Global Supply Chain Crisis 2021: Megathread - A cozy thread for watching the supply chain fall apart just in time for the holidays

[Maurice Caine]

People won't even have gums in 5 fucking years time if the shortage of NHS Dentists continues like this. We already got no teeth left.

But never mind that. The penny is finally starting to drop! The predictive programming is being ramped up to let the plebs really know what time it is, boyeee...

The Golden Age of travel is over: All our lives, we've taken it for granted. But now with airports in chaos, £100 to fill up your car and trains on strike, social historian DOMINIC SANDBROOK says the future is bleak for getaway-lovers​

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10935923/Golden-Age-travel-says-historian-DOMINIC-SANDBROOK-amid-airport-chaos-rail-strikes.html

Just imagine a world in which, almost overnight, the transport system breaks down. Flights across the world are cancelled, leaving thousands of travellers stranded far from home.

Airports are crowded with mobs of angry, frightened people. Even greater throngs descend on the railway stations, desperate to squeeze on to the horribly overcrowded trains.

Meanwhile, the roads fall eerily silent, as rocketing petrol prices make it prohibitively expensive for all but the richest to drive long distances.

For businesses across the Western world — hotels and restaurants, cafes and newsagents, garages and tour operators — this would be nothing short of a disaster.

It would leave us poorer, more isolated, more introverted and more ignorant: prisoners not just on our own island, but in our own towns and our own homes.

It sounds like the stuff of some dystopian fantasy. In reality, it's the story of what's been happening over the past few weeks.


Fucking hell! Sugar coat the fucking pill why don't you!

Jesus. That all sounds real bad.

Except most of us have been living it for the last years anyway, so, sucks to be YOU!

But it's getting worse!


This morning, thanks to the biggest nationwide strike for 30 years, railway stations across Britain have fallen silent. More than a million commuters have been forced to work from home or take to the roads, with enormous queues expected to block motorways and major arteries.

In London, Tube workers are striking all day, shutting down much of the capital's Underground network. The authorities have begged people to stay at home, but any remaining services are expected to be packed to capacity.

And there's worse to come. More strikes are scheduled for Thursday and Saturday, as part of the RMT's campaign for higher pay and an end to redundancies.


Ok, how I am expected to get to Glastonbury and erect my Yurt?

The dooming in the article continues:


The union boasts of 'the biggest rail strike in modern history' bringing Britain to a standstill.

And should the disruption continue — endangering supermarket food deliveries and causing forecourt pumps to run dry — some analysts warn the Government may be forced to suspend remaining passenger services to keep freight moving.

There's even grimmer news ahead. With petrol prices soaring, the RAC estimates that it now costs an eye-watering £103.13 to fill a typical family car with petrol, and a whopping £106.79 for a diesel car.

For some families, the prospect of a quick, cheap drive to the shops is already disappearing out of reach.

And if you're hoping to go abroad this summer, you may have to think again. In the past few weeks, Europe's airports have descended into utter chaos, with gigantic queues at security and tearful scenes as flights were cancelled.


That's it. I've read enough now.

I guess us poor people have to remain poor. I guess the rich will always be rich.

But for those poor suckers in the middle, those with any kind of agency to travel or spare cash left to spend on discretionary items, well, the rich are coming for your cash too. And they're gonna get it! Inflation is just another word for 'nothing left to lose'...

Get used to it. It's the way it's gonna be for a while.

It's as if there is a reason for all these ""delays"" at airports, and the reason you have been given: staff shortages - well, that might not be the real reason after all, according to this article.

I thought the 'Golden Age of Travel' ended in the 50s when the government said 'fuck you' to railways and ocean liners.

 

[CaesarCzech]

You realize you'll have to actually pay laborers more than a few pennies per hour and the price of your products will go up anyways.

Well Time to Enslave some Niggers again, Corporations can have some profits as long as their share. Afterall the only socialism that can succeed is a national one.

 

[Blobby's Murder Knife]

I wish we had an automotive subforum. I was looking at diesel fuel injector pumps for my vehicle and they are $700USD. OK, fine, but they want $349 in core charges. It is the same differential for fuel injectors. Fuck me boys. I thought it was bad enough for my turbo and that that was 400 with 150 core charge. These are all rebuilt parts.

 

[FatalTater]

I was thinking thinky thoughts today and got to wondering.

WHAT IF with the gas prices and hiring problems and whatever the hell else is going on, Amazon and other places that deliver just... stop.

Maybe try to be prepared for that, just in case.

 

[Blobby's Murder Knife]

I was thinking thinky thoughts today and got to wondering.

WHAT IF with the gas prices and hiring problems and whatever the hell else is going on, Amazon and other places that deliver just... stop.

Maybe try to be prepared for that, just in case.

They would be far more likely to increase cost of subscription first. Amazon can't afford to stop like that because they recently shut down what small storefront presence they had. Now, how much will make people say 'fuck that noise. I am going only to Target or Walmart', I don't know.

 

[Kuritan Deplorable]

They would be far more likely to increase cost of subscription first. Amazon can't afford to stop like that because they recently shut down what small storefront presence they had. Now, how much will make people say 'fuck that noise. I am going only to Target or Walmart', I don't know.

Even in the most apocalyptic scenarios, they will not 'stop' delivery. They will sooner slap a "deliveries may be delayed due to current conditions" sticker on the page header, and let you buy something with a delivery date between tomorrow and six months from now, depending on when the drivers find fuel to move it from distro to local to your house, at a price Amazon is willing to pay. The best indicator on the site would probably be noticing prime delivery options disappearing from more things - The system automatically only offers it on deliveries they can make, so if its gone everywhere, they're struggling to acquire or move those goods.

 

[Male Idiot]

Even in the most apocalyptic scenarios, they will not 'stop' delivery. They will sooner slap a "deliveries may be delayed due to current conditions" sticker on the page header, and let you buy something with a delivery date between tomorrow and six months from now, depending on when the drivers find fuel to move it from distro to local to your house, at a price Amazon is willing to pay. The best indicator on the site would probably be noticing prime delivery options disappearing from more things - The system automatically only offers it on deliveries they can make, so if its gone everywhere, they're struggling to acquire or move those goods.

Another interesting thing is dropboxes. They may just make dropboxes at railway stations, and you'll need to walk/drive there yourself for it.

 

[HTTP Error 404]

Another interesting thing is dropboxes. They may just make dropboxes at railway stations, and you'll need to walk/drive there yourself for it.

They've already set up the infrastructure for this with "Amazon Hub Locker" and other similar setups. Basically, dropboxes, usually at an office supply store or something, that you can pick up packages at.

It wouldn't surprise me at all if they shifted to requiring the use of those for Prime sometime in the near future, especially if shit hits the fan.

Edit: IIRC, FedEx also has these. Remember people talking about them on the Google Fi subreddit, because FedEx is infamous for cutting open Cellphone shipments and stealing the phone. If you don't open it in front of a manager at a FedEx location, they'll claim you are trying to scam them out of a free phone.

 

[K-Hole]

I was thinking thinky thoughts today and got to wondering.

WHAT IF with the gas prices and hiring problems and whatever the hell else is going on, Amazon and other places that deliver just... stop.

Maybe try to be prepared for that, just in case.

So what you're really saying is:

I was thinking kinky thoughts today and got to wondering.

WHAT IF with the gas prices and hiring problems and whatever the hell else is going on, Amazon and other places that deliver just... start hiring people who will work for nothing... just because they have a gas huffing problem... then I'd be happy to work for free...

I might just try to be prepared for that, just in case.

I wish you well in your future job endeavours!

 

[contradiction of terns]

I don't think this has been posted, so... Get ready for the catastrophic DEF shortage

On it's face it looks like old news because it starts by covering the origins of the DEF shortage and anyone following this thread will be like, 'Well, yeah, no shit.'

However... OwO, What's this?

So: US urea imports are falling, US DEF imports are falling. And US domestic manufacture of DEF is likewise falling and may very quickly turn critical. But what about consumer sales? How will that be affected? Let's connect some dots. Here is dot one, Flying J and the Union Pacific railroad:

Flying J sells 30 percent of ALL the DEF consumed in the United States.

According to Ken Cameron’s excellent article, Flying J gets seventy percent of its DEF via Union Pacific Railroad. Due to distribution points controlled by Union Pacific, Flying J cannot go to another supplier. Union Pacific is in control. In April, Union Pacific told Flying J to reduce its shipments of DEF by 50 percent, or else they would be embargoed, which would effectively bankrupt Flying J.

If this ultimatum is enforced, Union Pacific’s restrictions on Flying J will cause shortages, since this would cut the national supply of DEF by 15 percent. In his testimony, Mr. Konar explained that a single rail car provides 3000 trucks worth of DEF fills (2.7 gal DEF/ per 100 gal of diesel). Every missed rail car will reduce trucking potential by 5 million miles!

This whole situation is very odd, to wit:

• Why would Union Pacific demand Flying J to reduce its shipments of DEF by 50 percent or face embargo? Doesn't U.P. make money hauling DEF for Flying J?
• What is Union Pacific's business upside of this demand?
• As well, did U.P. consult with CF Industries or DEF makers before issuing the edict to F.J.? If F.J. cancels 50 percent of its DEF orders, would that not affect CF and DEF makers?
• For that matter, why did Union Pacific issue the edict to Flying J at all, when FJ is just the consumer, not the shipper?

Dot two: what does urea manufacturer CF Industries and the Union Pacific railroad have in common? They are both heavily owned by BlackRock, Inc.

• BlackRock is the second-largest holder of CF stock. What that means is that basically BlackRock has near-controlling influence over manufacture of all urea production and urea products in the United States because of CF Industries' dominance in the field.
• BlackRock is also the second-largest shareholder of Union Pacific, owning 7.3% of common stock.
• The Vanguard Group, Inc. is the largest shareholder of both companies, owning 8.5% of shares of Union Pacific and 12.37% ownership of CF Industries.
• And Vanguard is also the largest shareholder of BlackRock, Inc, holding almost 8 percent of shares. The second-largest owner of Blackrock, Inc., is BlackRock Fund Advisors, which means that Blackrock itself occupies that position.

The policy, strategy, and plans division of BlackRock is the BlackRock Investment Institute.

The BlackRock Investment Institute (BII) leverages the firm's expertise and generates proprietary research to provide insights on the global economy, markets, geopolitics and long-term asset allocation – all to help our clients and portfolio managers navigate financial markets.

And:

• The Chairman of the BlackRock Investment Institute is Tom Donilon, President Obama’s former National Security Advisor.
• Tom Donilon’s brother, Mike Donilon is a Senior Advisor to Joe Biden.
• Tom Donilon’s wife, Catherine Russell, is the director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office.
• Tom Donilon’s daughter, Sarah Donilon, graduated from college in 2019 and now works on the White House National Security Council.

 

[AbendCode12]

I was thinking thinky thoughts today and got to wondering.

WHAT IF with the gas prices and hiring problems and whatever the hell else is going on, Amazon and other places that deliver just... stop.

Maybe try to be prepared for that, just in case.

Everyone will go to the 'store' where products are 'stored' and pick up what they can find and wait in line. In the old days they called this 'shopping'. They even printing paper catalogs for so people could arrive at the 'store' better prepared.

Sorry to sound sarcastic but the better answer would be that home delivery would have surcharges added to deliveries until it became profitable for the suppliers or middle men businesses that deliver. Money is a service that people provide to the state in order that they not be punished by deprivation.

 

[1Tonka_Truck]

Berkshire Hathaway(owns BNSF) is 40% owner of pilot flying j. If the DOJ wasn't useless someone would be looking into this.

 

[Zbk3VmLfujjzjxBd43tL]

Berkshire Hathaway(owns BNSF) is 40% owner of pilot flying j. If the DOJ wasn't useless someone would be looking into this.

Because the Haslam family, who sold Berkshire Hathaway that share in their company Pilot Flying J, are very well connected in politics hence nobody investigates them without their permission. Here's a telling excerpt from Wikipedia's article on the company founder Jim Haslam.

Spoiler: Details

Haslam has been involved in politics in Knoxville, Tennessee, where Pilot is headquartered, both in an active role, and as a Republican Party fundraiser. He was a fundraiser for both Senator Howard Baker in the 1960s and President Gerald Ford in the 1970s.[10]

In 2002, Haslam's son, Bill, ran for mayor of Knoxville, bringing greater public scrutiny to the Haslam family. His opponent in the race, Madeline Rogero, consistently tried to portray Bill as a puppet of his father and the region's oil interests, which Bill staunchly denied.[10] She also blamed Jim for UT's hiring of controversial president, John Shumaker, in 2002.[10] During Bill's 2010 gubernatorial campaign, his opponents consistently brought up price-gouging allegations levied against Pilot in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.[8]

In 2006, Chattanooga mayor Bob Corker, a former college roommate of Jim and long-time family friend, was elected to the United States Senate. Haslam was the financial manager for his campaign.[10] Haslam was the Tennessee state co-chairman for the 2012 presidential campaign of Republican candidate Mitt Romney.[13]

 

[the fall of man]

Bloomberg Live just called tomato inflation 55%
Biden calling for a gas tax holiday
J Pow is going to speak before the Senate this morning
I'm leveraged so short the market that I'm just short of hoping for the govt to ban home gardens

this is sparta. we were warned, may god have mercy on our souls

 

[ZazietheBeast]

Bloomberg Live just called tomato inflation 55%
Biden calling for a gas tax holiday
J Pow is going to speak before the Senate this morning
I'm leveraged so short the market that I'm just short of hoping for the govt to ban home gardens

this is sparta. we were warned, may god have mercy on our souls

Funny isn't it? In different points of American history, people would be encouraged to make victory gardens and raise their own livestock to help offset costs. But thanks to the corporatization of the US, they're trying to make you into helpless serfs instead.

 

[Tim Curry]

Reposting here for consideration.

Maybe this belongs in the Global Supply Chain.
For the US Kiwis, considering that Biden is calling for a Federal Tax Hiatus on Gas, do you think we should expect 70's style gas shortages and lines similar to when the Price Controls were put in place?

 

[Blobby's Murder Knife]

Funny isn't it? In different points of American history, people would be encouraged to make victory gardens and raise their own livestock to help offset costs. But thanks to the corporatization of the US, they're trying to make you into helpless serfs instead.

Worst part is they have made it so people will actively argue with you on the point of having food security. We should just trust the system and nothing bad will ever happen. Fucking niggercattle.

 

[Flan Handler]

Reposting here for consideration.

These morons. Trying to reduce prices does nothing to reduce demand, at the same time as they are reducing supply. So yeah, expect shortages.

 

[ZazietheBeast]

Worst part is they have made it so people will actively argue with you on the point of having food security. We should just trust the system and nothing bad will ever happen. Fucking niggercattle.

And if you were to point out the logic behind that... watch as the NPC malfunctions and doubles down on their belief instead. And cry out; "Conspiracy-theorist!" with no real answer to your question.

 

[spastic_bag]

I just got The Email. Raspberry Pis, back in stock, baby!

Well, more like, Raspberry Pi. One. The 1GB one. The shit one.