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Ok, so you call your congressman and tell them you don't like SA and that we should... do what? Have our ambassador file a protest? That's going to be effective

Ok, so you call your congressman and tell them you don't like SA and that we should... do what? Have our ambassador file a protest? That's going to be effective how? Yes, using less oil is harder than calling your congressperson because you actually have to change behavior and perhaps live with some inconvenience. But it's hard to see how it's less effective at this point. Go ahead and to both. The call is easy. But the underlying reason that the US has been overly accommodating to SA (including selling them military equipment) is because we are heavily dependent on oil and oil is a global market so we need SA to keep production up.

selectodude 4y ago
We should cut them off militarily. They buy American weapons because they have infinite money and the Americans have the best shit. That's what the bill floating through Congress is trying to accomplish. Calling your congressman to tell them to vote yes on cutting off Saudi can move the needle here.
JumpCrisscross 4y ago
> so you call your congressman and tell them you don't like SA and that we should... do what? Unless you know the policy space, expressing a broad position is enough. If you know something about the policy space, e.g. see the Politico article in my last comment, you can specify bills. But that’s complicated and prone to misinterpretation and generally only productive when coördinated. > it's hard to see how it's less effective Oil demand is elastic [1]. Its supply is manipulated. A barrel of oil not consumed by you reduces marginal prices and cracking spreads. That, in turn, spurs demand. For Riyadh, it would take a massive amount of demand destruction to him up their revenues given their influence over OPEC. [1] https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/44920224/Dynamic_panel_data_approaches-with-cover-page-v2.pdf https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/44920224/Dynamic_panel...
- lazide 4y ago
  Trying to get the US to cut off KSA has about as much a chance of success as getting a heroin addict to cut off their dealer. Ain’t happening.

selectodude 4y ago

We should cut them off militarily. They buy American weapons because they have infinite money and the Americans have the best shit. That's what the bill floating through Congress is trying to accomplish. Calling your congressman to tell them to vote yes on cutting off Saudi can move the needle here.

JumpCrisscross 4y ago

> so you call your congressman and tell them you don't like SA and that we should... do what? Unless you know the policy space, expressing a broad position is enough. If you know something about the policy space, e.g. see the Politico article in my last comment, you can specify bills. But that’s complicated and prone to misinterpretation and generally only productive when coördinated. > it's hard to see how it's less effective Oil demand is elastic [1]. Its supply is manipulated. A barrel of oil not consumed by you reduces marginal prices and cracking spreads. That, in turn, spurs demand. For Riyadh, it would take a massive amount of demand destruction to him up their revenues given their influence over OPEC. [1] https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/44920224/Dynamic_panel_data_approaches-with-cover-page-v2.pdf https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/44920224/Dynamic_panel...

lazide 4y ago
Trying to get the US to cut off KSA has about as much a chance of success as getting a heroin addict to cut off their dealer. Ain’t happening.