarters figures. What will they add next? Fuel spending?Unemployment is MUCH higher than the figures being told by the government. Those numbers only reflect people who are currently receiving unemployment. Those who have used up those benefits and still not found work aren't counted anymore. I've heard you can just about double any cities advertised unemployment figures and get an accurate number.9.5% in my city works out to almost 20% unemployment. (yes...Things ARE that bad...)Airlines announced today cutting over 20% of their routes. Wonder how many folks are going to lose their jobs due to that? The price of gas isn't what's bothering ME the most. It's the inability to find any kind of work so I can afford the privilege of paying $4/gallon to the nice, kind, helpful oil companies.
The sad thing is when domestic spending tanks like it has, the Fed changes how it counts things to artificially prop the numbers up. Groceries never used to be counted in domestic spending. To keep from having negative growth for 3 quarters in a row, (which would OFFICIALLY be a recession) the Fed counted groceries in the last quarters figures. What will they add next? Fuel spending?
Unemployment is MUCH higher than the figures being told by the government. Those numbers only reflect people who are currently receiving unemployment. Those who have used up those benefits and still not found work aren't counted anymore. I've heard you can just about double any cities advertised unemployment figures and get an accurate number.9.5% in my city works out to almost 20% unemployment. (yes...Things ARE that bad...)
Airlines announced today cutting over 20% of their routes. Wonder how many folks are going to lose their jobs due to that? The price of gas isn't what's bothering ME the most. It's the inability to find any kind of work so I can afford the privilege of paying $4/gallon to the nice, kind, helpful oil companies.
The unemployment rate as generated by the feds is basically done by an opinion poll, where as state and locality rates are typcially generated off of data such as claim filings, but even then most economists still agree about what is considered full employment based off of the federal rate.
Some areas though are just getting hit harder than others, such as where you are at. For a while the state of West Virginia was running a pretty low state rate, with some counties, such as the one I live in, being below the federal rate. I don't doubt though we'll see an increase in the rate over the next few months, possibly hitting 6%, and probably won't see a reversal until next year.
I understand where you are coming from though, as I went through a period about 7 years ago when I couldn't find any work, was caught up in the dot com bubble burst, and was very frustrated with what was available. Hopefully, with time, this slow down will go like most all others and pass within a year. Unfortunately, I don't think there's much the government can really do right now to speed things up.
Best of luck with your searching though, and especially with the care of your mother.
My take...
I firmly believe this "oil crisis" is a manufactured one caused by speculation. Investors can predict any price they want for oil and they will invariable drive the price up to that level. It's a self-licking ice cream cone. That would be like me, the meteorologist, predicting rain tomorrow and then making the clouds and the rain myself.
The "world food crisis" is similarly manufactured through a combination of commodities speculation and rising fuel prices (see the previous paragraph). That and now we're making fuel from food (ethanol).
To add to the "self-licking" aspect of this ice cream cone, the media is there shouting in our ear that the bottom has dropped out and we're all doomed!
I'll believe it when I see the bread lines, the mass migrations, and the big investors jumping out of windows. This ain't 1929, or 1932, or even 1939.
Do I need to tighten my belt? Sure. Thankfully two and a half years ago I bought a Prius so I put maybe $60 worth of gas a month in that car. Yes, everything's more expensive, but I'm not going to wallow in self pity over it.
As a weather officer, I've always been paid as well or better as my civilian counterparts in the National Weather Service. Now that I have the PhD, though, I'm making less than I would on the outside. Still, I feel well compensated for my work even as my dollar goes less distance these days. My wife is still working in the USAF Reserve, so that bit helps. We talked about her maybe leaving the Reserves, but with the recent downturn we need her paycheck more than we did before, if for no other reason than to maintain our current standard of living. BTW, military pay tables are publically available if you're curious. I'm an O-4 with 12 years service and dependents.
We've been investing nearly 20% of our household income for the last 12 years in IRAs, mutual funds, money market accounts, education accounts for the kids, etc. They're not worth what I'd hoped they'd be worth right now, but thankfully I don't need to dip into them at the moment. Now, if I think in terms of dollar-cost averaging, if the market ever does recover I'll make out like a bandit.
This is probably more info than I would ordinarily share, but I see a broad spectrum of responses from "suck it up (including from a teen not supporting a family)" to "woe is me."
I think a modicum of optimism will do us all some good. Might be nice to turn off CNN or Foxnews for a day and turn a deaf ear to the fear-mongering. After all, we Americans still have it AMAZINGLY well. I've been to war zones and seen real suffering, and it's more than just having to sell your SUV for less than Blue Book.
Modeling the Rio Grande Southern First District circa 1938-1946 in HOn3.
Mntneer wrote: sfcouple wrote: Mntneer wrote: This economy isn't as horrible as it's made out to be (we're still in growth with relative low unemployment) but gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes, which is forcing us all to make changes in our spending habits. Well, not exactly. The Federal Reserve has estimated the GDP will grow 0.3% to 1.2% for the rest of the year. The feds also predicted the unemployment rate this year to be 5.3%, up from 4.6% from last year. And "gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes" Really! In other words, only the wealthy are not feeling the pain of higher gas prices. Well, yes, exactly. Growth is still growth, even though 0.3% to 1.2% is not much, it is still growth and better than consecutive quarters in the red. Also, typically, full employment has always been considered to be around 5%, so while 5.3% isn't great, it certainly isn't as bad as some of the other times we seen in the past 40 years. No need for the sarcasm either. My point concerning the cost of gas was simply meant to give a possible explanation as to what is driving much of the public opinion and consumer sentiment about the economy. Things may be viewed worse than they are because a larger percentage of the population are feeling the effects of the high gas prices. All other things being equal, were gas still at $2-$2.50 a gallon you probably wouldn't see the same opinion of the economy that we have with gas being at $4 a gallon.
sfcouple wrote: Mntneer wrote: This economy isn't as horrible as it's made out to be (we're still in growth with relative low unemployment) but gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes, which is forcing us all to make changes in our spending habits. Well, not exactly. The Federal Reserve has estimated the GDP will grow 0.3% to 1.2% for the rest of the year. The feds also predicted the unemployment rate this year to be 5.3%, up from 4.6% from last year. And "gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes" Really! In other words, only the wealthy are not feeling the pain of higher gas prices.
Mntneer wrote: This economy isn't as horrible as it's made out to be (we're still in growth with relative low unemployment) but gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes, which is forcing us all to make changes in our spending habits.
This economy isn't as horrible as it's made out to be (we're still in growth with relative low unemployment) but gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes, which is forcing us all to make changes in our spending habits.
Well, not exactly. The Federal Reserve has estimated the GDP will grow 0.3% to 1.2% for the rest of the year. The feds also predicted the unemployment rate this year to be 5.3%, up from 4.6% from last year. And "gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes" Really! In other words, only the wealthy are not feeling the pain of higher gas prices.
Well, yes, exactly. Growth is still growth, even though 0.3% to 1.2% is not much, it is still growth and better than consecutive quarters in the red. Also, typically, full employment has always been considered to be around 5%, so while 5.3% isn't great, it certainly isn't as bad as some of the other times we seen in the past 40 years.
No need for the sarcasm either. My point concerning the cost of gas was simply meant to give a possible explanation as to what is driving much of the public opinion and consumer sentiment about the economy. Things may be viewed worse than they are because a larger percentage of the population are feeling the effects of the high gas prices. All other things being equal, were gas still at $2-$2.50 a gallon you probably wouldn't see the same opinion of the economy that we have with gas being at $4 a gallon.
sfcouple wrote: Mntneer wrote:This economy isn't as horrible as it's made out to be (we're still in growth with relative low unemployment) but gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes, which is forcing us all to make changes in our spending habits. Well, not exactly. The Federal Reserve has estimated the GDP will grow 0.3% to 1.2% for the rest of the year. The feds also predicted the unemployement rate this year to be 5.3%, up from 4.6% from last year. And "gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes" Really! In other words, only the wealthy are not feeling the pain of higher gas prices.
Mntneer wrote:This economy isn't as horrible as it's made out to be (we're still in growth with relative low unemployment) but gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes, which is forcing us all to make changes in our spending habits.
Well, not exactly. The Federal Reserve has estimated the GDP will grow 0.3% to 1.2% for the rest of the year. The feds also predicted the unemployement rate this year to be 5.3%, up from 4.6% from last year. And "gas prices are being felt the most by the lower and middle classes" Really! In other words, only the wealthy are not feeling the pain of higher gas prices.
Modeling HO Freelance Logging Railroad.
Angus99 wrote:There's a very provocative take on the situation at this link: it's not a bubble, it's math and economics. Our country, and our world, are going to go through some real changes:http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/Index.html>
There's a very provocative take on the situation at this link: it's not a bubble, it's math and economics. Our country, and our world, are going to go through some real changes:
http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/Index.html>
Commercial fertilizers are made from ammonia, which is made from natural gas, which is also peaking in the near future.
My wife and I just got home from a trip to Myrtle Beach. With the kids and the luggage we had to take my Suburban. $140 to get down there, about $120 once there and another $120 to get home. Fortunately the place we stay at is owned by our company and costs us nothing, because otherwise we would not have gone so far and spent so much in gas money alone. It did though keep us eating in more than going out for dinner, which IMO is a good thing regardless.
And for us young'ens out here, with parents and grandparents on fixed incomes, help them out, consolidate with them. For example, go to the store for them, have them over for dinner more often, etc.
A fixed income is usually meant to be a pension or an annuity that is not tied to the consumer price index. Most government pensions are tied to the CPI at some point, often when the years of employment and age total something like 80, 85, or whatever. At least, that is the way it works for the civil service in Canada, and it also pertains to the RCMP and members of the Armed Forces.
What that means is, once you total 85 years of a combination of age and years of service, your pension/annuity becomes eligible for annual adjustments commensurate with the portions of the pay raises that the civil service, or those deemed to be employed by the civil service, get with each new collective agreement. While your employment is not exactly fixed, it is only keeping up with inflation. Those actually still working may get more, so their earning power ostensibly rises over yours.
But there's more. Some folks sign contracts for a certain remuneration over a period of time for work performed. As time goes on, and the contract ages (say five years), your salaried coworkers may get annual pay raises, but you are stuck with your rate of pay for the duration of your contract. Also, even if you have a fairly attractive pension, but you cannot meet the 85 years situation (as I am in until this calendar year), you get your base rate of pension year after year with no hedge against inflation. So, while the civil service will get 2.something percent this year, say, I get nothing and have to decide which expenses have a higher priority. Gas is costing me much more on my "fixed" income, so nice-to-have stuff has to be put off or done without altogether.
I have never understood what "fixed income" means..
"im on a fixed income"
"try living on a fixed income"..
isnt everyone on a fixed income?
some are "fixed" at $10,000 a year, others at $100,000 a year..but isnt everyones income basically "fixed"? (unless you get a new job or something.) but thats not always an option either..most people's income is "fixed" and cant go significantly higher..whatever that income might be, high or low..
so what does it mean exactly when someone says "im on a fixed income"?..I have never understood the term.
thanks,
Scot
http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/Index.html
America is no longer the only voracious consumer of petroleum. The world's supply is finite. Gas prices will not be coming down again, other than in reaction to transient increases in tactical supply.
Agree or disagree with the specifics of the assessment on the page (and I believe the page certainly paints absolute worst case scenarios), but the laws of supply and demand will ultimately triumph. Interesting to speculate on how the rail industry is going to be affected in the next decade.
Follow the links on the page with regard to source documentation from the diverse fields of geology, finance, etc. Some really interesting reading. Again, I'm not saying it's the only interpretation of events, but I think the situation is more serious than most people realize.
I also subscribe to Aviation Week. Interesting statistic from a previous week's investment column: In 2007, the combined profit in the aviation industry from both freight and passenger operations was about $3.2 billion. So far, in 2008, the incremental cost of fuel due to cost increases has been $15 billion. Would be curious to see the same statistics for the railroads.
Tommy0218 wrote: loathar wrote: I've been out of work for almost 1 1/2 years! That leaves ZERO $$$ for the layout! A can of paint or a copy of MR is a cause for celebration for me.I've got 10 years management experience and I can't even get a job stocking grocery store shelves on third shift! I've applied at about 50 places in the last 3 weeks. Got ONE call for an interview. A job I was REALLY qualified for. I got 2 sentences out of my mouth and the woman interviewing me called out to the rest of the people in the office-LOOKY HERE! WE GOT US A OHIO YANKEE LOOKIN FER WERK!!!I REALLY frickin hate living in the South!!Loathar,You have to consider the source, the woman doing the interview is just a plain jane hillbilly. Half of the rednecks are extremely ignorant to the outside world and then you have the other percentage who have primitive mentality and very limited vocabulary.YeeeeHaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwww !!!! (If the moderator of this thread feels that my posting is inappropriate, then please feel free to contact me via email)
loathar wrote: I've been out of work for almost 1 1/2 years! That leaves ZERO $$$ for the layout! A can of paint or a copy of MR is a cause for celebration for me.I've got 10 years management experience and I can't even get a job stocking grocery store shelves on third shift! I've applied at about 50 places in the last 3 weeks. Got ONE call for an interview. A job I was REALLY qualified for. I got 2 sentences out of my mouth and the woman interviewing me called out to the rest of the people in the office-LOOKY HERE! WE GOT US A OHIO YANKEE LOOKIN FER WERK!!!I REALLY frickin hate living in the South!!
I've been out of work for almost 1 1/2 years! That leaves ZERO $$$ for the layout! A can of paint or a copy of MR is a cause for celebration for me.I've got 10 years management experience and I can't even get a job stocking grocery store shelves on third shift! I've applied at about 50 places in the last 3 weeks. Got ONE call for an interview. A job I was REALLY qualified for. I got 2 sentences out of my mouth and the woman interviewing me called out to the rest of the people in the office-LOOKY HERE! WE GOT US A OHIO YANKEE LOOKIN FER WERK!!!I REALLY frickin hate living in the South!!
Loathar,
You have to consider the source, the woman doing the interview is just a plain jane hillbilly. Half of the rednecks are extremely ignorant to the outside world and then you have the other percentage who have primitive mentality and very limited vocabulary.
YeeeeHaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwww !!!!
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