Barack Obama put his ignorance on display again yesterday -- or was it merely his contempt for your intelligence? The Professor waxed eloquent on the subject of commodities speculation.
Obama explained that gasoline prices are high, not because of scarce supply, but because speculators, anticipating that unrest in the Middle East will engender supply shortages, are bidding up oil prices. So far, Obama's point is arguable, but then he goes on to explain that because speculation is the driver of price volatility, there is no short-term solution to high oil prices.
If speculators bid the worldwide price of oil based on their expectation of future supply, how would their expectation change if Obama were to reverse himself on US domestic oil and gas exploration and drilling, and nuclear energy development? Of course, speculators would rationally expect a future increase in supply and would accordingly bid prices down in anticipation, ergo gasoline prices would be affected in the short-term by policy.
Is Obama too stupid to understand that, or does he just think you are too stupid to understand it?