In the summer of 2012, an industrial accident shut down a small portion of a chemical plant in Germany.
Normally, such an interruption would be of little importance. This particular string of reaction vessels, however, were the world's only source of a boutique polyamide that as used in the fuel lines of most of the automobiles sold in the developed world.
This particular PA had the exact balance of crystalinity/amorphous, molecular weight and cross-linking so-as to be impervious to hydrocarbon vapors and yet remained flexible between -60F and 350F.
Within hours of the news leaking out, arbitrage buyers were bidding up every tote of that specialty PA on the market as the world's automakers were trying to secure the resin they needed to make fuel hoses.
This is not to say that other types of plastic were not suitable, or that some combination of plastics could not be co-extruded to provide similar performance. This was because various US Federal and EU regulations produced a heavy burden of validation. Selling products that failed to meet emissions mandates, even some 10 years into the future, would produce financially crippling fines.
To the best of my knowledge, the chemical company was able to repair the damage and start producing the PA resin before any major manufacturers' production was impacted, but it was a close thing.
The point of this rambling story is that the EU is an expensive place to do business and the companies that manage to stay in business do it by producing hundreds and thousands of critical, boutique, smallish-volume items that cannot be easily outsourced to commodity producers.
For example, the EU produces many of the pigments and tints used in paints. You might not think it is a big deal but what if you cannot open your shopping mall because OSHA Yellow and OSHA Blue paint are not available to mark off the handicapped ramps and parking areas? As the owner of the shopping mall, you cannot open the mall because you do not have the number of handicapped parking places defined as REQUIRED BY FEDERAL LAW but you will still have to pay the monthly nut.
The ripples of the Nordstream pipeline sabotage will spread to this continent and will likely touch every person before the first robins of spring sing in the apple trees.
Well, since Pedo Joe openly stated on video in February that if Russia invaded Ukraine than the Nordstream pipeline would be "ended"AND the USS Kearsage was right over where the "leak" happened it's pretty obvious what probably happened. And what happened is an act of war against Russia. Wonder when Putin decides it's time for some canned sunshine. Because realistically that's his only option to our act of war. Talk about idiots. The people running the show in DC are playing with the end of the world.
ReplyDeleteWell said Dan, I only hope Vlad has more options.
ReplyDeleteThe act of war was against Germany - Russia wasn't pumping any gas, Germans owned the pipe, not Russia. Hence the joke about article 5. How do you invoke the war clause against your own member?!?!
This is a level of treadon I didn't think possible. When the usurpurs declared war on Americans it was no surprise...
Peoples ignorance, stupidity, and malleability (I support the current thing) does surprise me, though I suppose it shouldn't at this point? The fact that so many people cannot see through the BS to what is really going on is disappointing, frankly. Means we're going to have to kill a lot more people than I initially thought.
An area recon includes noting signs of potential hostile persons.
ReplyDeleteThe same folks that Karen'ed you about the not a vaxx and mask wearing will happily "See something, Say something" to the local KGB.
It was said that East Germany is three people were on a corner talking two of them were Statzi. Not true but the fear kept folks' opinions unspoken. The Statzi depended on the vast number of folks eager to rat out a neighbor for bad thinking often without even a reward for it.
Keeping a close eye/ear on folks' way of speaking, bumper stickers and political signage might keep you from saying Bad Speech before them and getting the Eye of Saron upon yourself.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 ESV
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.
Pray for wisdom and act upon it.