The Houthis have hit another Saudi oil tanker, and this one is scary because of where it was positioned. Europe is staring down winter with its gas running thin. And Brazil’s market crash got even worse than I said it would. We got a lot to talk about.

Another Saudi Tanker Hit in the Red Sea

The Saudi-led coalition says a Saudi oil tanker was attacked west of Hodeidah on Tuesday. This is big news. A lot of Saudi oil is trying to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, and they can’t get it to Asia unless they go through the choke point at the Bab el-Mandeb, where the Houthis are sitting there shooting at Saudi ships. Recently some Saudi ships have gotten through, but this one didn’t, even with a navy escort.

A navy ship stepped in, but the tanker still took a hit. Fortunately it didn’t hit anything mission critical, and the tanker was able to keep sailing north under escort. But a tanker full of oil getting hit by a missile is a scary thing. It’s like someone riddling your car with bullets with the gas tank full.

Europe’s Energy Squeeze Before Winter

Europe’s gas prices have hit their highest level since 2022. Europe got through its last crisis, when Russian gas was halted, by importing lots and lots of natural gas, a lot of it from the United States. Now gas shipments from the Persian Gulf are down about 80% from a year ago, and Europe is cutting off what it still imports from Russia.

So where is Europe going to get all this natural gas? So far, they haven’t come up with a good answer. President Trump has been doing his best to divert as much gas to Europe as possible, but their storage caverns are very low. Winter is coming fast, and Europe hasn’t had a winter yet since the Strait of Hormuz issue began. All it takes is one hard winter and Europe might run out of natural gas, which would be catastrophic. Can you imagine Europeans getting by without heat just like they get by without AC?

Uganda Locks Down Its Borders Over Ebola

You might be wondering why I’m talking about Uganda. It borders Congo, and Ebola there is a serious issue. Uganda is now locking down its border with Congo. Foreigners who have been in Congo can no longer pass through Uganda, even if they go to another country first, and anyone coming from Congo faces a 21-day quarantine. Africa is more and more on edge. They’ve tried to contain this, but it keeps spreading.

Election Day in Israel

It’s election day in Israel, and it’s an important one. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his party are up for reelection. It’s possible that even if Netanyahu loses, he might still remain prime minister. If that sounds like it makes no sense, parliamentary systems operate a little differently than American politics. If they keep their coalition, they could keep Netanyahu just to keep the support of the United States. He’s more competent at shaking down the US government for money than basically anyone else in Israel’s history. President Trump has already thrown his backing behind a unity government headed by Netanyahu, however the election goes.

Brazil’s Market Crashes Into a Trading Halt

Brazil’s stock market crashed into a trading halt after the election, and it was worse than I said. I told you before the market opened that it was down 20%. It managed to go down 30%. Imagine losing one third of all your retirement assets in a day. Then stack on top of that a 10% collapse in the Brazilian currency against the US dollar. Of what you have left, you lose another 10%. It’s very, very bad.

President Trump called the vote “rigged,” backing Flávio Bolsonaro, who wants the election annulled and a new one held. The statistical analysis of the vote counts doesn’t make any sense. Most of the big candidates from the first round backed Bolsonaro, and yet somehow all the new votes went the other way. Flávio’s father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, is in jail for basically life for challenging the previous election Lula won against him. I imagine there will be protests pretty soon, and they could get ugly.

The American Ocean?

President Trump has floated renaming the Atlantic Ocean the American Ocean. We all knew this was coming. We have the Gulf of America and Lake America. He also suggested the Europeans would be thrilled by that. Maybe if you aren’t thrilled by it, you don’t get any dollars from the United States government and no protection from the United States military. That would put them in a bit of a vise.

Rain and Disease Squeeze Produce

This one is going to hit you in the coming days. Rain and disease are squeezing produce. Produce buyers report strawberry prices up 30% in a week. Supplies of romaine, tomatoes, limes and green onions are tight, but lettuce is the one you’ll feel fastest. If you need lettuce, go grab some now, because it’s going to disappear off the shelves and prices are going to go through the roof.

Paper Straws Worse Than Plastic

The South Korean government confirmed what we all already knew. Paper straws, widely promoted as an eco-friendly alternative to plastic, may actually have a greater environmental impact than plastic straws, according to a government-commissioned study. Think of all the tree harvesting and the knock-on effects, not even counting how inconvenient and stupid they are. As someone who deals with a whole lot of paper straws, believe me, they are the worst.

What the Watchmen Are Seeing

Indiana: Galatians says the factory they work at in Warsaw, Indiana, not Poland, has had two production lines down for a few days now because of shortages of steel and Mylar. Some of you asked how we could be short on steel. Having iron doesn’t mean you have certain grades of steel. Automotive steel is specific and costly, because cars are engineered to be as lightweight as possible to meet mileage requirements. That steel has to arrive at the right time in the right amount, and we’re having disruptions. Some chemicals from refineries tied to the Persian Gulf are used in steelmaking, and it’s one big row of dominoes. Now car production lines are coming offline.

On car buying: Kim just came out of a meeting with the owner of the dealership where Kim works, and is more concerned than ever. Dealership websites now offer the easy, no-hassle way to buy a car and have it shipped to your door. The problem is your privacy is gone. Even if you don’t finish filling it out, your information follows you to the next dealership site and pre-fills. Visit 10 sites and buy nothing, and that data, including what you clicked, gets packaged and handed to every dealership in that online shop. I imagine they’ll sell it too. Carvana bought seven Chrysler franchises and is outselling dealers in their own backyard with free shipping anywhere in the US, and Amazon is selling used Hyundais. Consolidation is happening in real time. Buyer beware. Things are getting more convenient, privacy is disappearing, and scammers are going to have a field day.

On refining: Anton says the US can absolutely process its own crude, usually light sweet. Cracking towers are similar worldwide, US refineries have extra equipment like hydrocrackers for cheaper heavy sour crude like the stuff from Saudi Arabia, and shipping pricier sweet oil elsewhere is purely economic. We’re also a bit short on refineries for total domestic output. All true. We keep shutting refineries down and not building new ones because the EPA makes it virtually impossible, so when there are storms or outages, we have to import. Could refineries run our light sweet crude? Given enough money and time, with some rerouted pipes and jury-rigging, probably. But that’s like plowing a field with a Ferrari. It’s possible, it just isn’t something you’d do.

Washington State: Jake says the state had no problem processing South Dakota oil until the governor stopped it from being shipped by rail. Their oil rail cars have been parked ever since. Regulations like that make it nearly impossible to move oil around.

Iowa: Wayne says that Iowa plant mills two million pounds of oats every day, and it’s more than cereal. The supply chain hit reaches care centers, prisons, child care, schools and hospitals. The explosion and fire did a lot of damage, and it won’t be back online for a while. If you use oats, stock up.

On winter breakfast: Shepherd says the same thing. Stock up on winter cereals like oatmeal, cream of rice and cream of wheat. A bowl of hot cereal is a better start to the day than cold, highly sugared options.

On oil spills: David warns that oil spill fumes are hazardous to your health, and spills are happening over in the Persian Gulf too. People who worked the Exxon Valdez cleanup are still battling health problems from the fumes. If you live close to a spill site, take every precaution for yourself and your children.

Smoky Mountains: Jran suggests picking three to seven days and going off the grid as a test run. They do it twice a year and have made their own power for years. The cabin is DC only, and they hang up the wash. God loves y’all.

On emergency services: WildRillHollow notes fire trucks and other emergency equipment generally run on diesel. So much to consider and prep for. Move quickly and help friends and neighbors, and if you need help, now is the time to ask. Lord, bless and guide us all.

The Bottom Line

A tanker under fire, an energy squeeze heading into winter, a border closed over Ebola, a market in free fall and produce running tight. None of it alone is a reason to panic. Together, it’s a pattern of dominoes falling one after another.

Grab what you need before the shelves empty. Stock your pantry with staples that keep. Run a test of your preps before winter does it for you. And look out for your neighbors.

Steve Poplar is the publisher of The Poplar Report.