America is running out of motor oil!

At least, that’s the latest media-driven crisis making the rounds — and making consumers nervous. Shelves stripped bare by panic buying, retailers quietly raising prices, and everyone blaming “supply chains.”

Older vehicles were often far more forgiving. Many could run multiple oil viscosities without major drama.

Sound familiar?

It should. Welcome to the reboot of 2020’s “great toilet paper shortage.” This time, the same playbook is being used with synthetic motor oil.

Spoiler alert: There is no nationwide motor oil collapse.

Slick trick

Your car is not about to become undrivable because America suddenly “ran out” of lubricants. Most drivers will probably notice little more than higher prices and fewer discount sales.

Yes, there is a legitimate supply issue involving some specialty synthetic base oils used in certain ultra-low-viscosity lubricants. Shipping disruptions, refinery problems, and instability in parts of the Middle East and Asia have tightened supply for these specialized lubricants.

The American Petroleum Institute even activated emergency provisional licensing flexibility for some lubricant formulations because certain approved ingredients became harder to source. That’s not something done casually.

But these high-end Group III base oils — thinner oils designed primarily to help automakers meet fuel economy and emissions targets — are only used in specific synthetic formulations like 0W-8, 0W-16, and certain OEM-specific blends required in some newer vehicles.

So if your car has a new Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, Ford, or GM engine designed around low-viscosity lubricants, you could face higher prices, fewer choices, or occasional temporary shortages of specific formulations.

That’s a very different story from, “America is running out of oil.”

RELATED: This used-car odometer scam is everywhere — and impossible to detect

CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images

Primed for panic

Even if your car is affected, the impact will likely show up as higher maintenance costs, reduced sales promotions, and occasional difficulty finding certain premium synthetic blends. That’s annoying, especially when vehicle ownership costs are already skyrocketing from inflation, insurance increases, expensive repairs, and high interest rates. But it’s hardly an automotive apocalypse.

But the media narrative is turning a narrow industrial issue into another broad consumer panic, and once again, fear is becoming profitable.

Most conventional motor oils are still widely available. Most drivers using common viscosities like 5W-30 or 10W-30 are not likely to face major supply issues. You can still walk into most parts stores, retailers, and service centers and find plenty of oil on the shelf.

But that nuance doesn’t generate clicks.

Instead, social media influencers and breathless news coverage are lumping everything together under the terrifying word “shortage” because panic spreads faster than facts. Suddenly consumers start hearing rumors that oil changes may become impossible, stores will run dry, and everyone needs to buy cases of oil immediately before it disappears forever.

That panic buying itself becomes the problem.

Memory wipe

The toilet paper fiasco proved how quickly consumer psychology can create artificial shortages. There was never a true nationwide inability to manufacture toilet paper. The system broke because consumers started hoarding far more than they normally purchased, overwhelming distribution and retail inventory systems that were never designed for panic-level buying behavior.

Now we’re watching the same pattern develop in automotive service.

Some repair shops and distributors are already stockpiling certain synthetic products because they expect higher prices and tighter inventories. Consumers are hearing “shortage” and buying extra oil they otherwise would not have purchased. Retailers are responding by raising prices early, sometimes well ahead of any actual supply impact.

Which raises the question: At what point does anticipation become opportunistic pricing?

Thin is in

The bigger question, however, is why we’re in this situation at all. The answer points to increasing government pressure on the auto industry.

Modern engines have become increasingly dependent on hyper-specific lubricants largely because automakers were chasing federal fuel economy targets. Thinner oils reduce internal drag slightly, helping manufacturers squeeze out small efficiency gains that look good on government testing charts.

But that engineering strategy also created greater dependence on specialized synthetic supply chains.

Older vehicles were often far more forgiving. Many could run multiple oil viscosities without major drama. Today’s engines are increasingly calibrated around exact formulations, exact additives, and exact viscosity requirements. That means even a relatively small disruption in specialized synthetic oil supply suddenly becomes a much bigger issue for dealerships and owners of newer vehicles.

If you own an older truck running conventional 5W-30, you’re probably in much better shape than someone driving a brand-new vehicle requiring a very specific OEM-approved 0W-8 synthetic blend.

If your vehicle requires a highly specialized synthetic oil, keeping enough for your next oil change is reasonable. Buying a lifetime supply because somebody on TikTok said that “the shelves are going empty” is exactly the kind of irrational behavior that creates unnecessary shortages in the first place.

The bigger concern should actually be how quickly we’re manipulated into panic consumption cycles every time there’s even a modest supply disruption.

We’ve seen this movie before.

And unless consumers stop reacting emotionally every time a scary headline appears, we’ll probably see it again with the next product too.

​American petroleum institute, Auto industry, Covid, Fuel economy, Lifestyle, Panic buying, Supply chains, Synthetic oils, Align cars 

As artificial intelligence continues to creep ever closer to unleashing global dystopia, many Christians have begun to wonder if AI will be a key player in the end times. Some believe Revelation’s god-like Antichrist will be a disembodied AI bot or perhaps a human-AI cyborg; others speculate that AI will be a mighty weapon wielded by the human Antichrist. In any case, the future of AI bodes so harrowing, most can fathom a day when this powerful technology brings humanity and Earth to their ultimate demise.

In a sit-down interview with fellow BlazeTV host Allie Beth Stuckey, Glenn Beck painted a spine-chilling picture of just how powerful the technology we already possess is.

“Just the technology we have today, if Hitler had [it], it would be horrendous. If we go dark, we will make the Germans look like rookies at everything they did,” he says, describing how current surveillance technology, AI processing, and data harvesting could be combined to unleash horrors beyond what we’re capable of imagining.

But artificial superintelligence — the point at which AI astronomically surpasses all human intelligence combined — makes today’s capabilities look like child’s play.

Glenn compares ASI to a superior “alien life form” that could be “hostile.”

But despite the existential risk, AI developers like Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI (the company behind ChatGPT), seem hell-bent on bringing it into existence.

“He wants [to create the] god because he thinks, strangely … he can control it,” says Glenn.

But controlling ASI isn’t even remotely in the cards, he insists. “You’re never going to be able to control it. Everything we would do is a baby gate.”

To imagine such a power in the hands of an evil being — human or otherwise — is truly bloodcurdling.

Allie wants to know how we stop such a beast before it can be fully realized.

“What does it look like to try to reign in those powers and to harness them for good?” she asks Glenn.

According to a source high up in the tech world who Glenn knows, governments will likely intervene at some point.

“His belief and the belief of people in his world [is] that the governments themselves will say as we get a little closer: ‘Stop, not allowed,’” he tells Allie.

But if “the Sam Altmans of the world” refuse to comply, the source indicated that powerful governments who deeply fear the loss of control, especially nations like Russia and China, might just “start offing people that are saying ‘I want ASI,”’ Glenn continues.

“Is that the only way to stop it because that’s a terrifying process?” Allie counters.

To hear Glenn’s answer, watch the video above.

Want more from Glenn Beck?

To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis, and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Allie beth stuckey, Artificial intelligence, End times, Glenn beck, The glenn beck podcast, Sam altman, Antichrist 

Far-left New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced the creation of a new city agency that sounds like his version of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.

Mamdani said Thursday that the Commission on Government Efficiency would meet with community organizers and union members in order to improve coordination with city government efforts.

‘A reminder that when republicans expose and root out fraud it’s smeared as racism, starving children, leaving the poor to die.’

“This morning we are introducing COGE — the Commission on Government Efficiency,” Mamdani said. “This Commission will find ways for our city to work smarter, faster, and more effectively for working people. New Yorkers deserve a city government as careful with their money as they are.”

He went on to take a shot at tech billionaire Elon Musk, who headed up the DOGE agency until he had a falling out with the president.

“Elon Musk took that language and used it to cut as many jobs that were as critical as possible for so many of the neediest people across the country and across the world,” the mayor said. “Ours is going to be a focus on actually delivering efficiency.”

Mamdani was immediately mocked by critics, including independent journalist Nick Shirley.

“This sounds a lot like DOGE … Weird how your own governor questioned me when I speculated the sudden increase in spending in areas like childcare in NYC and now you do this. (Which is a good thing btw!),” he responded. “Cutting waste, fraud, and abuse should be the most nonpartisan issue in America as it affects everyone.”

“Remember when Democrats ridiculed President Trump and his administration for tackling government waste?” wrote Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee. “Looks like they ran the numbers and found eliminating fraud, waste, and abuse is quite popular.”

“A reminder that when republicans expose and root out fraud it’s smeared as racism, starving children, leaving the poor to die, etc. I suspect there will be a (d)ifference in coverage of this unserious ripoff of DOGE,” TV producer Spencer Brown said.

“Is this satire? DOGE was ridiculed endlessly and now the folks who were outraged are doing it themselves?” another user replied on the X platform.

The DOGE appropriation was also infuriating to liberals still angry about the agency’s acts.

“Mimicking the DOGE name is an insult to every fired federal worker and everyone harmed or killed by USAID cuts,” another user said. “Wish the team was a little less clever and slightly more thoughtful.”

RELATED: Mamdani’s wife apologizes for insulting Israel, using N-word and gay slur in past tweets

Musk promised through DOGE to find and cut trillions of dollars of waste, fraud, and abuse. Critics say the agency did very little to actually help the budget, which has spiraled into more debt under Trump’s second term so far.

Mamdani meanwhile was praised by many on the left for supposedly balancing the budget that had a $12 billion deficit. Critics point out that he did it by pushing pension payments into the future — basically mortgaging the future finances of the city to cover current costs.

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​Department of government efficiency, Elon musk, New york city, Zohran mamdani, Politics 

Dozens were injured and five people were killed when a North Carolina-based E&P Travel bus drove into stopped traffic in Virginia on Friday at about 2:35 a.m., according to police.

An investigation found that the driver of the bus was a Chinese national who could not speak English, according to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.

‘This is one of the most tragic things I’ve ever seen. Absolutely tragic.’

The driver identified as 48-year-old Jing S. Dong.

The bus plowed into a Chevy SUV that had slowed for a construction zone and propelled that vehicle into an Acura SUV and other vehicles.

Dong’s bus was carrying 34 travelers from New York City to Charlotte, North Carolina.

Forty-four people in the incident were transported to hospitals in Fredericksburg and Stafford, according to officials. Three of those had critical injuries.

“I’ve got to say, this is one of the most tragic things I’ve ever seen. Absolutely tragic,” said Federal Transit Administration spokesperson Peyton Vogel at the scene.

Duffy posted the findings from the investigation to social media.

“Local police confirm the driver of this motorcoach — a man from China who became a U.S. citizen — doesn’t speak English. He received his commercial drivers license from New York State in 2024,” Duffy wrote.

“Unacceptable. This is exactly why we are holding states accountable, enforcing the rules of the road, and cracking down on drivers who can’t speak English,” he added. “If you can’t be properly trained, read our road signs, or communicate with law enforcement, you have no business driving a bus.”

He also vowed that any company, trainer, or school involved in putting Dong on the road would receive “intense scrutiny” over the incident.

RELATED: Security camera shows school bus blow through stop sign and get hit by city bus, 6 people hurt

Dong was also injured in the crash.

“My prayers are with the loved ones of the innocent lives lost and those who were hurt in this horrific crime,” Duffy concluded.

The investigation into the crash closed traffic on the I-95 south lane for about four hours.

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​Bus crash, Chinese national, Foreign drivers, Lethal crash, Politics 

The star of the upcoming “Supergirl” movie says she has one major weakness — and it isn’t Kryptonite.

It’s the online trolls.

‘I’m actively trying not to engage — although how could you not?’

Super grrrl

In a recent Variety interview, Australian actress Milly Alcock talked about dealing with fan backlash — specifically reaction to comments she made about working on “Game of Thrones” prequel “House of the Dragon.”

Speaking to “Vanity Fair” in March, the 26-year-old said the role “definitely made me aware that simply existing as a woman in that space is something that people comment on,” before adding, “We have become very comfortable having this weird ownership of women’s bodies. I can’t really stop them. I can only be myself.”

Now Alcock says any fans who took this as some kind of feminist male-bashing are way off base.

“I didn’t even say ‘men’ — I said ‘people’! And they got so angry. I was like, ‘You’re proving my point. You’re proving my point!’”

While Alcock said she struggles not to let her haters get to her, she admitted that the “pain” of such interactions allow her to connect with her superhero character, who also has to navigate a dangerous world filled with evildoers.

RELATED: BOX OFFICE KRYPTONITE: ‘Supergirl’ star flames fans ahead of premiere

Frazer Harrison/WireImage

Christian dads

For Alcock, what makes “online forums” especially dangerous is the “unhealthy relationship” they encourage users to have with celebrities.

Especially worrisome are the posters who — like most supervillains — disguise themselves.

“[P]eople whose profiles have no photo, who are burner accounts. Or someone’s name and then ‘Dad of four, Christian,’ which is hilarious to me. But I mean, whose opinion do you really care about? If you’re pissing the right kind of people off, you’re doing OK.”

RELATED: ‘Supergirl’ star expects backlash because fans have ‘weird ownership of women’s bodies’ — the responses are hilarious

Jeff Spicer/Getty Images

Child of the internet

Although Alcock’s theory is that all comic-book movie characters let their fans down, it seems more likely that her later admission that she spends too much time online is the actual culprit.

While being described as a child of the internet who finds it really hard to put down her phone, Alcock said it was “because sometimes people reinforce beliefs that you have about yourself, and you’re like, ‘Now someone’s said it! It’s true!’ And you’ve got to remind yourself that it’s not.”

“Sitting at a café and watching people and reading alone — just being a participant in real life — has been helpful,” she told the outlet.

She chalked this behavior up to her age, despite having had major acting roles her entire adult life.

“I’m Gen Z! Yeah, I grew up online, so I’m actively trying not to engage — although how could you not?”

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​Milly alcock, Supergirl, Sexism, Progressivism, Gen z, Entertainment