Tag Archives: supply chain

Prepare For Supply Chain Problems

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Remember the supply chain crisis caused by the Covid virus? Remember the problems parents had buying Christmas gifts for their children? We may be headed right back there only for a different reason.

On Sunday I posted an article about terrorism interrupting the flow of shipping through the Red Sea (article here). The article stated that because of a Houthis’ attack on one of their vessels, A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S is ‘pausing’ their ships heading for the southern entrance of the Red Sea.

On Monday, The BBC reported the following:

Oil giant BP has announced it is pausing all shipments of oil through the Red Sea after recent attacks on vessels by Houthi rebels.

The firm blamed the “deteriorating security situation” in the region as Iran-backed Houthis target ships they believe are bound for Israel.

Many freight firms have suspended journeys as the attacks continue.

BP said it would keep its “precautionary pause under ongoing review” and monitor the region.

Analysts suggested that if other large oil firms follow suit, oil prices could rise. Brent crude, the international benchmark foroil prices, increased to $78.44 per barrel.

“Right now it’s unclear how significant the impact will be,” said Gregory Brew, an oil historian and analyst at Eurasia Group.

“Though if more shipping companies divert their traffic, and if the disruption lasts more than a week or two, prices are likely to climb further.”

The Red Sea is one of the world’s most important routes for oil and liquefied natural gas shipments, as well as for consumer goods.

This is an international matter. The world needs to understand that Iran is funding the Houthis. Iran is also funding Hamas. Iran is also funding Hezbollah. There seems to be a pattern here. It’s time to put international sanctions back on Iranian oil and enforce them. One major move that the international community can make to slow down terrorism is to defund Iran. If they are not willing to unite to do that, look behind the scenes to see who benefits from the terrorism.

 

Terrorism Impacts All Of Us

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This is a map of one of the most popular shipping routes in the Middle East:

Ships come through the Suez Canal, into the Red Sea, and eventually make their way to the Indian Ocean. One of the major shipping lines to use this route is A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S.

On Friday, Townhall reported the following:

“Container shipping giant A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S instructed its vessels heading for the southern entrance of the Red Sea to pause their voyages after one of its carriers came under attack. The move threatens to undermine the global economic recovery and adds to pressure on the US to improve security along one of the worlds most important trade routes,” Bloomberg reports. “Disruptions in the area can snarl supply chains and world trade. Back in 2021, the grounding of the Ever Given blocked the Suez Canal for almost a week, throwing ships off schedule for months and tightening the available of cargo space. That accident was estimated to have cut capacity by 20% to 30% for several weeks.” 

The move comes after a Maersk ship was attacked by drones over the past 24 hours.

The article concludes:

Since October 7, when Hamas launched a brutal terrorist attack on civilians in Israel, the Houthis have been attacking ships and launching missiles at Israeli and U.S. targets. Many have been intercepted by U.S. military ships currently stationed in the region. 

In 2021, the Biden administration delisted the Houthis as a terrorist organization. 

By order of the President and as a direct result of a nearly 3-year policy of appeasing Iran and its proxies, the United States today utterly failed in a core mission of upholding freedom of navigation. The magnitude of the moment should not be understated. Beijing is watching.

— Richard Goldberg (@rich_goldberg) December 15, 2023

 

The boldness of the Houthis is a direct result of the Biden administration’s desperate attempt to broker a nuclear deal with Iran. They don’t want to stop Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon–they just want to stop Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon while the Democrats are still in power. As soon as they get out of town, they really don’t care.

Please vote this administration out of office in November.

Ten Lies Told

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On Wednesday, The Federalist posted an article listing ten lies President Biden told during his press conference.

This is the list of lies:

1. The Nation’s Problem Is COVID

2. Wages Are Up

3. Biden Created Jobs

4. The Supply Chain Crisis Isn’t That Bad

5. Inflation Was Already A Thing Before I Took Office

6. Republicans Want To Steal Minorities’ Right To Vote

7. Schools Aren’t Closed

8. Build Back Better Will Save Americans Money

9. White House Reporters Are The Most Informed Americans Of All Time

10. I Didn’t Compare My Democrat Colleagues To Racists

Please follow the link above to read the details. Some of these statements are such obvious whoppers I don’t even want to comment on them. I remember how often the press accused President Trump of lying with no evidence. Now we have a President who truly struggles to tell the truth and the media is generally silent. It is my hope that American voters are smarter than the press thinks they are.

Is Showing Up A Requirement For This Job?

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I realize that in the age of the Internet, many people are fortunate (or unfortunate depending upon your point of view) to be able to work from home. However, a lot of the people who work from home are required to show up at an office periodically just to show that they are still alive and breathing. I guess that rule does not apply to some federal employees or department heads.

Yesterday Hot Air posted an article with the following headline, “Why is Pete Buttigieg still the Secretary of Transportation?” I think that is a very good question.

The article reports:

Pete Buttigieg has been away from his desk at the Department of Transportation for two months and no one noticed until this week. He’s been home on paternity leave since the birth of his twins. Normally, we might just shrug our shoulders and say who cares? These are not normal times, though, and there is a transportation crisis going on that has to be handled. The supply chain is facing severe disruption and cargo ships are backed up trying to get their goods unloaded in American ports, especially in California. Where’s Pete?

Politico had a piece about Pete going missing, having only now realized it, too, apparently. The liberal site dragged conservatives for noticing Pete’s absence and questioning where the Secretary of Transportation is these days. The chaos in the supply chain and the difficulties facing shipping companies and trucking companies all fall under his department’s supervision. Perhaps conservative outlets and social media were asking questions on Pete’s whereabouts because, though he recently began turning up in liberal outlets for interviews, he was absent from conservative networks. In his political career pre-birth of the twins, Mayor Pete was a frequent guest on both liberal networks and on Fox News. He is or was a go-to person to speak for the Biden administration. Just as the pain from the supply chain disruptions was being noticed and felt by most Americans, suddenly Pete went missing.

The Politico piece went on to explain family leave policy in government jobs and compared Pete’s leave to others like a U.S. senator and the Acting Director of the Office of Management and Budget. Ok, but that’s an apples and oranges comparison. A cabinet secretary is in a different position. The country can function smoothly during the absence of a senator during maternity leave, the same with an acting OMB director. However, cabinet secretaries have certain responsibilities unique to being a member of a presidential cabinet. If he planned to go on a two-month paternity leave, why didn’t he make that announcement public and formally declare his deputy secretary of transportation in charge? He has one. Her name is Polly Trottenberg and she was sworn in back in April. She’s actually an experienced public servant in transportation who, at least on paper, looks like she could do the job.

The article concludes:

Here’s the thing – Pete Buttigieg is a member of the president’s cabinet. He is not an ordinary elected official and his presence on the job is required, especially during a national crisis. He’s inept but he has people around him, we hope, that know what to do to ease the situation. I don’t begrudge him the opportunity to spend some time with newborn babies. His lengthy paternity leave right now, and as the shipping crisis grew along with supply chain problems, shows a true lack of judgment. The economy is at risk while he stays home. He has to handle both roles as other parents do. A week home with the babies when he first got them? Ok. Put the deputy secretary in charge and go home for a week. Then come back and get back to work. That’s how this works. Pete is showing his inability to perform his role in the president’s cabinet and he needs to be held accountable, new parent or not. Fire him.

I would like to add one bit of information about the problems with the supply chain backup in California. Someone who knows more than I do mentioned that owner-operator truckers are not allowed to take cargo from the ports in California. One whole sector of the trucking industry is banned from helping ease the crisis. It was noted that the reason for this is that unionized truckers can be easily controlled through their unions. Non-union truckers cannot be controlled as a group–only individually. There are a number of layers to the supply chain problem, and it would be nice if someone supposedly in charge was addressing those problems.

Lied To Again

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There is a container backup at American ports. There are various places on the Internet where you can look at the ships waiting to be unloaded. The Biden administration claims that the backup is due to the coronavirus. Actually there is another part of the story.

Yesterday The Conservative Treehouse reported the following:

Hundreds of requests for details on the specifics of the container shipping backlog.  So, I spent 3 days calling sources, digging for details and gathering information on the substantive issue at hand.  The epicenter of the problem is not what is being outlined by financial media, corporate media and politicians who have a specific interest in distracting from the issues at hand.  This has nothing to do with COVID-19.

The issues being discussed today relate to events that happened a long time ago.  As a matter of fact, it was so predictable that Amazon, Walmart, UPS, FedEx, Samsung, The Home Depot and Target all had taken actions years ago -long before COVID- because they knew this day would come.  It was not accidental that those companies showed up at the White House to discuss the issue, because there’s now a full court press to hide it.

There is one very specific regional issue driving the problem.  Read on:

The trucking issue with California LA ports, ie the Port of Los Angeles (POLA) and the Port of Long Beach (POLB), is that all semi tractors have to be current with new California emissions standards.  As a consequence, that mean trucks cannot be older than 3 years if they are to pick up or deliver containers at those ports.  This issue wipes out approximately half of the fleet trucks used to move containers in/out of the port.  Operating the port 24/7 will not cure the issue, because all it does is pile up more containers that sit idle as they await a limited number of trucks to pick them up.  THIS is the central issue.

Please follow the link to read the entire article. There needs to be a balance between environmentalism and progress. Some of our state governors have not learned this lesson yet.