Good things from the Trump administration.

[ArtieChokePhin]

I saw this copy/pasted on Facebook today and have been tearing it up in my head, all day.  

A bunch of my friends on Facebook are posting that as well.  

That rant aside, the next thing is that half of these things are not even positive and these are mostly complex systems that don't make sense to tie to a president.  Super low gas prices AREN'T A GOOD THING.  It might be good for you to fill up your tank, but there's a larger issue at stake that's causing low prices and probably has to do with a shocking decrease in demand vs overproduction because of an overseas conflict between Middle East states and (I believe) Russia where they're trying to crash prices to drive the other out of business.  You want prices on commodities to be stable and predictable, rather than low.  High prices aren't great either, but this shows a great lack of understanding about how the price of gas works.

Actually, super low gas prices mean oil production, which means jobs in this country.  I have a lot of friends in Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico that are in the industry.  Trump has given the permit for the Keystone Pipeline and allowed fracking and all other kinds of projects to ensure we produce our own oil.  Biden, on day one, has killed all that and eliminated thousands of jobs.  He's also rejoined the Paris Accord, which will eliminate thousands more jobs.  

On the wars front, yeah -- that's pretty much Trump.  He oversees the military, so that's definitely a feather in his cap.  He was fortunate enough not to have a crisis land on his doorstep, like 9/11, but he gets credit just the same.

Keep in mind that Biden needed 20,000 troops to protect him in his own country.  Trump walked into North Korea alone.  When you need 20,000 troops to protect you from the people, then chances are you weren't duly elected by the people.

[Dave Gray]

Actually, super low gas prices mean oil production, which means jobs in this state. 

That's just not what's happening here in today's case.  This is way more complicated and deals with global oil powers fighting.

I learned all about this a few months ago.  There are two competing oil regions (I think that Russia was one and I think the other was in the middle East).  One of them (I think Russia) increased production with the sole purpose of flooding the market with demand, trying to make oil costs low.  They wanted to use that to apply pressure to the other region.  So the other was doing the same and they were playing a game of chicken.  Supply of oil is totally variable...any of these places can just pull more out of the ground when they want to, so they work together to set prices.

Anyway, so both these places are doing this, causing prices to dip.  Then BOOM -- Covid hits worldwide.  So now there's a ton of oil out there, but now we're using way less gasoline in cars, planes, etc.  And the economy slows, so less use for plastics and things like that.  It caused gas to plummet in price because there was huge supply and little demand.

It literally has zero to do with Trump, Biden ...or even America.

Keep in mind that Biden needed 20,000 troops to protect him in his own country.  Trump walked into North Korea alone.  When you need 20,000 troops to protect you from the people, then chances are you weren't duly elected by the people.

This is a foolish statement that I will leave to history.

[Spider-Dan]

Keep in mind that Biden needed 20,000 troops to protect him in his own country.  Trump walked into North Korea alone.  When you need 20,000 troops to protect you from the people, then chances are you weren't duly elected by the people.

Trump had to tear gas a bunch of peaceful protesters just to walk across the street from his house.

[Sunstroke]

He's also rejoined the Paris Accord, which will eliminate thousands more jobs. 

Wrap your head around this one, Artie... Maybe, just maybe...those jobs aren't lost, but instead just need to be transitioned to a type of job that doesn't actually help destroy our planet.

Just sayin'...

Keep in mind that Biden needed 20,000 troops to protect him in his own country.  Trump walked into North Korea alone.  When you need 20,000 troops to protect you from the people, then chances are you weren't duly elected by the people.

What an absolutely ridiculous thing to say. Of course Biden was duly elected...but a few thousand fringe right-wing whackjobs got butt-hurt over Trump losing and threw an insurrectionist temper tantrum. Those 20,000 troops weren't there to protect the new, true and rightfully elected President, they were there to send a message to those aforementioned whackjobs that if they try any stupid shit like that now, they won't get far.

[ArtieChokePhin]

That's just not what's happening here in today's case.  This is way more complicated and deals with global oil powers fighting.

I learned all about this a few months ago.  There are two competing oil regions (I think that Russia was one and I think the other was in the middle East).  One of them (I think Russia) increased production with the sole purpose of flooding the market with demand, trying to make oil costs low.  They wanted to use that to apply pressure to the other region.  So the other was doing the same and they were playing a game of chicken.  Supply of oil is totally variable...any of these places can just pull more out of the ground when they want to, so they work together to set prices.

Anyway, so both these places are doing this, causing prices to dip.  Then BOOM -- Covid hits worldwide.  So now there's a ton of oil out there, but now we're using way less gasoline in cars, planes, etc.  And the economy slows, so less use for plastics and things like that.  It caused gas to plummet in price because there was huge supply and little demand.

It literally has zero to do with Trump, Biden ...or even America.

But it could.  We produce our own oil and we don't have to rely on Russia or the Middle East.  Trump has this country working towards that.  Biden killed it

[Spider-Dan]

Why would we want to deplete our own oil reserves?
To the extent that we need to use oil, we should be paying other countries to deplete their oil reserves.

What we should try very hard to avoid is a future situation where we are both reliant on other countries' resources AND no longer have the money to pay for them (after falling from our perch as the richest country in the world).

Being dependent on oil at all is a national security risk, but using up our own finite fossil fuel resources, when we can just buy them from other countries, creates an even worse long-term national security risk.

[ArtieChokePhin]

Why would we want to deplete our own oil reserves?
To the extent that we need to use oil, we should be paying other countries to deplete their oil reserves.

What we should try very hard to avoid is a future situation where we are both reliant on other countries' resources AND no longer have the money to pay for them (after falling from our perch as the richest country in the world).

Being dependent on oil at all is a national security risk, but using up our own finite fossil fuel resources, when we can just buy them from other countries, creates an even worse long-term national security risk.

Do you realize how long it will take to deplete those reserves?  By the time they are depleted, our great great grandkids will be dead.   Plus the Keystone Pipeline had oil flowing from Canada which is loaded with it

[Spider-Dan]

Do you realize how long it will take to deplete those reserves?  By the time they are depleted, our great great grandkids will be dead.

Suppose for the sake of argument that I agree with your timeline.  I still don't want my great-great-great-grandkids to be begging other countries for their oil.

Let everyone else use up their oil first.  In the 21st century, America has enough money to afford to pay for foreign oil; in the 23rd century, America may not.

Plus the Keystone Pipeline had oil flowing from Canada which is loaded with it

Canada can build a pipeline to their own coast if they think it's that important.

TBH, I'd rather wait until, say, 2250 and see if we need a Keystone XL pipeline then, after the oil reserves in the Middle East and Russia have been bled dry.

[pondwater]

Suppose for the sake of argument that I agree with your timeline.  I still don't want my great-great-great-grandkids to be begging other countries for their oil.

Let everyone else use up their oil first.  In the 21st century, America has enough money to afford to pay for foreign oil; in the 23rd century, America may not.
Canada can build a pipeline to their own coast if they think it's that important.

TBH, I'd rather wait until, say, 2250 and see if we need a Keystone XL pipeline then, after the oil reserves in the Middle East and Russia have been bled dry.

I thought you guys on the left wanted to replace oil with "clean" energy. If that's the case, the best way to achieve that goal would be to use up all the oil ASAP so we have no choice but to use alternate energy. Can't use what you don't have anymore.

[Spider-Dan]

I thought you guys on the left wanted to replace oil with "clean" energy. If that's the case, the best way to achieve that goal would be to use up all the oil ASAP so we have no choice but to use alternate energy.

I do want to replace oil with renewables where possible... but we can't make plastic out of sunlight or wind.  There are certain products that we require oil to produce, at least for the time being.  So yeah, we should try to stop using oil as car fuel and save it for things where it's less replaceable.

But even if I was on board with using up all the oil: I'd still want to use up their oil first.  Particularly since the governments in the regions I spoke of would be well-served to to have significantly less power and influence in the future.  Let them fight each other in an oil price war (as they have been for the past few years) and deplete their reserves.