#hypocrisy #honesty #HonestHypocrisy #human #advantages #SmallBusiness #cheating Is there such a thing as honest hypocrisy? Consider this Tower of Power lyric: “I can’t stand to see the slaughter, but still I eat the meat. I can’t stand dishonest people, but still sometimes I cheat.” Or, this advice from a small business owner to a friend considering starting a business: “I know you’re an honest person, but if you don’t cheat a little, you won’t survive.” By such standards, honest hypocrisy might be defined as being honest about one’s hypocrisy. But, as humans who want to do the right thing all the time, one may face times when “the right thing” may not be the best thing to do at the time. In the above examples, “the slaughter” is ordinary meat production. Animals are raised specifically to be eventually killed for their meat. Of course, no one really likes the idea of killing animals, but even in nature, one animal kills another to feed itself. Also, it’s human nature to want an advantage, even when you may have been told that taking that advantage is wrong. Look at demographics as an example. In recent decades, certain demographic characteristics gave some people an advantage over others in the job market. As much as many politicians want to take away those demographic advantages today, they are still a reality. Those who hire people often use them. Applicants who possess those advantages often include a photo to prove they match certain demographic groups. Of course, they also have to be qualified for the jobs they are seeking. Cheating on one’s taxes, even a little, is against the law. But, there are some parts of the tax code that some may consider “wrong,” with respect to struggling small businesses, or even struggling individual taxpayers. They see it as right to cut through that “wrongness” by cheating a little. No one really gets hurt by such action, the rationale goes. But, when cheating becomes a way of life, as with some with all the advantages in the world to begin with, it can rile “honest” hypocrites. Because we are human, complete honesty at all times can be illusive. That’s why the term “white lie” came into being. Do you want to know how honest you really are? Ask yourself: If I found a $50 bill on the ground in a crowded area, what would I do? Would I put it in my pocket, as in, “finders keepers, losers weepers?” Or, would I ask people in the area whether they had dropped it, knowing that anyone can lie and say it’s theirs? It may depend on your personal financial situation. It may depend on how you would feel if you had dropped it. Or, it may depend on how guilty you would feel if you’d kept it. Most of us grapple with life decisions all the time. None of us is perfect, but most of us consider ourselves virtuous. Being an honest hypocrite may not always make a person feel good, but, sometimes, it may feel like the right thing to do at the time, as long as no one else gets hurt. So, as you go through life, be as honest as you can. Try not to be a hypocrite. Peter
#oil #OilMarket #OilPrices #IranWar #GeopolitialForces #EfficientDistributionOfOil The worldwide oil market is both fluid and slick. First, it is fluid because it so depends on geopolitical forces in the world, as the current Middle East war shows. It is slick because it depends as much on how the oil is transported as much as where it is produced. In either case, the price depends on world supply and demand. Middle East conflicts affect supply. How much drivers drive and how the weather affects heating are among the demand factors. Though the U.S. is a net exporter of oil, it still must import oil from Middle East sources. That’s the slickness of the market. Just because we produce a lot of oil does not mean we can distribute that oil efficiently. It’s not easy to get U.S. refined oil to U.S. markets inexpensively. That’s why, for example, the oil produced in Alaska is more economically shipped to Asia, vs. being consumed in the continental U.S. Emmett Lindner explains the oil market in detail in The New York Times. His article was also published March 12, 2026, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Refineries in New Jersey, for example, might import oil from Algeria or Nigeria instead of buying it from Texas,” Lindner writes. “Fuel made from imported oil often winds up in U.S. gas stations,” Lindner writes. The type of oil produced in the U.S. tends to be higher quality – light, sweet crude, he said. But U.S. refineries are set up to handle heavy and sour oil. Therefore, it’s often more efficient to sell the sweet crude and buy the heavy, the article says. Here’s the other issue Lindner cites. If the government decided to open up more fragile areas for oil drilling, i.e. government-owned areas in the West, those actions would take time, up to six months, to get online, he writes. All this talk of oil and fossil fuels begs the question: why isn’t the U.S. exploring cleaner, more sustainable energy sources, so we are no longer dependent on geopolitically sensitive oil? The country wax making strides in establishing a clean-energy industry, using solar, wind, electrical even nuclear sources. Politically, the government decided to focus back on oil and fossil fuels which, in addition to geopolitical hazards, also damage the earth more than the other sources do. Remember, when oil prices rise, the already rich oil barons get richer and everyone else gets poorer. For the moment, though, the U.S. needs a mix of fossil fuels and alternative energy, with policies intended to wean the country off fossil fuels eventually. Tower of Power famously sings, “There is only so much oil in the ground.” And, what’s still left in the ground depends almost entirely on a fluid and slick market that can send prices all over the place. The country, and the world, should be aiming for the day when oil and other fossil fuels are NOT the main driver of energy. If we don’t manage this closely, the volatile oil market could one day, when we least expect it, be tapped out. Or, the price could be so high, we may lament on what we didn’t do to secure cheaper, more sustainable alternatives. Peter
