It is time for the govt to do something

[Mark #2]

This is ridiculous
http://money.cnn.com/2008/02/01/news/companies/exxon_earnings/index.htm?cnn=yes

[99WhiteBeast]

I boycott them whenever possible. No Mobil 1 for me and I get gas at Chevron or Shell.

Aren't they a Citibank/CitiFinancial subsidiary?

[dboat]

ok, I will get :throw: for this one, but it doesnt bother me.

This is America where the business is what we are. I dont begrudge anyone what they earn, NO ONE. If someone is willing to pay it, then so be it. I understand that there is a push back when you are paying for it at the pump and these guys are making record profits. You will have to dig further into it to really understand the numbers, rather than rely on a couple of paragraph comment from CNN. I know that I want to earn as much as I can, and I am guessing that if someone here got a huge amount of money for developing or creating something that stole the market, we would be happy for them too.

I digress..

anyway, the real issue here for me is that the merger of Exxon and Mobil was allowed to occur at all, that is where the issue is.. when we have fewer competitors in the marketplace, then we dont have enough competition to keep prices down.. part of the issue with the price of gas is our own demand for it from producers, mainly the Middle East.. if our demand for gas went down, then the ability of oil producers to charge $100 per barrel would evaporate. This will all cycle the other way as the marketplace adjusts to the pricing of gas.

Dana

[dboat]

I boycott them whenever possible. No Mobil 1 for me and I get gas at Chevron or Shell.

Aren't they a Citibank/CitiFinancial subsidiary?

I will continue to use Mobil 1 as I have been using it for over 30 years without any mechanical failure of any car I have owned.. and ExxonMobil is one of the top 5 largest companies in the US, and they are not a sub of anyone esle.

Dana

[Ohmsby]

The collusion is what bothers me.

I put all of my fuel on the same card and when added to the totals from the Marina I spend almost $1000.00 per month on fuel for My ride the SO's and the boat.

Granted I drive more than most but :hammer:

[98Cobra]

ok, I will get :throw: for this one, but it doesnt bother me.

This is America where the business is what we are. I dont begrudge anyone what they earn, NO ONE. If someone is willing to pay it, then so be it. I understand that there is a push back when you are paying for it at the pump and these guys are making record profits. You will have to dig further into it to really understand the numbers, rather than rely on a couple of paragraph comment from CNN. I know that I want to earn as much as I can, and I am guessing that if someone here got a huge amount of money for developing or creating something that stole the market, we would be happy for them too.

I digress..

anyway, the real issue here for me is that the merger of Exxon and Mobil was allowed to occur at all, that is where the issue is.. when we have fewer competitors in the marketplace, then we dont have enough competition to keep prices down.. part of the issue with the price of gas is our own demand for it from producers, mainly the Middle East.. if our demand for gas went down, then the ability of oil producers to charge $100 per barrel would evaporate. This will all cycle the other way as the marketplace adjusts to the pricing of gas.

Dana

I agree with you 100%. I don't know what the threshold is between an amount of money it is OK to make, and too much. You should be able to make as much money as you can - the caveat being that you have to do it legally.

We all have a choice here - none of us need cars with 300+ HP and get sub-20 mpg.

These same companies were sucking it hard when the market was flooded with cheap crude in 1998. Oil was like $12 a barrel IIRC. Back then, people were saying that Microsoft was making too much money. Now, its the oil companies.

[Beaudee]

I would like to see an under dog come out with a gas fuel hedging card.As far as new technology,not in our life time.:rolleyes:

[Ohmsby]

I agree with the profit model and capitalism.

If you begin to understand the ways those profits are created then you will have an issue with it.

for those who like to read try a book by David Cay called "Perfectly Legal"

[Silver_2000]

I agree with the profit model and capitalism.

If you begin to understand the ways those profits are created then you will have an issue with it.

for those who like to read try a book by David Cay called "Perfectly Legal"

I agree
I fully support capitalism BUT the WAY the profit is made is important.
one reason gas prices are so high is there has been no investment in refineries. Oil is not simply a product - its a utility - it has to have some controls - I cringe to say it but a portion of the HUGE profits MUST be reinvested in refining capacity...

[98Cobra]

I agree
I fully support capitalism BUT the WAY the profit is made is important.
one reason gas prices are so high is there has been no investment in refineries. Oil is not simply a product - its a utility - it has to have some controls - I cringe to say it but a portion of the HUGE profits MUST be reinvested in refining capacity...

Part of what goes into the cost though, is bringing refined fuel to the US from other countries. Thanks to eco-crazies, energy utilities like new refinieries and nuclear power plants are blocked at every turn here.

[dboat]

Part of what goes into the cost though, is bringing refined fuel to the US from other countries. Thanks to eco-crazies, energy utilities like new refinieries and nuclear power plants are blocked at every turn here.

Our President had made a pitch that he felt that the closed military bases would have made great places to build new refineries and help replace the monetary loss of them in those communities. However, no one wants one near them, no one wants to build them due to all the new regs, so hence, we are at near capacity now. What do you think is going to happen while the demand for gas continues to climb? Lets face it, the current cars and SUV's are built to last a long time and we wont see any measurable impact of hybrids or other fuel saving vehicles for years to come.

Dana

[Sonicblue03]

As far as new technology,not in our life time.:rolleyes:


Are you referring to the "old folks" on here or the young ones?..........:twitch:

[dboat]

Are you referring to the "old folks" on here or the young ones?..........:twitch:

That is measured by the amount of times that you use the word "dude" in your normal conversations. :twitch:

Dana

[Sonicblue03]

That is measured by the amount of times that you use the work "dude" in your normal conversations. :twitch:

Dana


:D

[Beaudee]

:D
If it is in your lifetime it wont matter by then.BTW the deffinition of DUDE is someone cicumsized with pinking shears.:rll:

[slick-svt]

here's the breakdown.....The poor get poorer......:icon_frown:
The rich get richer........:icon_biggrin:
And the middle class get it in the ass....:icon_eek:

[mikelemoine]

here's the breakdown.....The poor get poorer......:icon_frown:
The rich get richer........:icon_biggrin:
And the middle class get it in the ass....:icon_eek:

Yep, and they don't even kiss us first....:eek2:

[98Cobra]

Exxon alone paid as much in taxes last year as the bottom 50% of US taxpayers (65 million people!).

http://seekingalpha.com/article/63131-exxon-s-2007-tax-bill-30-billion?source=side_bar_editors_picks

[Mark #2]

Exxon alone paid as much in taxes last year as the bottom 50% of US taxpayers (65 million people!).

http://seekingalpha.com/article/63131-exxon-s-2007-tax-bill-30-billion?source=side_bar_editors_picks

So that makes it okay that they are raping 100% of US taxpayers?

[98Cobra]

I really think it could be worse. If you feel raped, drive something more fuel efficent. The L is out. a K5 would be out too. Hybrids and diesels would be all you would see. But, gasoline is still a relative value these days.

[wesman]

I say a start would be revoking the tax breaks that the oil companies are receiving and have been for the last forever. It seems with this much profit qtr after qtr they can stand on their own without subsidies from the govt.

--wes



Exxon alone paid as much in taxes last year as the bottom 50% of US taxpayers (65 million people!).

http://seekingalpha.com/article/63131-exxon-s-2007-tax-bill-30-billion?source=side_bar_editors_picks

[98Cobra]

I would agree, if there are specific tax breaks being given to the oil companies. If they are just using ones that any company can use, thats a whole different problem.