If I were a timely person, I would have published this on Monday morning. Instead I (smirk, smirk) spent time making portfolio adjustments…

Two things all New Castle Countians should have noticed on early Monday morning.

One, the Valero refinery was belching toxic fumes at a rate unseen since the late nineties… Rough estimates guessed two thousand tons an hour belched out of their uncleaned stack. Residents headed to work early Monday morning, probably wondered what that oily sheen was on their windows as their wiper blades took several attempts to clear the morning dew from their windshields…

Nasal sufferers had a bad night. Asthma attacks were up. No doubt, if you took advantage of the warm weather and opened your windows, you have a cold right now.

This interestingly couples with the Friday announcement that Valero will shut down for repairs. Here is the inside story.

The repair is minor and can be accomplished by shutting down only one unit. So say those who work there. In fact, that is what they wanted. They do not want to be not working right now… Local management forwarded their proposal up to headquarters, from where this verdict was returned: shut down the entire plant indefinitely.

We are told that the repair could be patched in one day. They did it all the time when gas was selling well over $4.00 a gallon.

So why would they shut down the entire plant for a four hour fix on just one unit, now that gas is way under $2 dollars as gallon?

They tell us this. To create a scarcity of product. At that time when they begin the summer buildup, something that usually occurs as refineries prepare for the summer traveling months, this month’s scarcity will force up those prices of initial inventories. That price drive-up will then have to be sold to stations at even higher. The plant closure is their way of guaranteeing a higher price than what the market dictates should be paid all summer long. By creating a shortage throughout March of refined gasoline being bought up and down the east coast… they hope to artificially support this summers price higher than it needs to be.

To be clear, this decision came from on top. It was met with chagrin by local plant officials.

In a very broad framework, one needs to ask if this can be considered treason. Of course a business should have all options available to it to increase its profits. But when low fuel is the only driving force keeping our economy running right now, shutting down its flow, is like crimping a dying patients IV.

Should we as a society sit idle and allow it to happen?

I don’t have time to get into that argument today, but offer it for all: so you can debate the merits of jacking up our gas prices arbitrarily by a difference of $1.00 a gallon…

The second factor an observant New Castle native noticed, was the exceptional amount of corporate jet traffic flying into our airport.

Usually a busy day would count five flights incoming early Monday morning between 8 and 9.. The average is around two or three. This Monday, the rough guess stood at twenty four…

Why would so many flights be incoming to the bankruptcy capital of the world? Beats me.

But I would watch the number of corporate bankruptcy filings that hit this Friday around noon… It could be a record. (Most surprise public announcements take place on the last day of the quarter, which lies at the end of March.)

As I said, these are just tea leaves that have not hit the ground yet. Tossed up in the air and are still falling…… they are.