Today being election day in the USA, we speculate on what different outcomes may mean for mining. Beware: this posting may offend. It is, however, pure bloggery: speculative and prevaricative.
In truth, the outcome of the election will probably have no discernible impact on mining. The old debates will continue: should MSHA be more strict; should mining taxes increase; how to protect the environment from mining; mine in the USA or import from foreign countries? Sarah Palin and her cohorts may take Alaska back and that may affect fishing and hunting. A witch may win in Delaware and we will invoke spirits in support of permitting. But I doubt it.
That grand product of a mining youth, Nevada Senator Harry Reid may loose. To be replaced by an old grandmother who would abolish DOE, EPA, and various government agencies intent on violating constitutional rights. Nevada may be poorer for his loss, but I am not aware that he has done anything for miners since a long dead president helped his father in a new deal. Any rate, mining in Nevada is too local an issue for a granny in Washington to affect; even if she succeeds in closing umpteen government agencies. She is hardly likely to close down mining in Nevada. For the sake of my shares, I hope not. Although she may banish foreign mining corporations including Barrick, BHP, Golder Associates, Knight Piesold, and SRK, basically unwanted immigrants, all of them.
If the Republicans take charge, you may wish to sell your uranium mining shares. They do not believe in global warming or air pollution. They will cut funding for nuclear power and support more coal mining. So go buy coal mining shares.
The far right, upon seizing power, will kill further recruiting of gays for the military, although with one in four applicants to the army being too fat to fight, not sure how we will continue to defend our borders. Maybe the mining associations should seek to recruit those gays to mining–for I have never seen or heard prejudice in that regard in the mining industry. I even have a friend whose mining company contact changed from male to female and continued his/her climb up the mining ladder and continued to hire his consulting company. My friend, a consultant, says it took him only three months to get used to the change.
California will never become more mining-friendly, even if the employee of illegal immigrants wins. And if pot is made legal in California, I doubt drugs in the workplace will be made legal. To the contrary, open space will be put to better use as growing fields than as mining territory.
Libertarians may prevail, but as Mr. Paul demonstrates, they are too soon co-opted by the prevailing power structures and dreams of individual liberty soon fade. The Constitution says nothing about mining, so we at sea in that issue, in spite of Scalia and those dreamers on the Supreme Court. Although Mountain Top mining may gain favor as the EPA is gutted.
Fact is that the worst outcome I can envisage is that a newly empowered liberty-supporting group makes it possible for mines to do what they will and the taxpayer is saddled, years hence, with the cost of clean-up. Good for Canadian and Australian mining companies, but so sad for the USA taxpayer. All I can conclude is this: they voted for it, no matter whether out of ignorance or defiance; they deserve to get what they get. On behalf of my eleven American grandkids, however, I must protest. Even if only via sarcasm and blogging.
I cannot believe that the outcome of the election will make a whit of difference to unemployment. Mines will still face skill shortages; too many Americans are uneducated for the modern world of mining. I get over 150 hits per week on an old blog posting about truck and bus driving jobs in mining. Just how many drivers do mines need? I cannot believe any tea party winner will tackle the shortage of workers at airport security lines that bedevil and delay miners who must move around. Damn, that means more government workers. Better to exercise your individual rights fuming in a line waiting to pass through security screening than to increase government or give jobs to union supporters.
The price of gold will still waver and climb higher. Afterall, on the basis of the eight Bush years, we conclude the Republicans cannot manage an economy—they, like the Democrats, can spend more than the country earns. Thus the Chinese will have to continue funding Walmart goodies and investors will continue to flee to gold. Hopefully the Canadian and Australian dollars continue to climb as timid politicians, old and new, fail to act and choose instead to grandstand. I am still paying for a university education in Iowa with money earned in Canada. I love the fall of the USA dollar and the rise of my earnings. For that reason alone, I support incompetent USA politicians, regardless of conviction or absence thereof. So do go vote, no matter for whom. You at least are still free, democracy still flourishes, individual choices can still be made, and venial, ignorant politicians will still exist. I would recommend voting for the most honest and informed candidate, regardless of their political party.
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