Have Bernanke And Ethanol Sunk Egypt? The People Cannot Afford To Buy Bread

IDB Editorials ^ | February 1, 2011 | LAWRENCE KUDLOW

[Kaslin]

Decades of autocratic government and a lack of free elections are, of course, the main drivers of the political upheaval in Egypt. But did the sinking dollar and skyrocketing food prices trigger the massive unrest now occurring in Egypt — or the greater Arab world for that matter?

In addition to Egypt, the people have taken to the streets to varying degrees in Algeria, Jordan, Libya, Morocco and Yemen. Local food riots have even broken out in rural China and other Asian locales.

While the mainstream media focus on the political aspects of this turmoil, they are overlooking the impact of rising inflation, driven mainly by record food prices. For example, former Bush adviser Dan Senor notes that Egypt is the world's largest wheat importer. Yet because of skyrocketing prices, Egyptian inflation is now over 10%, while some experts estimate that Egyptian food inflation has risen to as much as 20%.

So I have to ask this tough question: Is Ben Bernanke's ultra-easy QE2 money pump-priming partially to blame?

Commodities are priced in dollars, and the Federal Reserve has been overproducing dollars for more than two years. Consequently, emerging markets throughout the world — and the food sector in particular — are suffering from rising inflation.

[Mercat]

let them eat cake.

[clee1]

Frankly, this may be a little harsh, but I couldn’t care less about Egypt... or All of Africa or the Middle East, for that matter.

Decades of economic assistance have done nothing for us, and we are hated by the very people we are trying to help. Eff ‘em. They can starve or kill each other, for all I care.

[Ann Archy]

Obama and his Regime have RUINED EVERYTHING THEY HAVE TOUCHED!!!!

I hope all of the Jewish liberals are really proud for voting for Obama and all the anti-Israel Democrats that have now SUNK and DESTROYED Israel!!

As for the 99% Blacks that voted for this puke, well one anti-Semite knows another.

[redgolum]

A bit of a reach there. Not a lot of corn goes to the ME.

[Lazlo in PA]

Larry is dead on here. Ethanol is so destructive that even the leftists like Gore are running away from it. It is only a matter of time we will have massive food spikes here because of this stupid process.

[Ann Archy]

.

[1rudeboy]

What does Kudlow know? He's a globalist^®.

[PieterCasparzen]

Exactly. Our gov’t has been thinking to inflate their way out of debt until our economy “catches up”. The reality that their idiocy is going to cause third-world hunger and therefore wars... all seems academic to the administration, because so many of them are so... academic. I’ll bet that some of them though were not at all surprised, IYKWIM.

[muawiyah]

In most of the world human beings don't eat corn. Instead they purchase meat raised in America on a corn diet.

Americans, though, eat corn. We like it as cakes, patties, crakers, breads, fillers, thickeners, ........ etc.

Many Americans can't imagine that other people don't eat corn.

[WashingtonSource]

bump

[pointsal]

this cartoon may not have been approved by Archer Daniels Midland or Mobil Oil.... but it may be close to the right answer....

[PieterCasparzen]

All commodities have risen astronomically in the past few years, but the state media reports none of it. Business channels show the numbers, but it’s all just blah, blah, blah, they don’t connect any political dots. So basically as this has been going on the most that the bulk of Americans have noticed has been higher prices at the supermarket.

[TruthConquers]

“Frankly, this may be a little harsh, but I couldn’t care less about Egypt... or All of Africa or the Middle East, for that matter.

Decades of economic assistance have done nothing for us, and we are hated by the very people we are trying to help. Eff ‘em. They can starve or kill each other, for all I care.”

I hear yah. But the fact of the pumping of our money supply is causing inflation for the rest of the world. What is bad about that is that someday, when there is a revulsion of the dollar, all those overseas dollars will ALL come back to the good ol’ USA, and cause at least massive inflation or a hyperinflation currency crisis. It could destroy the dollar. Can you say, New World Order, with NEW currency???

And all of those shit holes where our dollars held up dictators will blame US for their problems. Stinks, doesn’t it?

[muawiyah]

Have what?

Wheat?

I can't eat that stuff. Certainly plenty of it leftover for someone else.

[Graybeard58]

I’m old enough to remember saying, “some day, bread will cost a dollar a loaf and gasoline will hit $.50 per gallon, cigarettes $.50 per pack”

[Kaslin]

I have to read the article again, but I don’t think it said anywhere that we are exporting corn to Egypt

[Grampa Dave]

The pushers and financiers of Mythanol appear to be racist mass murdering serial green eco killers of the poor across the globe.

Decades ago they banned DDT and each day thousands of innocent people of color across the globe die from malaria.

Now they are starving the innocents of color around the globe to death with their mythanol policies.

"To be fair, not all of the food inflation can be blamed on the Fed. A good part of this problem can also be placed at the doorstep of bipartisan U.S. policies to subsidize ethanol."

"According to the Wall Street Journal, in 2001, only 7% of U.S. corn went to ethanol. By 2010, the ethanol share was 39%. So instead of growing wheat, our farmers are growing corn in order to cash in on ethanol subsidies."

[gilor]

Hrmmmmm, can somebody explain the corn ~ wheat link? Or are they talking ‘bout the cornbread shortage?

[CPT Clay]

Good Question.