Stopping Oil's Assault (Dishonest Effort by Press to Offer Solutions)

Philadelphia Inquirer ^ | May 25, 2008 | Reid Kanaley

[gusopol3]

Link only

[gusopol3]

Just as Obama's thinking about Iraq is frozen in April,2006, with press acquiescence, this incredible article doesn't even mention "drilling." They desperately want to put the discussion off the table for the '08 election, so Obama and McCain can "out-green" one another, as though energy policy should be frozen about 1999. Wide open invitation for a third party to fire up shortly after Labor Day to talk to real people, while reminding Obama's urban constituency he's not going to do anything about the $4-?$7 per gallon fuel oil they'll be buying in the future to heat their houses.

[american_ranger]

Questions:
What was Iraq’s daily oil output before the war?
What is it now?
If it increased, is Bush to blame?
If there was an increase, can we say that the Iraq war is helping to hold the price down?

[gusopol3]

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/natural_resources/article3964957.ece

this article only partly answers your question. I’ve had a hard time over the years tracking the Iraqi output compared to pre-war, and I’ve been interested because a local leftist on the radio had set oil production as a benchmark for progress in the war. At 2.5 million barrels/ day, I believe it approaches, but does not exceed pre-war levels.

[gleeaikin]

“Solution #3: Pop the speculation bubble.”

Check out this link which covers the speculation in some detail. The oil companies say they are only responsible for about 15% of the cost of oil. People acquainted with the field estimate that rampant speculation is responsible for at least 20%. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/search?m=all;o=time;q=quick;s=Now%2C%20a%20Commodities%20Conundrum

[gusopol3]

what, the dollar’s weakness has sent capital around the world searching for a new,safer haven?

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

this incredible article doesn't even mention "drilling."

The problem with the price of oil is two simple things:

1. Keep the dollar supply under control - meaning, get the budget somewhere near balance - or else oil won't be the only thing whose price goes through the roof.

2. Stop the government (i.e., the Democrats) from preventing a competitive market in oil. The Democrat's system is to
   1. make it illegal for the Oilcos to compete at drilling and pumping domestic oil - thereby making the US a defacto member of the OPEC supply-restriction cartel - and,
   2. demagogue the oilcos for the "unconscionable windfall profits" which the Democrats themselves created - and divert the resulting profits from the oilcos to the Federal Government under their control.

So long as Congress prevents drilling, it is using its restriction of oil to tax the public indirectly via the oilcos. From the Democratic POV it is the perfect tax, since it seems not to have their fingerprints on it.

[gusopol3]

then it’s time for a little smash mouth politics. If McCain’s too “principled” (chicken) to do it, a third party will emerge in short order.