Scarcity as a Policy Planning Tool

I’ve heard people say that $4/gallon gas is good and that we should do something to make sure gas prices don’t “slip too low.”

Scarcity regularly is the preferred planning tool of elitists. They can still get whatever is scarce, but others will have to change their ways. This has the added bonus for elitists that they won't have to mingle with commoners when they get it, because commoners will no longer be in line.

A mature political dialogue benefits from options. But, some who know that their preferred options will lose in the democratic process, prefer to have their choices elevated to the top by default -- through scarcity, high cost, or regulatory fiat.

High-cost gasoline clearly will encourage exploration of alternatives. Exploration of energy alternatives is a great thing for many, many reasons. Americans are embracing that reality. But, the advocates of scarcity need to realize that scarcity and high costs also will encourage some exploration that I’d have to think they aren’t too keen on.

We will make huge environmental progress when we accept the fact that humans reach for improvement and advancement. If we set a progressive goal on the horizon and lay out the superior case for its adoption, society will move in that direction. But, if we attempt to mandate that people should pay more and expect less, it will cause gridlock. Goals have to be about tomorrow, not yesterday.