Hacker News Reader

> Yes, I'm sure the price of oil and the price of grain rising 30% due to shortages hasn't affected you at all.

The last time I looked, govt controlled the vast majority of the oil leases in the US. They just shut down Shell in AK after Shell spent >$2B to get a site ready.

The last time I looked, the US govt mandated 10% ethanol in gas, subsidized its production, and placed a high tarriff on imported ethanal.

I'm not sure what the point of your post is as it's unrelated to the comment it's in reply to. But aside from that fact, be careful to avoid confusing price increases due to shortages and price increases due to speculation about perceived current or future shortages.

It's due to speculation as another poster said.

That being said, government loves higher prices. They benefit first.