Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- VDH on whither Europe? He doesn't say it but the EU and increased regulations are making them irrelevant.
- Reason: The Pilgrims dreamed of socialism, then socialism almost killed them. An old true story but with a new twist - John Stossel ties the story to student loan forgiveness.
- Noah Smith on why it may be time to take another hard look at the Egyptian economy.
"In summary, the Russian invasion is a large shock for agricultural commodity markets, but not historically large. Markets and trade patterns will adjust to absorb it. Farmers around the world will produce more and consumers will cut back or substitute. The transition may be difficult in some places, especially countries such as Egypt that typically rely on wheat from Russia and Ukraine."
I'd like to believe there's not going to be a crisis but throw away lines like "consumers will cut back or substitute" and the bit about Egypt make me think this economist has no idea what life is like in the real world. Consumers cutting back seems a euphemism for "people going hungry" and the last time there was mass hunger in Egypt there was a revolution.
Hungry people make for angry people. In the US the combination of inflation, high gas prices, and high food prices should contribute to a "Red Wave" in the 2022 midterms. But what about places like China, Egypt and elsewhere? People in those countries may revolt because they can't feed their children.
The political ripples from the War in Ukraine are only just starting.
