brc

16 ms·

91.
by brc 11y ago
The expense and lead times and nimby-ism which cripples nuclear are mostly regulatory. If you apply the same constraints to wind generation (which is increasingly happening) it looks even worse than nuclear.
92.
by brc 11y ago
Not necessarily true. Liquid fuels are used for transportation but only for niche generation, because they have higher costs, both in capital equipment and in fuel cost. Likewise, battery cost for transport can make it attractive, but that
93.
by brc 11y ago
Nuclear can still catch up. Photovoltaics have a cap even if the panels are produced for free, simply based on land cost and infrastructure cost. That is also because they are not matchable to the demand curve. As a batch technology (lik
94.
by brc 11y ago
It's my hypothesis that the authoritarian actions leading to 2008 and the authoritarian responses to 2008 made it worse than it should have been. A better structured economy would have more competition and more bankruptcies. And fewer
95.
by brc 11y ago
Well, that depends if you want to reinforce existing beliefs or challenge them with new ones. After much reading from Smith to Marx to Keynes, it's my personal beliefs that the classical economists had it right and much of the 20th cen
96.
by brc 11y ago
The labor theory of value is a valueless theory. I've never, ever seen a credible argument that saya capitalism is based on the elimination of a persons right to their labour value. That sounds terribly like some undergraduate student
97.
by brc 11y ago
I don't think recessions can be avoided. Irrational actions and malinvestment by unskilled capital allocators virtually guarantees ups and downs in industries. Fiat currencies with fixed pricing (centrally set interest rates) exacerb
98.
by brc 11y ago
I don't think you understand my point. I'll reiterate: 'To buy something, first you have to produce something worthy of exchange'. To understand this, don't immediately jump to the business level, think of it at the
99.
by brc 11y ago
Unpacking that slightly. First, an oil glut is not a general glut, so it's possible that the demand for oil has shifted elsewhere. I don't agree that an ad campaign for national gas guzzler travel would increase oil prices, beca
100.
by brc 11y ago
The whole point of Keynesian theory is that, in times of economic contraction ('a glut' in the old money), you should borrow from the future and buy things - any things - now. You could make the argument that buying worthwhile thi
101.
by brc 11y ago
'Good' and 'bad' spending are pretty loose concepts. Sure, building weapons is worse than building tractors in terms of human impact, but when you get down to incessant government intervention in everyday spending, it&#
102.
by brc 11y ago
Well, that's still not true. Savings are put to use by investing - either by the saver or someone else on their behalf (capital markets/banks). The savings further production by being used by someone else. Keynes had to kill the
103.
by brc 11y ago
I agree with most of your points just that I'd tweak it slightly and say that Bill Gates vs the Hobo are better at producing, rather than saying that Bill Gates is better at creating demand. It's a very slight shift but it's
104.
by brc 11y ago
Sure. The Marxism school of thought is one of fantasies, of free lunches from artful arrangement of resources. The problem is that this persistent belief stretches from hard core far-left socialist/communists right up to the centre ri
105.
by brc 11y ago
I don't agree with the statement that a glut in one area must equal a surplus elsewhere. You've added at interpretation to my statement. If a person produces hot pink sweaters and finds nobody wants them, that doesn't mean t
106.
by brc 11y ago
There is no level on which I agree with you. To me it's self evident, but it would seem your beliefs are fixed so I won't further fight against them.
107.
by brc 11y ago
Demand is not want. Demand is standing at a cash register with cash, asking for a product. Although demand in the economic sense sort-of-sounds like want - certainly I'd like a new Lamborghini - I have zero effect on the demand for la
108.
by brc 11y ago
Of course I know it is Say's Law. My purpose here is to post it for people to understand the principle. Giving everyone money does not work. You can only increase the size of the economy and wealth of the people within by producing m
109.
by brc 11y ago
Malinvestment in incorrect production is part of the process. The person who produces unwanted goods and services must gain the feedback that they have, so they can switch production to what is desired. This is a very important reason why
110.
by brc 11y ago
How do you categorise a set of 'wealthy oligarchs' as having 'worse' spending than a monolithic government, which we all know has terrible spending patterns and priorities. Politicians spend money on vain projects to g
111.
by brc 11y ago
>We need the Federal government to stimulate aggregate demand at the consumer level. How? Investing tax dollars in a smarter manner Everyone - and I do mean everyone - would be better off if the fed government (and state and local) inves
112.
by brc 11y ago
production creates demand. Not because people want to buy it, but because the act of production gives you something to trade. The people who build iPhones (Apple employees) produce something valuable (iPhones). Everyone else has to prod
113.
by brc 11y ago
Consumer demand is meaningless. Trying to push it is like trying to push a string. Demand is an artefact of production. Unless your economy is producing, you won't increase quality of life and wealth for all citizens. This point is
114.
by brc 11y ago
Also big with speed camera installations. A spate of accidents occur, speed cameras get installed. The rate of accidents falls, the speed cameras are claimed to be the result. The problem is that accidents are randomly spaced (assuming so
115.
by brc 11y ago
It's funny how we all know this type of technology exists, but we never stop and find out the backstory of why and how it came to be. Great article, but depressing in that I don't understand 50% of the content and am unlikely to
116.
by brc 11y ago
The salient point here is the massive disconnect most people carry around in their heads. If presented with a problem, the automatic response of most people is to get the government to fix it. If you quiz the same people on something thei
117.
by brc 11y ago
With a boat, you might spend thousands on consumables. All that you have left is the memories of driving the boat around. Some guys spend $100k to go motor racing for a season in single-make cars. At the end of it, they don't own any
118.
by brc 11y ago
I think it is saying 'at least 5pm'...meaning that in winter you'd still get light at 5 PM in winter.
119.
by brc 11y ago
Permanent DST - aren't we just arguing to move the prime meridian 30 degrees to the west and pushing everyone's time zone out? Or would it just be easier to get everyone to agree to go to work an hour earlier? Where I live we have
120.
by brc 11y ago
They also stop erosion, provide habitat for insects and animals and are pleasing to walk on. I get having a lawn in a desert is a poor use of water, but for many houses and recreational areas, it's an excellent way to cover ground.

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