The government is making the real windfall profits and they also make a lot more off vehicle sales than the companies can dream of. People really need to wake up.

“Obama thinks government is not getting a “reasonable share” of oil companies’ profits, which in 2007 were, as a percentage of revenue (8.3 percent), below those of U.S. manufacturing generally (8.9 percent). Exxon Mobil pays almost as much in corporate taxes to various governments as the bottom 50 percent of American earners pay in income taxes. Exxon Mobil does make $1,400 a second in profits — hear the sharp intakes of breath from liberals with pursed lips — but pays $4,000 a second in taxes and $15,000 a second in operating costs.”

http://jewishworldreview.com/cols/will082808.php3

What a gig, 50 or 100b of taxpayer money blown on crack and whores and here comes the next and bigger check.

Do you really think Exxon controls the price of oil with their 3% of global extraction? Even while OPEC accounts for >40% of the market? Contrary to popular belief, America is not the center of the universe.

Only a liberal would believe that.

As steel prices have gone up with demand and supply issues their profit has not gone up like the oil companies. This is why you see outrage from the consumer – if demand were striping supply as they claim it is why are they still able to continually set record profits each quarter?

AFAIK steel profits are not growing at the rate that oil profits are. Steel doesn’t go up in price from moment to moment based on weather either.

Are the greedy steel companies the reason that steel prices have multiplied several times in the last year? Are copper companies the reason that copper is so much more expensive than it was only a year ago? Everything is more expensive than it was. Oil companies are some of the greatest single contributors to wealth in the nation. They provide thousands of jobs and are economic boons to the areas they operate in. Most importantly, they supply a steady stream of a product that is in astronomical demand on a global scale. They make the most profits because they earned the most profits. If I work hard and supply a product a few people want, I’ll make some profit and there’s nothing wrong with that. If I work very hard and supply a product lots of people want, I’ll make lots of profits, and that’s what energy companies do.

I’m not trying to promote oil execs as heroes. I don’t know any of them. The point is that petroleum companies fuel the globe successfully. Ever increasing demand and a finite supply is the reason energy is expensive, not because execs wives’ want a new car. Oil companies are constantly striving for energy solutions. Government regulations and excessive intervention can create great problems.

Not Cheny [sic].

The moron who picked him.

We got 4,100+ of our soldiers killed, used up our military equipment, and spent $1 trillion to steal Iraq’s oil and then China gets the oil.

Way to go Cheny.

“China and Iraq have signed a $3 billion deal revising an earlier agreement for China’s biggest oil company to help develop the Ahdab oil field, an official at the Iraq’s Oil Ministry said Thursday.”

Tell me that’s NOT what’s going on.

Yes, I feel the unbridled GREED within the OIL COMPANIES is 99% of the oil pricing problem. Just plain GREED. They ARE the ones who sell it and they ARE the ones who set their own OBSCENE PROFIT LEVELS. Hell, who are we supposed to blame, Hershey’s Chocolate? Yeah, there’s your villain. Makes about as much sense to me as saying the oil bastards are NOT to blame.

In any event, I’m more concerned about the potential for damage to one of the major refinery complexes on-shore than offshore damage to the rigs. If a refinery gets taken out, that will have a greater impact since it usually takes more time to get one of those complexes back online than it does a drill/pumping rig.

Also, weather forecasters have been saying it is going to rain “tomorrow” for the past two weeks where I live…..not a drop!

“You mean where tropical storm Hanna is headed right now? :)”

Holy crap… you’re right; looks like this might be the nasty hurricane season that last year’s wasn’t.

Hope not, the people of Florida have had it bad enough already from Fay…

I’d rather vote for a guy who kinda sorta knew Bill Ayers than a guy who still knows and is still proud of GW Bush.

Besides New Olreans biggest problem was that they are all Democrats, and helpless without government help.

You mean where tropical storm Hanna is headed right now? :)

The next story was about how oil was over $119 a barrel in morning trading. Those thorough Fox news people then ran some stats about how the Gulf comprises 27% of U.S. oil production, and Gustav could interrupt up to 80% of that 27%.

All of this just gives license to gas stations to begin jacking up prices. I didn’t see the no KY gauging cdg got in MS, but my local place went from $3.53 to $3.58 for 93 octane overnight.

I will expect to see it change daily while this storm motors along.

That is dirt cheap. Almost no regular gas in Chicago under $4.