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‘Gas Prices’

David Foster
@DavidFoster
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Democrats obviously see gasoline prices as a winning issue. For example, here's Alaska Senate candidate Mary Peltola, who somehow wound up on my Substack feed:

The price of gas in Deadhorse (photo of prices at a pump). You know who can’t afford these gas prices? Hardworking Alaskans. You know who can? Multimillionaire Dan Sullivan, who voted more than 10 times to jack them up.

I'm pretty sure there has never been a Congressional vote on setting retail gas prices. I suspect that she's talking about the Iran war... Yep, here's a slightly earlier post:

Here in Valdez, the price at the pump is $5.25 for gas and $6.75 for diesel. Hardworking Alaskans simply can’t afford the war in Iran jacking up our gas prices - a war that Dan Sullivan has voted for 12 times.

The messaging reminds me of something: when the Germans moved forces into the Rhineland in 1936, France and Britain, who had considerable military superiority at the time, could almost certainly have stopped the incursion and likely toppled the Hitler regime. But they didn't.

Andre Beaufre, later to become a general, was at the time a young captain on the French general staff, and in his book France 1940 he explained some of the reasons for this failure. One reason was that 'multilateralists' were reluctant to act without international support. There was particular concern that the "neutrals," especially the United States, would view France as the aggressor. The French Army was organized in a way that would have required a disruptive full mobilization to field a significant force. And at dinner, a financier told Beaufre that "the Essential thing was not to stand in the way of economic recovery."

So, they didn't disrupt their economy by taking action against the German incursion. The ultimate price of this inaction--to France and the world--would turn out to be very, very high.

In America today, the Democrats increasingly seem to consider the electorate as composed not of citizens but strictly consumers. The American people are certainly not viewed as being able to weigh geopolitical considerations (such as a nuclear Iran) against a temporary increase in gas prices.

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Discussion (49)

  • Zafar@Zafar

    From the MOU signed by Iran and by the US in June (Trump signed it at Versailles):

    The Islamic Republic of Iran reaffirms that it shall not procure or develop nuclear weapons.

    So why is this war still ongoing?

  • Ekosj@Ekosj
    ReplyingtoZafar

    Zafar (View Comment):

    From the MOU signed by Iran and by the US in June (Trump signed it at Versailles):

    The Islamic Republic of Iran reaffirms that it shall not procure or develop nuclear weapons.

    So why is this war still ongoing?

    The MOU expired. Iran continued to fire on ships in the Strait in violation of the MOU giving credence to all rational people that Iran had no intention of living up to what it had signed.

  • David Foster@DavidFoster

    per Grok:

    Iran has produced uranium enriched up to 60% U-235. That is the highest level at which it has built a verified stockpile. iaea.orgThe last IAEA-verified figures, based on data through mid-June 2025, put that stockpile at about 440.9 kg of uranium enriched up to 60%, plus 184.1 kg up to 20% and several tons at lower levels (around 5% and 2%). isis-online.orgSince June 2025, IAEA inspectors have been denied access to the main enrichment sites (Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan). The agency therefore cannot confirm the current size, location, or chemical form of the stockpile, or whether enrichment is still occurring. nytimes.comFor context:

    • Civilian power-reactor fuel is typically ~3–5%.
    • 20% is highly enriched uranium (HEU) and already far above most civilian needs.
    • Weapons-grade uranium is generally ~90%.
    • 60% material is a short technical step from weapons-grade; IAEA officials have said the pre-2025 60% stockpile was theoretically enough, if further enriched, for on the order of 10 weapons. That does not mean Iran has built a weapon. apnews.com

    In earlier years inspectors also found isolated particles enriched above 60% (reports cited traces around 83–84% at Fordow), but those were not a bulk stockpile. Production and inventory reporting have consistently centered on 60%. timesofisrael.comThe verified picture stops in June 2025. Everything after that is unverified.

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