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Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

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Re: Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

#361

Post by anonymousiam »

xenadu02 wrote: post #248
anonymousiam wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think if you look at what is happening in the USA today, you will see some parallels. Our president appears to have created a national policy designed to shift us to "green energy" even though we aren't ready. This policy has not been openly declared (unless you count statements made during his campaign), or publicly reviewed for consequences (such as those we are seeing now). Encouraging a "transition" (his word)…

What are you talking about specifically? Overly politically minded people love to say the US president is doing this or that but in reality the president doesn't have all that much control. Even rejecting things like oil leases on natural lands are a) a small proportion of the supply and b) won't have an impact for years because it takes time to drill wells and move oil. The idea that Biden could wave his hand tomorr…

From a year and a half ago:

https://www.dlapiper.com/en/us/insights/publications/2021/02...

https://www.csis.org/analysis/biden-makes-sweeping-changes-o...

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/01/27/biden-suspends-oil-and-gas-d...

https://www.khou.com/article/news/nation-world/biden-ambitio...

https://www.forbes.com/sites/rrapier/2021/01/29/how-presiden...

So yes, all of those things have killed US oil production.

https://www.maciverinstitute.com/2022/03/yes-biden-is-to-bla...

https://www.sullivan.senate.gov/newsroom/speeches/speech-bid...

Re: Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

#362

Post by hunglee2 »

nibbleshifter wrote: post #224
hunglee2 wrote: post #151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

'bad government must be authoritarian' meme is interesting to observe, as if it is impossible for bad governance to occur in democratic systems. Sri Lanka clearly is a democracy, albeit a degenerate one

Its entirely possible for democratic systems to be authoritarian. Sri Lanka is a democracy, in that they have elections, but it is also hilariously corrupt, with extremely authoritarian governance.

this is not possible as 'authoritarian' is described as opposite to 'democratic'. Witness the recent posture of US alliance building / NATO to Asia pivoting / Anti-BRI funding.

Re: Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

#363

Post by sumitviii »

guerrilla wrote: post #206
Simon321 wrote: post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is something i see a lot in conspiratorial thinking, you can't believe a government would be so incompetent, so somebody MUST be behind it and have caused this maliciously. Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.

There's nothing "conspiratorial" about assuming fundamental principles of human behavior, even baked into neoclassical economics (which you might also subscribe to) and any realist political theory. Not only that but real conspiracies at this level happen almost constantly[1], John Bolton just admitted being involved in some yesterday on CNN[2]. Don't be dismissive and condescending, especially when it's quite possib…

There is no point in arguing against American government's actions on a forum almost completely populated by Americans.

Re: Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

#364

Post by throaghan »

thematrixturtle wrote: post #241
lumost wrote: post #225

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are there any neighboring countries which could reasonably assist in establishing a new government?

India, but the two countries have a very complicated and touchy relationship. Sri Lanka's Tamil minority, including the Tamil Tigers, was heavily supported by Tamils in India. However, Tamil Nadu (the Indian state) itself has a fractious relationship and the Tigers repaid India's attempt to send in peacekeepers by assassinating Indian PM Rajiv Gandhi.

Minor correction - Gandhi wasn’t assassinated for sending in peacekeepers. It was for sending in and leaving unchecked a notoriously brutal “peacekeeping” force who terrorized the people they were there to protect: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Peace_Keeping_Force#War...

Quite justified in my opinion.

Re: Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

#365

Post by freshpots »

londons_explore wrote: post #359
freshpots wrote: post #349

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The water isn't being put on soil for crops. The digested sludge is what is used. It is being done already and there are processes in place. https://www.epa.gov/biosolids/basic-information-about-biosol...

Not in Europe it isn't... In the USA, food poisoning rates are far higher than Europe, and part of that is probably the biosludge...

Probably not, but can be a source. Which is why it is regulated and steps are taken to a) reduce E. coli in the sludge and b) apply it at certain times, etc. per the EPA link.

https://extension.psu.edu/use-of-biosolids-in-crop-productio...

Treatment methods eliminate more than 95% of the pathogens in sewage sludge; the risk of disease from those that remain in biosolids is short-term because most of them do not survive beyond 30 days in the soil environment. In addition to requiring pathogen reduction treatment, Pennsylvania's biosolids regulations contain several risk reduction and management requirements that reduce the likelihood of disease to very low levels. These requirements include:

treatment and management practices to reduce the attraction of disease vectors and thus the probability that pathogens would be transferred from biosolids to humans or animals application setback requirements from occupied dwellings and from water sources minimum time requirements from biosolids application to harvest, ranging from 30 days for forage and feed crops to 38 months for some food crops no grazing allowed within 30 days of biosolids application to pastures If carefully followed, these requirements make the risk of disease from land-applied biosolids similar to or lower than that of land-applied manures. In fact, there are no documented cases of human or animal diseases being contracted from land-applied biosolids.

https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/nutrition-food-s...

Changes in microorganisms have undoubtedly contributed to this increase, as have changes in growing, harvesting, distribution, processing and consumption practices. Listeria monocytogenes, Clostridium botulinum and Bacillus cereus are naturally present in some soils. Their presence on fresh produce is not uncommon. Salmonella, E. coli O157:H7, Campylobacter jejuni, Vibrio cholerae, parasites and viruses can contaminate produce through raw or improperly composted manure, irrigation water containing untreated sewage or manure, and contaminated wash water. Contact with mammals, reptiles, fowl, insects and unpasteurized animal products are other sources of contamination.

Animal manure is a far more common source.

Re: Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

#366

Post by simonh »

kumarvvr wrote: post #15

The drastic move to organic farming is puzzling. Any level headed person , forget a politician , would want to experiment first, see the results, gauge and then expand selectively. That is common sense . I guess when you are a dictator ish government and you rule the country with an iron first, the institutions of the state stop being anything and simply become rubber stamps. This also underlines the importance of se…

>This also underlines the importance of self sufficiency in necessities.

Embarrassingly for your argument, trying to be self-sufficient is exactly what brought on this crisis. Reckless attempts at protectionism and nativism can be just as damaging as reliance on unreliable trade partners.

Economic security is very important of course, but for most countries self-sufficiency is either flat out unattainable or an incredibly expensive luxury. Fortunately there are other ways to achieve economic security, the most important of which is figuring out who you can trust, and hedging the risks of any exposure you have to those you can't.

Re: Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

#367

Post by nisa »

drited wrote: post #195
kumarvvr wrote: post #15

The drastic move to organic farming is puzzling. Any level headed person , forget a politician , would want to experiment first, see the results, gauge and then expand selectively. That is common sense . I guess when you are a dictator ish government and you rule the country with an iron first, the institutions of the state stop being anything and simply become rubber stamps. This also underlines the importance of se…

Not just a dictatorship problem. Look at the halting of nuclear in Germany - a decision made by Angela Merkel after a bottle of wine with her husband according to The Atlantic. I would argue that the current energy crisis was also partly caused by the ESG drive which while laudable in aspiration got ahead of physical practical implementation capacity.

The amount of shilling for nuclear energy on this site is never ceases to amaze me. It's just more expensive than alternatives https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economics_of_nuclear_power_pla... and the costs related to storing fuel, decommission old reactors and so on are also huge and paid by the taxpayer.

Re: Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

#368

Post by JJMcJ »

lkrubner wrote: post #87
nostromo wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The US is actually lucky to understand this at the deepest levels of policy and law making, with massive aid packages to prevent total collapse. The current inflation crisis suggests that even the US economy can reach its limit with endless money printing and stimulus. With the cost of borrowing going up, the executive and congress are going to start feeling pressure to cut spending or dramatically raise taxes.

The current spike in inflation is a world-wide phenomena, effecting every country on Earth, and therefore it seems unlikely to have much to do with the USA's creation of new money. The USA printed trillions of dollars of new money after 2008 and yet inflation remained very low for the next decade. If, now, the USA's printing of money is having some new effect, you have to explain why Argentina, South Africa, India, V…

Resources are more expensive because of interruptions due to war and disease.

Like in the 1970s. Crude oil prices went up 10X between 1972 and 1982. Is it surprising that the price of everything went up during that time, or economies everywhere experienced stress?

Fiscal and monetary policy isn't the whole explanation, no matter what certain recipients of the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel would have you believe.

Re: Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

#369

Post by _-david-_ »

nisa wrote: post #367
drited wrote: post #195

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not just a dictatorship problem. Look at the halting of nuclear in Germany - a decision made by Angela Merkel after a bottle of wine with her husband according to The Atlantic. I would argue that the current energy crisis was also partly caused by the ESG drive which while laudable in aspiration got ahead of physical practical implementation capacity.

The amount of shilling for nuclear energy on this site is never ceases to amaze me. It's just more expensive than alternatives https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economics_of_nuclear_power_pla... and the costs related to storing fuel, decommission old reactors and so on are also huge and paid by the taxpayer.

Nuclear is reliable and can run 24/7.

Wind and solar cannot guarantee production. This means you need storage. The problem with storage is you need to determine how much you want. If you decide on 1 month of storage what happens when you have limited wind and sun for a month and you are running out of stored power?

Nuclear doesn't have that problem. This is why nuclear is a must in the future.

Re: Sri Lanka is having a textbook currency crisis, triggered by policy mistakes

#370

Post by midasuni »

ravel-bar-foo wrote: post #133
lottin wrote: post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The best choice for farmers isn't necessarily the best choice for society as a whole.

If society values agricultural output or having income in rural areas it's a lot better to have farmers making the choices themselves than to chose whatever non-farmer/urban/plutocrat politicians would mandate.

Not when the externalities are hidden, especially when hidden from both producer and consumer
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