The Washington Outsider

Oil Insights: Economic Growth or Sustainability?

1/8/2015

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As snowy Middle Eastern weather forces an armistice in the Syrian Civil War, frigid temperatures in America are matched by a freeze in the collapse of oil prices.  For the Middle East, resolving instability in the global energy market and threats to regional security would do a great deal to help the region move forward in its development.  That said, oil offers the world a valuable lesson when it comes to economic sustainability.

When oil is up, oil-producing countries find themselves able to spend on whatever priorities their governments deem worthy.  When oil is down, oil-consuming countries see much of the benefit in terms of lower costs and higher consumption. Conversely, there is great human suffering whether oil is up or down in our global economy where sustainability takes a backseat to growth at all costs.

For a country like the United States, lower oil prices are good for most Americans, except for those who depend on the oil industry for a living, because it allows them to consume more.  When that consumption benefits American goods and businesses, the overall US economy wins.  

Unfortunately, lower oil prices jeopardize the sustainability of the American oil industry.  After all, a booming industry also creates consumption and stagnant economy suppresses demand.
By many accounts, Middle Eastern oil-producers, Saudi Arabia in particular, are able to produce a barrel of oil for just a few dollars.  In a truly global free market system, the US oil industry would be gladly sacrificed in order to serve the much broader interest of cheap energy for all.  

If Americans were free trade purists, the US would have long ago pursued a “free trade” zone with Middle Eastern oil-producers that levied the threat of tariffs on foreign oil to open Middle Eastern markets to tariff-free US manufactured goods.  

In theory, cheap oil would flow to the US while the US would provide manufactured goods that would support the oil industry in the Middle East.  In turn, the Middle Eastern governments would fill their coffers with oil revenue and the United States would tax consumption of oil in order to pay for government services, e.g. gas taxes for maintain the roads.

That said, the issue with allowing the American oil industry to die during the 1980’s or the 1990’s in favor of cheap crude would have been a lack of energy security.  Not only would OPEC have the ability to dictate oil prices, which it did have the ability to strongly influence global oil prices until a few years ago, the US would not have the domestic capacity to provide for our energy needs when production was disrupted due to political instability.

(For those in the Middle East, importing American goods/Chinese goods would undermine the development of local manufacturers, thus only those involved in the oil industry would financially benefit from such an agreement.  In essence, much of the population would be locked out of the global economy.  That is, unless Middle Eastern governments subsidized their local industries as China did.  It would also mean Americans would become consumers of oil, yet lose their ability to pay for that oil through a lack of well-paying manufacturing jobs.)  

With that in mind, it is important to recognize the rationale for pursuing “free trade” is to open new markets in order to increase consumption of goods and services.  Increasing the value of a product or service, which is most easily done by reducing its cost, spurs increased consumption. 

Because all consumption and production are finite in the real world, at certain points in time increasing consumption is not possible.  When consumption cannot be increased, profit growth must be achieved by reducing the cost of production. 

Reduced production costs, of course, must be taken from somewhere.  If cost-cutting measures focus on labor, fewer workers and/lower wages harm consumption.  This is why so many US manufacturing jobs were shipped off to China where labor costs are far lower and workers did not spend as much as Americans.  In turn, worker-consumers lost much of their ability to consume.  In essence, the continual need to increase growth through consumption eventually leads to decreased production, which forces decreased consumption, i.e. economic collapse.  

When it comes to oil, excessive production does lower the price of oil; however, it also drives growth of the economy, which drives inflation, i.e. increased costs.  Because oil is a finite resource and overuse of oil comes with other costs, reducing expenses through reduced operational costs eventually becomes necessary.  

In essence, this means finding ways to reduce workers, equipment, expensive, i.e. pay supplier less, etc.  In other words, oil companies need to increase their profit by cannibalizing off the profit of their workers, supplier, consumers, and so on.  Over time, starving other industries and consumers of their ability to consume, i.e. to have well-paying jobs, helps create increasingly violent economic instability.

Given the destructive nature of the free market affects other economic sectors, such as the manufacturing and financial services sectors, underpriced then overpriced commodities like oil create bubbles in the economy that generate ripple effects when they burst.  When this happens, the economy fails.

Looking back at the 2008-2009 Great Recession, this is, in part, what happened to the global economy.  Where commodities like oil played a role in the Great Recession, far broader issues with bubbles in the economy were responsible for that particular catastrophe. 

Ultimately, the Great Recession was caused by an inability to continue consumption.  In the US, a failure of the economy to properly distribute wealth, i.e. not enough jobs offering sufficient income existed to provide for increased spending, reduced the ability of consumers to spend.  To continue consumption and sustain the US economy, Americans turned to credit, which included borrowing from their homes, in 1990’s and 2000’s.

At the same time, Wall Street, with the help of the US government, invented new ways for American consumers to borrow in order to purchase increasingly overvalued homes.  Because Americans did not have sufficient income to continue their consumption to support the US economy and pay back what they borrowed, the true value of subprime mortgages came to light when the US economy inevitably encountered a downturn then crashed. 

Looking at the ongoing stream of news on companies like McDonalds and Wal-Mart, concerns over a failure of these global giants to continually increase their profits, despite the fact they are still profitably, demonstrates the unrealistic nature of the financial world. 

People can only eat so many burgers and fries while the world only needs so many McDonalds.  In turn, McDonalds can only do so much to cut its costs before undermining the functionality of its business.  Consequently, there comes at point when increased profits are not possible.

Clearly, McDonalds does not necessarily fall apart when it can no increase its profitability.  Similarly, the economy does not disappear when it can no longer grow, though the world’s obsession with growth does push investors and policymakers to pursue growth at the expense of building a sustainable economy.

When faced with a lack of growth, companies like McDonalds must turn inward and focus on reorganizing their business models to provide better products and services.  Similarly, the economy must do so as well, i.e. focus on the needs of the People of the world, as it struggles to grow.

In many respects, our growth-obsessed economy is built like Las Vegas.  Las Vegas runs on excess and overindulgence while it drains the wealth of many for the benefit of the few affluent with little going to workers.  To survive, Las Vegas continually reinvents itself by using controlled explosives to knockdown old buildings in order to make way for new ones.  When the bubble bursts from a lacking excess, however, the community of Las Vegas goes bust in a way that causes great human suffering.

Unfortunately, our economy has been engineered to cater to global interests by creating a lower bidder economy where cost-cutting measures, including decreased wages, tax cuts, etc, are prioritized in order to achieve growth.  Instead of building our economy to serve the needs of the people first then using the excesses of the local and national economies to participant in the national and global economies, we have an unsustainable economy.

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      • Should One's Faith Influence a Citizen's Vote?
      • Should the U.S. Government Help Fund Election Campaigns?
      • On Defunding Political Science Research
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      • Justice for All: The Case for Legal, Social, Economic, and Personal Justice
      • Why Hardliner Thinking in the NSA and CIA is Doing Damage
      • On the Baby Boomer’s Self-Centeredness
      • The Case for Personal Responsibility
      • What Modern Day Revolutionaries Need to Learn from Leader's like Mandela
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      • Perceptions of the United States
      • How Honesty Relates to the Great Recession
      • Why the Middle Class and Rich Need to Support Their Long-term Interests
      • The Aristocratic Republic of the United States of America
      • Discussing the Need for Community Support
      • Why New Forms of Capitalism and Socialism Will Compliment Each Other
      • The Reason We Need to Understand What it is to Be Poor in America
      • Why the World Needs to Reinvest in America
      • Why Are We Against Terrorism?
      • Why Does Terrorism Exist?
      • US Influence: The Value of American Citizenship Around the World
      • Responding to "the Soldier as Sacrficial Victim"
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      • How comfort defines us as people >
        • Is Suicide a Cowardly Way Out?
      • Defense Against the Dark Arts of Manipulators
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        • On the Willing Victim of Abuse
        • How to Understand Abuse Victims
        • Recognizing Abuse
      • The Role of Substitution in Decision Making
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        • Mental Illness is Not the Cause of Anger and Violence >
          • Trying to Understand the Boston Marathon Bombing and Other Violent Crimes
          • Getting into the Twisted Mind of the Tucson Murder
      • Describing the Mind as Modes of Thought >
        • It’s Just Sex?
      • Relationships, or Arrangement
      • Understanding the Effects of Groupthink in the Workplace
      • Relating Circular, Inductive, and Deductive Reasoning to the Scientific Method and Religion
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      • The Need for Greater Economic Leverage >
        • Evaluating NAFTA and TPP
        • Undercutting Logistics with the Underpaid Independent Contractor
        • Unions: Hindrance or Essential to Free Markets
        • Eminent Domain Used Against Banks
        • Haitians Sue the UN for Failure to Help With Cholera
        • Looking at How Corn-based Ethanol and Other Alternative Energy Subsidies Stack Up
      • Empowering the Sovereign Nation-State by Rethinking Trade Policy >
        • Irish Sovereignty Lost Before Bailout
        • Why Sudan's Greatest Long-Term Hurdle is Our Lowest-bidder Economy
        • Reduce US Imports by Buying American Made Products
      • Ending the need for government support and tackling poverty
      • Income inequality: understanding the limitations and psychology of disadvantage
      • Looking at the Future of American Jobs >
        • On Questioning the Need to Address Economic Disparity
        • Minimum Wage is Not the Problem
        • Responding to the "Blip"
        • Why Education Is Not The Civil Rights Issue Of The Twenty-First Century
      • Considering the Impact of the Capital Gains Tax Deduction
      • Embracing a Capitalist Mindset >
        • Capitalism Versus Socialism
        • The Negatives of Socialism
      • Stealing Intellectual Property
      • Changing Business Models: From Enduring Entities to Cash Cows
      • Consumer and Investor Evolution in the Great Recession of 2008-09
      • Dealing with the Issues Surrounding the Patenting of Self-replicating Technologies
      • Is Technology Threatening Jobs?
    • Education >
      • The Role of Education in Creating a More Dynamic Workforce
      • Primary Education in America and the Changing Needs of Society
      • The Greatness of the American Education System
      • Ideas for Improving the United States Education System
      • Are Teachers Treated as Professionals?
      • Is Engaging Parents in Their Children's Education a Major Factor in Turning Around Low-performing Schools?
      • Should Grants Be Awarded to School Districts that Try Innovative Methods to Improve Student Achievement?
    • US Constitution >
      • On Reading the US Constitution
      • The Senate should not do more to limit the powers of the Judicial Branch
      • On the DOJ Justifying the “targeted Killings” of US Citizens
      • Corporations Do Not Have the Same Rights as US Citizens >
        • Corporate America Pleads the First
      • Discussing the Constitutionality of Per Capita Taxes
      • Was the California Supreme Court Right in Legalizing Gay Marriage?
      • Should the Bible Continue to Be Used for Swearing-in Ceremonies and in Courtrooms?
      • Should Religious Student Clubs Be Allowed in Public Schools?
      • Should the Government Control Talk Radio to Make it More "balanced"?
      • The Second Amendment: Not Outdated >
        • Are We Losing Our Second Amendment Rights
      • Eminent Domain Used Against Banks
      • Should a Woman Have the Right to Choose Abortion? >
        • Should Fathers Be Able to Opt Out of Parenthood?
      • Should Smoking Be Allowed in Public Places?
      • Is Teen Driving a Right or a Privilege?
      • Should US Companies Be Required to Provide Equal Pay to Women and Men?
      • Is eighteen too young to vote?
      • First Amendment Rights: The Priviledge of The Press
      • Do Mandatory Seat Belt Laws Violate Individual Rights?
      • Should cell phone use be banned while driving?
      • Dealing with the link between video game violence and children's behavior
      • Should police have to submit to routine drug and alcohol testing?
      • Public schools should not impose mandatory drug testing on students
      • Are High Taxes on Cigarettes Proper?
      • Should pharmacists be required to violate their religious beliefs and dispense the "Morning After Pill?"
      • Should school counselors uphold patient privacy or report students who become unstable?
  • For the record
    • Ongoing Issues >
      • Red Dawn in Ukraine: Understanding the Actions of Russia >
        • On Russia’s Coercion of Ukraine
        • The Russian Annexation of Crimea in the Eyes of the World
        • Putin Has Overplayed His Hand With Crimea
        • Ukraine in Terms of Resovereignization
        • Avoiding a Conflict Between America and Russia Over Ukraine
        • What Drives the World’s Interest in Russia’s Actions in Ukraine
      • China’s Aggressive Pursuit of Interests Demands a Global Response
      • Iran Makes a Deal: A Start to a Long-term Diplomatic Effort to Denuclearize Iran >
        • On the Future of a Nuclear Negotiations with Iran
      • America's Sphere of Influence: Retaking South-East Asia >
        • Power in Asia: Looking at the Power Shift in Japan
        • The China Paradox: Why America is Worried About China
      • Assessing US Support of Israel >
        • Tread Softly Israel for a Heavy Step May Be Your Undoing
      • Understanding the Dysfunctional Nature of the US-Pakistani Relationship
      • Recognizing the True Threat Behind the Current Unrest in the Middle East >
        • Reacting to the Escalating Crackdown in Syria
      • Assessing the Threat of North Korea >
        • Answering North Korea's Call for Food Aid: Breaking the Vicious Cycle Forced Upon Us by a Warring Nation
        • Dealing with the Restarting of the Korean War
        • North Korea Attacks South Korea
      • Dealing with the Ill-effects of Climate Change
      • Racial Inequality and Oppression Do Truly Exist in Today's Society
      • Should energy independence be a high priority in the US?
      • An overview of world wide Human Rights violations
      • Nuclear Threat from Pakistan
      • Return of The Cold War?
    • World >
      • Coverage of FIFA World Cup is a Chance to Focus on Poverty >
        • The FIFA World Cup Offers Benefits for More Than Brazilian Soccer Fans
        • FIFA Can Bring Brazilians Together as a Nation
      • Being Prepared for Any Potential Dangers at the FIFA World Cup Games
      • Treading Softly on the Politicizing of the 2014 Sochi Olympics Over Gay Rights
      • Why NATO Operations in Libya Lack a Well-defined Mission
      • China Hijacks the Web
      • Lessons from the Great Japanese Earthquake of 2011
      • A Modernizing Cuba Offers an Opportunity for Capitalists
      • The Seeds of Democracy Take Root in the Middle East
      • The Rebirth of Democracy in Tunisia
      • What May Come from the Hurt Revolution in Libya
      • Responding to the Violence of Qaddafi and Other Besieged Leaders
      • Embracing the Rise of a Democratic Egypt
      • Protests in Afghanistan Turn Deadly for Coalition Forces and UN Personnel
      • Haiti: Another Failing Humanitarian Investment
      • What Karzai Can Learn from Calderon
      • START II: A Necessary, Easy Success that Nearly Failed
      • Why Does the U.S. Government Support Independence for the Breakaway Serb Territory of Kosovo but Oppose Independence for the Breakaway Georgian Territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia?
      • Iraq's Electric Issues: When Human Wants Trump Economic Sense
      • The International Community Reacts to Wikileaks: We May Be Moving Toward a Third World War in Cyberspace
      • On Climate Gate
      • Assessing Obama's Afghanistan War strategy
      • 2009 Iranian Presidential Election: The Fallout
      • Resolving Sri Lankan Conflict through Free Media
      • What are the Global Consequences of Russia's Invasion of Georgia
      • The War in Iraq: an assessment of President Bush's surge strategy
      • Drug War: Actions of Venezuela, Columbia, Ecuador in terms of Resovereignization
      • Is the Iraq Refugee Crisis America's Responsibility?
      • US support for a united Kosovo, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia: why?
      • Should the US withdraw from Iraq?
      • Setting a Timetable for Troop Withdrawal from Iraq is a Terrible Mistake
      • War on Terrorism is needed
    • Law and Order >
      • Rape in the US Military
      • Ethics of Force-feeding Guantanamo Bay Detainees
      • Reacting to the Aftermath of the Tucson Massacre
    • Economy >
      • Affordability Drives Fear of Obamacare and the Individual Mandate
      • Is the Economy Built for a Job's Recovery?
      • Gutting Healthcare Reform of the Individual Mandate
      • Arizona Budget Cuts Lead to Lethal Healthcare Rationing:
      • Shameful Collection Practices of American Banks
      • The Fed Reveals it Actually Undertook an International Bailout
      • Thoughts on French Budgetary Reforms
      • Seniors Start Businesses
      • The Case for Slimming Down the US Military to Make it Better
      • Looking at the Obama Administration's New Approach to Economic Policy
      • Should the Government Regulate the Credit Card Industry?
      • The Big Three's Big Chance
      • The Unhealthy Tone of the Healthcare Reform Debate
      • Should the federal government offer a bailout for home owners?
      • Environmentalists: Do They Do More Good Than More Harm?
      • Responding to Scott Walker's Contribution to the War on Unions
    • US Government >
      • America Needs to Focus on the Impending Fiscal Crisis
      • Reacting to the Bush Era-tax Cut Extension Deal
      • Quitting the Obama Revolution: The Fickle Nature of American Politics
      • John Boehner's Circus
      • Is the Fed Putting Itself in Jeopardy?
      • Wikileaks Goes After the US State Department
      • Discussing the Political Environment Surrounding the 2011 Budget Debate
      • What the Democrats Can Do to Ensure a GOP Year in 2012
      • What the 2010 Midterm Actually Said
      • Congresswoman Kathy Dahlkemper
      • Democrats Minus Nancy Pelosi Equals Opportunity
      • Terrorists Go Postal: The Terrorism Threat Reexamined
      • Victory in the 2008 Election: Reaction to Barack Obama'a Win >
        • Expectations for Barack Obama
      • President Obama's first one hundred days
      • John McCain's Negative Campaign
      • Reasons People did not Elect John Mccain
      • History judges the George W. Bush Administration
      • Should the next US President focus on domestic issues?
      • President Bush, should he resign or be impeached
      • Should the Ban on Government Sponsored Assassinations be Repealed
    • Off Topic >
      • A Face of America’s Greatest Generation
      • A Story About a Man Who Made the World a Better Place
      • Making the World a Better Place
      • The Bipolar Ethical Nature of Google
      • Learning Computer Plays Jeopardy
      • Verifying Medicine is the Real Thing
      • Taking a Practical Step Forward in Optical Computing Using Slow Light
      • Scientists Take a Closer Look at How Lithium Batteries Work
      • Remarking on the First Blizzard of the 2010-2011 Winter Season
      • Driving in the Snow: Acceleration is the Key
      • How People in Northwest PA Are Coping with the Increasing Cost of Oil
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