Hahahaha
Jim Cramer suggests on CNBC that Trump could βbomb Tehran into the Stone Ageβ until Iran reopens the strait, citing U.S. bombings of North Vietnam in the 1970s. Carl Quintanilla points out to him that Hanoi won that war.
There were folks in my mentions saying βno, in fact sulphuric acid is not as big a deal as the Twitter post claims it isββ¦and folks, Iβm here to tell you it in fact is, and anyone telling you otherwise doesnβt know how supply chains work.
See below π
bsky.app/profile/scot...
This is something that everyone can fix with time, but you don't just reposition and commit transportation infra overnight. Obviously the US is pretty well insulated as a direct consumer of the acid...we've got the Gulf megahub.
But we could really suffer as midstream suppliers in Asia get hit.
It's not an expensive product itself. Transportation is a major cost driver, because again, you need it in large quantities and consistently delivered.
And guess what, many of the mines that use it are in the middle of effing nowhere. Often can't just piggyback on someone else's supply lines.
If you lose access to your supplier, you don't just go to the store and say "good day sir, could you please supply me with 2000 tonnes over the next 3 months"...you need the infrastructure (i.e., ships, rail, trucks) set up to deliver a consistent supply to you.
Yes, sulphuric acid is a waste product from petroleum refining, etc. and not particularly hard to obtain with appropriate lead time.
But like, these supply chains are established though longer term supply contracts and aren't done as merchant sales. You don't have drop-in replacements waiting.
There were folks in my mentions saying βno, in fact sulphuric acid is not as big a deal as the Twitter post claims it isββ¦and folks, Iβm here to tell you it in fact is, and anyone telling you otherwise doesnβt know how supply chains work.
See below π
bsky.app/profile/scot...
I still canβt believe we didnβt refill the SPR at $60 in anticipation of this
IR is an anti-degree. Regional specialization or go home
If you thought China was selling a lot of batteries and solar panels before, youβre going to love what happens next.
I donβt know how I feel about a senator running out and publicly revealing stuff from a classified briefing, even the non-classified stuff.
But also I feel likeβ¦what else can you do?
Whitfield was Trump +44 in 2024.
Hereby declaring him Coolest Dude In America
I'm not looking for a big shift. I'm looking for 40% D share that splits evenly enough between two Dems to carry them into the runoff over the GOP clusterf***.
Beyond that fluke potential, it's just not really worth paying attention to.
How much did DOGE cut again?
Netanyahu to Trump
This is a hill Iβm going to die on. And Iβm going to be pedantic and obnoxious about it for the next three years.
The moderator on my conference panel today (inadvertently) referenced the Department of War.
So when she asked me a question shortly thereafter, I immediately said βJust to be clear, there is no such thing as the Department of War.β
Itβs the Taco Bell ground beef of TACOs.
The βread an old book that isnβt Sun Tzu, Marcus Aurelius, or Machiavelliβ Challenge
Beware the Fake TACO.
Spooked by markets, he makes stuff up to a credulous press. Gets the calming headlines, and the situation hasnβt actually changed.
π€‘^2
Yeah. You canβt TACO this. You can only pretend to TACO. And at this point the Iranian regime has no reason to dial back immediately if he does.
My bad. And thanks to @ericcolumbus.bsky.social for calling it out.
It felt believable though!
Looking forward to speaking here at the UNC Clean Tech Summit tomorrow morning on...*checks notes*..."Mitigating Critical Minerals Dependence on Adversaries."
Ah yeah...*refreshes feed*...that'll be a fun one.