The Financial Times published a report on how fuel shortages are about to become much more acute because of the war in Iran. Only now are the last oil tankers to depart the Strait of Hormuz arriving at refineries in Europe and North America, where the Middle Eastern crude is processed into usable fuel. Within a few days, those regular deliveries will cease.

It seems odd that tankers leaving the Persian Gulf on February 28 reach their destinations in mid-April. That is because oil tankers are gargantuan things, cruising at an average speed of just 12 to 15 miles per hour (10 to 13 knots) — about as fast as a mediocre cyclist, and no, I don’t mean........

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