Quote:
Originally Posted by junqueyardjim
There is no shortage. If there is a shortage, you have people lined up at the pumps. Have you seen any lines at the pump. Have you seen station Driveways blocked with a sign saying, "Sorry, out of gas" .
|
The reason you don't see these problems is precisely because we have market-controlled prices. Go ahead, put a price cap on fuel. Watch supplies dry up and lines form -- the oil crunch from the '70s all over again. It would be truly the dumbest thing you could do for the consumer, for the producer, and for the economy. (I didn't stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night, but high school economics is enough to help you figure this one out -- and I have an economics degree, thanks.)
Oil company profits are hardly obscene. Yeah, the numbers look enormous when reported by the liberal excuse for media in this country. But did you ever do the percentage calculation on it? Plenty of other companies and industries make FAR larger margins / returns on capital than ExxonMobil and others. The public is just largely uneducated about how to look at these issues, and they all love to pretend it's a right-wing conspiracy.
If it'll make you feel better, you can participate in those "obscene" profits by buying some stock. Better yet, do what I did -- find yourself some actual royalties on producing wells. With $50+ per barrel oil (nevermind the current price near $80!), I get to make more money walking to the mailbox than going to work every day. I don't cry for people who don't understand the game.
Cheers, John