Memes Won’t Fix an Oil Shock
As the Strait of Hormuz remains closed to most traffic, the White House has embraced bro humor to distract voters from the real crisis: fuel oil and “slowflation.”
Who’s laughing?
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“In the 1970s, President Gerald Ford urged Americans to combat escalating energy costs in response to the Arab-Israeli war. His Whip Inflation Now initiative encouraged people to grow vegetables in their yards, carpool, and use cold water in the laundry. WIN badges were churned out and Ford loved pinning them on lapels. Even ex-Beatle George Harrison got one during a White House visit,” writes Daniel Moss. Fast-forward to 2026, and Asia is using similar tactics to keep its economies afloat. But the White House? Its strategy looks almost unrecognizable.