Does Congress Really Know What's Causing High Oil Prices?

Order vs. Disorder ^ | 5/23/08 | Joshua Rocks

[ashok]

Our Congress displays an abundant lack of knowledge about economics this week while trying, and I say that with all sarcasm, to help the average American through these difficult times of outrageous gas prices. However, I do not believe that belittling the EO's of the top oil companies in this nation will produce the desired results. I don't want to let the oil companies off the hook here, they are a serious part of the problem, but not the culprits of a vast conspiracy as so many seem willing to believe. What these "hearings" accomplish is a sound bite for the Democrats as they battle their favorite nemesis 'Big Oil.'

Don't buy it people. Whereas 'Big Oil' is complicit in not reinvesting in both capacity and new oil fields with their profits, they did not manufacture the current situation. The situation - high prices - is a result of increased global demand for oil, a shrinking capacity to produce oil - most oil producing nations never spend their oil money on infrastructure maintenance and improvement, and limits on the ability of the oil companies to explore for oil here and increase their refinery capacity. There hasn't been a new refinery built in 25 some odd years, all the while our consumption has risen remarkably. They can't produce the gasoline fast enough for our hungry lifestyles. Add to the silly ethonal mandate and gasoline is scare and expensive - higher price. I've said this before.

[EverOnward]

They know. They’ve just hoodwinked enough of the left to think we don’t know they know. Their agenda doesn’t include affordable fuel — that is not their agenda.

[JackRyanCIA]

Yes, the communist in our government know exact what the cause is and they are proud to do it.

[wardaddy]

The Democrats want high gas prices and a battered economy as much as they want failure in the WOT.

They are the party of defeat and hopelessness.

It feeds their constituiency. Failure and misery ....and maybe even more so neurosis.

have you ever met a liberal who was not neurotic?

[Coldwater Creek]

Well, one thing that Congress does know, is that if the oil companies doesn't do something about the cost to the consumer, the Liberal, Socialist Congresswoman, Maxine Waters is going to take the companies over, and the government will run things...........

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Sure they do.

They did.

[JackRyanCIA]

“It feeds their constituiency. Failure and misery ....and maybe even more so neurosis.”

JFK had several crisis teams in his administration and had a full 16 crisis events in his first 8 months in office. See, crisis short circuits bureaucracy, democratic process and even the law. It's all bullshit man. It's all about power and control.

[abclily]

It’s all about money in the pockets of the politicians who vote against our pumping our own oil. Environmentalist freakos are getting money from somewhere to buy these politicians. Anybody know who is bankrolling these traitors?

[MichiganConservative]

Maybe it isn’t the money. Maybe they really believe that everyone else should have to suffer for Mother Gaia while they get to ride around in stretched Hummer limos and fly in private jets. That’s the Bolshevik ideal, right? Let the little people suffer while the “brights” control the world.

It seems sort of appropriate. Mommy Government strangles you with here apron strings for Mother Gaia.

[Leftism is Mentally Deranged]

They know. Every year in May gas prices go up and the media acts as if it never happened before and the politicians vow to investigate it but never do.

[murron]

Let’s see. The Democrats take over Congress Jan. 2007. and gas prices have been skyrocketing ever since. Who should be blamed? Why, George Bush of course!

[MNJohnnie]

How are they suppose to reinvest in new oil fields when Congress refuses to open any?

[Dog Gone]

Whereas 'Big Oil' is complicit in not reinvesting in both capacity and new oil fields with their profits,

Ignorant bullcrap. They are drilling anywhere and everywhere they can where there is at least a possibility of finding hydrocarbons.

The number of active drilling wells is up 27 from last week and 129 from this time last year.

In total, there are 1899 wells being drilled in the US alone right now.

Every single rig in the entire United States is being used right now, and the oil companies even have rigs yet to be built under contract. Rigs cannot be built fast enough to meet the demand for them.

I understand this article is largely in defense of the oil industry, but it should not concede lies in the process of doing so.

The main problem is that the oil companies can't access the areas with the biggest potential.

[CyberAnt]

NO THEY DON'T KNOW. Or .. if they do .. they are so power hungry they are willing to look like total idiots in front of the TV audience just to make the oil companies look bad and/or so they can blame-Bush for the high oil prices ..??

I recently read an article about a repub congress person who went to ANWR and how he was STUNNED TO LEARN THERE WERE NO TREES THERE - why is this ..?? Because THE DEMS HAVE LIED and told the world that ANWR is "PRISTINE FOREST" and we cannot destroy it.

Here is ANWR:

SUMMER

WINTER

WE NEED TO CONTACT OUR CONGRESS PEOPLE AND SEND THEM THESE PICTURES AND TELL THEM TO GET OFF THEIR BLESSED ASSURANCE AND GO AFTER OUR OWN OIL - IN ALASKA AND IN NORTH DAKOTA - OFF-SHORE IN CALIFORNIA AND FLORIDA (as well as other places).

We can still keep working toward alternative fuels .. but this is just PLAIN STUPIDITY to PREVENT DRILLING FOR OUR OWN RESOURCES.

BUT .. I DO BELIEVE THE DEMS WOULD USE THIS PLOY TO GET ELECTED - JUST LIKE THEY LIED ABOUT STOPPING THE WAR IN IRAQ TO WIN IN 2006. They have to know that if we openly start drilling - and all the restrictions are lifted - THE PRICE OF OIL WILL PLUMMET - and what will that do folks - that will make the repubs look good - and ... we can't have that now, can we ..??

[willgolfforfood]

From the article:

"Whereas 'Big Oil' is complicit in not reinvesting in both capacity and new oil fields with their profits, they did not manufacture the current situation."

I work for a company that helps small, medium, and large energy companies produce oil. This statement is just completely wrong.

BP, in this decade alone, has spent between 5 and 10 Billion Dollars finding and developing new oil field in the Gulf of Mexico. Most of them in water deeper than one mile.

Chevron has invested at least half of that amount. Kerr-McGee, ditto, though they were bought out by another oil company recently.

This guy COULD NOT BE FURTHER OFF BASE, than with this claim above. Makes me wonder how wrong most of the rest of his article is.

[Dog Gone]

Democrats have no interest in lowering oil prices. Hell, they’ve been moaning that we don’t pay as much for gasoline as europeans do for decades now.

They want us to trade in our SUVs for tiny Smart Cars, or ride choo choo trains.

The only way to do that is to make it unaffordable to do otherwise, because nobody in their right mind would choose those alternatives unless forced to.

[RobinOfKingston]

Does Congress Really Know What's Causing High Oil Prices?

In the broad sense, the congress we are saddled with at the moment, and into the foreseeable future, doesn't know how to find its collective butt, using both hands.

[Coldwater Creek]

I heard the execs say that they are building five (5) new refineries, of which three (3) will be in production very soon.

Have we heard a word about this from the Dems or MSM? NO

[television is just wrong]

lack of independence on foreign oil is what is causing this problem, but backing mr. clintoon, they will never admit to it.