I had been thinking the oil companies didn’t want to drill off the US coast the oil companies just wanted to drill where it was easy in countries with proven reserves but now they have little choice because the countries with proven reserves want to develope their oil themselves.

As the NYT points out countries with oil have internal fighting over the profits, may not have the expertise to drill efficiently, may not bother with maintenance, and who knows where they will sell their oil.

The article in the September Wired page 118 titled “Driven” will also open eyes. We may be leaving the burning age (wood, coal, oil) because we may have found a better way. Remember humans didn’t leave the stone age because we ran out of stones.

Perhaps someone can figure out how many weeks it’s been since I made my rant about how Big Government rather than Big Oil is causing the problems. I bet if you look in the NYT for that very day, they were blaming everything on Big Oil.

I predict they go back to blaming Big Oil anyway.

Also, for those of you who care about the truth, some of the oil companies that have a large share of their profits (or losses) based on refining margins are quite happy that oil has come down. They will make more money. For most integrateds its not a problem until oil gets back below $80. The exploration only companies will make less, but they are still happy at this price.

Lastly, welcome to fisher72, just so you know, few folks here believe anything factual about the oil business. It’s strange how many otherwise bright folks just don’t get oil.

Gas prices have been falling here (Vermont) of late. I’m buying at approx. $3.75/reg

OPEC & Russia control 80% of the world oil & gas, add in central asia (Kazakstan, Georgia, and neighbors) it is 86%. Russia being the single largest oil exporter, more than Saudi Arabia!

OPEC will not let oil dip or stay below $100. World oil exports have actually been slipping for 3 years in a row.

So, be aware. If the oil industry is nationalized in the United States, within a few years, it’ll “run” about as well as the Post Office, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

To be fair, Freddie/Fannie are more or less privately run, and aren’t significantly less-well run than, say, Bear Stearns. The Post Office, given it’s size, scope and funding, is actually fairly well-run.

Nationalized industry can be bad, it can be good: it depends on the implementation. In the United States, because there’s this incredible fear of public ownership, you get these wretched hybrid organizations (utilites, telecomms, health-care providers) that combine the worst aspects of both ideologies: the inefficiency and protectionism of government and the profit-above-all cruelty of private industry.

Plus they’re partly responsible (along with the non-action of both the Repugnicans and Demoncrats) for the position we’re in.

“Energy policy? What energy policy? Oh, we should have an energy policy?”

“You mean sending a Trillion dollars every few months to our enemies is NOT a good idea?! Who’da thunk?”

The response from the oil executive was “yes, well, we’ve heard that before – from YUGO CHAVEZ”.

So, be aware. If the oil industry is nationalized in the United States, within a few years, it’ll “run” about as well as the Post Office, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

And we’ll be having a) rationing b) $10-12 per gallon c) even and odd license plate days and d) multiple block long lines at gas stations

See for yourself.

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65111

Of course, days later, other Dhimmicrats chimed in, too.

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=67490

Not true. If the oil companies make a 9% margin then it stands to reason that 9% of $3.50 is less than 9$ of $4.50. It’s still a profit but less a profit. Then there is your friendly local, state, and federal ‘gubment’. They make the same amount of money on a gallon of gas or diesel NO MATTER what the price is. For states it’s between 40 and 60 cents on a gallon and the Feds get 18 cents. Your ire may be better directed toward them.

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GM, Ford and Chrysler have staff economists to help look down the road and make guesses forecasts about what the future holds for automobile demand. They look at general growth rates and, in particular, oil issues. Either somebody wasn’t doing their job right or somebody else wasn’t listening.

It still costs 54$ to fill up a Firebird,somebody somewhere is raking in some cash.

Nobody could have predicted? Huh, because I’ve predicted it for years. SUVs plus global demand plus environmentalists fighting drilling equals spike in prices. Duh.

John

With that in mind however, I hope Detroit is not so stupid as to use this small blip of falling prices as an excuse to go back big. I mean we already know that GM in particular has the decision making maturity level of a teenager. They seem incapable of thinking beyond the next quarterly statement, let alone years or decades, so it wouldn’t surprise me if they break out the bubbly and party over the re-opening of big truck plants. God help us!

I agree. I haven’t seen under $4 anywhere yet. My last fillup a couple days ago at the cheaper station near me for regular was $4.19. $4.59 at the expensive one a few blocks north of me.

YMMV.