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Post by amyinpa on Jan 25, 2009 12:18:52 GMT -8
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Post by The Ghost on Jan 26, 2009 15:00:45 GMT -8
You're right, because the price had dropped to only being about 40 cents more when Bush left than when he started, all of those months of price gouging by the oil companies didn't happen.
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Post by floyd on Jan 27, 2009 11:13:18 GMT -8
You're right, because the price had dropped to only being about 40 cents more when Bush left than when he started, all of those months of price gouging by the oil companies didn't happen. price gouging .. those evil OPEC members!
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richard
Republican
Bacon!
Posts: 1,412
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Post by richard on Jan 27, 2009 11:15:30 GMT -8
You're right, because the price had dropped to only being about 40 cents more when Bush left than when he started, all of those months of price gouging by the oil companies didn't happen. How do you determine what is price gouging?
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Post by hatboromike on Jan 27, 2009 12:13:21 GMT -8
How do you determine what is price gouging? If it feels like my eyes were gouged out as I pull away from the pump, it's most likely price gouging.
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Post by disasterchick on Jan 27, 2009 12:29:44 GMT -8
You're right, because the price had dropped to only being about 40 cents more when Bush left than when he started, all of those months of price gouging by the oil companies didn't happen. That $4.00 a gallon gas last summer must have been my imagination. Hmmm....now I wonder why didn't I use more of my vacation time to travel since gas was only around the $2.00 mark for the entire GWB Presidency.
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Post by disasterchick on Jan 27, 2009 12:31:31 GMT -8
You're right, because the price had dropped to only being about 40 cents more when Bush left than when he started, all of those months of price gouging by the oil companies didn't happen. price gouging .. those evil OPEC members! Actually it was the Oil Speculators that really did the driving up of the gas prices.
How come the oil companies were making record profits? Should they be making the same profit for $1.50 a gallon gas as they would with $4.00 a gallon?
Just have a problem with 14 billion in PROFITS when most people are feeling like they are being screwed.
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Post by amyinpa on Jan 27, 2009 13:13:32 GMT -8
You're right, because the price had dropped to only being about 40 cents more when Bush left than when he started, all of those months of price gouging by the oil companies didn't happen. Ah...you've enlightened me...it had nothing to do with George Bush after all?
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richard
Republican
Bacon!
Posts: 1,412
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Post by richard on Jan 27, 2009 21:21:33 GMT -8
price gouging .. those evil OPEC members!
Actually it was the Oil Speculators that really did the driving up of the gas prices.
How come the oil companies were making record profits? Should they be making the same profit for $1.50 a gallon gas as they would with $4.00 a gallon?
Just have a problem with 14 billion in PROFITS when most people are feeling like they are being screwed.About these profits...how much did the oil companies SPEND in order to make these profits? I bet your local grocery store has a higher profit margin than the oil companies do.
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Post by disasterchick on Jan 28, 2009 7:00:31 GMT -8
About these profits...how much did the oil companies SPEND in order to make these profits? I bet your local grocery store has a higher profit margin than the oil companies do. But the local grocery store will usually put money back into the store. Let's keep it looking nice. What is it - $1 spent locally turns over 7 times?
However, with oil companies - we build them on the Gulf Coast so every time there is a threat of a hurricane they have to shut down. They are not building in other places. Oh, yeah, we will also "restore" old plants that have been shut dwon because you do not have to follow the same regulations as you would if you were to build a new plant.
Right now I'm sure there are many places that wouldn't mind having an oil refinery because it might create a few jobs.
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richard
Republican
Bacon!
Posts: 1,412
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Post by richard on Jan 28, 2009 7:29:10 GMT -8
About these profits...how much did the oil companies SPEND in order to make these profits? I bet your local grocery store has a higher profit margin than the oil companies do.
But the local grocery store will usually put money back into the store. Let's keep it looking nice. What is it - $1 spent locally turns over 7 times?
However, with oil companies - we build them on the Gulf Coast so every time there is a threat of a hurricane they have to shut down. They are not building in other places. Oh, yeah, we will also "restore" old plants that have been shut dwon because you do not have to follow the same regulations as you would if you were to build a new plant.
Right now I'm sure there are many places that wouldn't mind having an oil refinery because it might create a few jobs.How many new grocery stores have been built compared to the number of new refineries built? I'm sure it costs way less to build a grocery store than an oil refinery, with less stringent regulations to have to meet. The oil companies have their hands tied -- they can't build new refineries because all the environmental regulations do not make it cost effective, and they can't restore the old ones because environmental regulations keep it from being cost effective. And....they have to build where there's oil, even if it happens to be in an area prone to hurricanes. Bottom line...oil companies spend more per profit dollar than most other places. And you don't see anyone yelling "price gouging" and "obscenely huge profits" at Wal Mart, do you?
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Post by disasterchick on Jan 28, 2009 10:10:05 GMT -8
How many new grocery stores have been built compared to the number of new refineries built? I'm sure it costs way less to build a grocery store than an oil refinery, with less stringent regulations to have to meet. The oil companies have their hands tied -- they can't build new refineries because all the environmental regulations do not make it cost effective, and they can't restore the old ones because environmental regulations keep it from being cost effective. And....they have to build where there's oil, even if it happens to be in an area prone to hurricanes. Bottom line...oil companies spend more per profit dollar than most other places. And you don't see anyone yelling "price gouging" and "obscenely huge profits" at Wal Mart, do you? The Gulf Coast isn't the only place in the USA with oil and what about Pipelines and how much oil they pump thoughout the USA.
When Reagan stopped enforcing the Sherman anti-trust laws, he allowed Big oil companies to buy up the small ones and shut down their refineries. This artificial restriction of supply has caused the so called shortage.
No refineries were shut down for environmental reason or due to regulations. There were 305 refineries in 1985 and there are 78 now. Making less gas raises the price and actually makes more money.
Monopolies and collusion within the oil companies is the problem.
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Post by The Ghost on Jan 28, 2009 12:42:57 GMT -8
By the way, quick accounting lesson, PROFITS are what you have AFTER you take out your EXPENSES.
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Post by Maxf1ex on Jan 29, 2009 3:46:04 GMT -8
news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090129/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_netherlands_earns_shellProfit/loss What do we not know? Research and development, are we missing anything else? The head of a congressional committee failed Tuesday to get executives from the five biggest U.S. oil companies to promise they will invest 10% of their earnings in alternative energy development. www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2008-04-01-oil-hearing_N.htmAnd why should they? Funny how some people deiced on how much a business should give to charity. In 2007, these three oil giants donated a combined $348 million, according to a survey conducted by The Chronicle of Philanthropy. That's a lot of money, for sure, but it is far short of the $1 billion the companies would have contributed if they had simply given at a level equal to Corporate America's philanthropic midpoint, which is 8/10ths of 1%. And that $348 million is a small fraction of the $27.9 billion in net income that the three companies earned just this last quarter! www.businessweek.com/managing/content/nov2008/ca20081125_698684.htmThe answer to the first question is that over the past 25 years, oil companies directly paid or remitted more than $2.2 trillion in taxes, after adjusting for inflation, to federal and state governments—including excise taxes, royalty payments and state and federal corporate income taxes. That amounts to more than three times what they earned in profits during the same period, according to the latest numbers from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and U.S. Department of Energy.
These figures do not include local property taxes, state sales and severance taxes and on-shore royalty payments. www.taxfoundation.org/publications/show/1168.htmlWhat are we missing?
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Post by Dave on Feb 12, 2009 5:39:38 GMT -8
Getting back to bumper stickers, how soon will it be before someone makes up a bunch of them that read, 'HAD ENOUGH "CHANGE" YET?'
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