Tried to buy any whale oil lately?
At any price?
As recently as the '70's it was an important anti-scuff additive for high-performance engines, but now - we HAVE in fact run out of it.
Economists, unfortunately, only think in terms of economic factors, but the world we live in is not so pure and simple.
JoJoba oil from a desert plant is very close oil to whale oil. I actually saw it for sale by the quart in a discount store. Turns out that oil was for sale at the discount price because the government was subsidizing it to increase production. Naturally as soon as I figured out what a quality lubricating oil it was everyone else did too. The subsidy was dropped and it is now a high priced additive for cosmetics.
I assume that's because cheaper alternatives ran whale oil out of business.