Posted on 01/23/2006 6:19:46 AM PST by ex-Texan
Yer outa yer gourd about Socialism my FR friend. The article is damning corporations and corrupt politicians for selling out America with outsourcing, NAFTA and CAFTA. Pat Buchanan-isms are not free trade social-isms.
Screw drilling. Let's go nuclear.
"Gas prices" are not a system. Gas prices are what gas producers set. The prices that are arrived at are guided by the situation that buyers and sellers find themselves in.
The only system that can be said to exist is the framework that allows people to charge money for the things they have/make. Sure, that's a man-made system. We don't have to agree to it. We could go as far as eliminating private property if we wanted. But it doesn't work.
Price controls are weakening of property rights and they fail miserably. But they they still don't revoke the law of supply and demand. The law of supply and damand still works and even explains why it is price controls fail.
The law of supply and demand tells us, for example, that when prices are set artificially low shortages occur and that's exactly what happens. Nixon's price controls during the 70's are a great example. Remember the long lines at the pump? Do you really want to go back to that?
The trouble for us right now is that supplies for fuel are harder to come by and are being competed for by more and more people. Price controls won't change that situation one bit. Complaining about prices doesn't help either.
If anything complaining makes things worse! Why? Because it scares people away from the energy busines. They'll perceive the polical risks of the energy industry and put their money elsewhere.
It turns out that our oil reserves are based on getting the top 30% of the oil out of a well, then it's considered "dry". The other 70%? it just takes more money to get it out, and guess what at $50.00 a barrel it becomes cost effective to get the rest of the oil out and use the shale oil. Not to mention the Germans made kerosine from coal in WW2 because they had a shortage, and why hadn't we made kerosine from oil? Because it cost too much....UNTIL NOW! Our oil reserves at higher prices double or triple!
"Well, we better raise prices at the pump 50 cents now. I mean, just in case Iran might do something that might make a future shipment more expensive. And let's all raise our prices at the same time, too. But without colluding or anything."
LOL. It would be interesting to the see the individual portfolios of the traders giving their opinions to the press on the price of oil, whether they are going short or long...
"Iran is probably just playing the traders to drive up the price."
I was thinking the same thing. Maybe they want another 50 billion more in oil profits to subsidize keeping the population down from revolt. Just when it looks like we will attack at the final 'ultimatum' from the coalition of the willing, they back down and allow inspectors in. Meanwhile, the US population gets to be broke for a year while the politicians look great for keeping the peace.
ANWR won't matter. The problem is much larger than that. Drill ANWR, there is some money to be made, but it won't make the slightest difference until another ten years, and even after that, when it goes into production, it will be only 17% of US production for the following ten years and then it's over.
It will mitigate the price fluctuations which are purely generated by emotional response to our lack of energy security. Which is why the price of oil jumps every time there is a hiccup in the Middle East.
Oil trending upward past $100 and past $200 [the point where the economy fails] is not a fluctuation. ANWR will have no effect until ten years after approval, and then will run for ten years, then done. We have had 30 years to build uranium plants, but the death-worshipping Greenies have stopped that completely. If we start uranium plant construction on a larger scale than the two or so that are underway we might make it, but the next ten years will be rough if the Iran situation goes the way it appears to be going.
The current price of oil is speculation in the market, not the value of the product. Why else would a threat to Iran's production which is less then 6% of the worldwide total cause the price to jump? Mitigation of the price would be over the speculative nature of the oil market, not a real effect on the total amount of oil produced.
I'd be willing to bet you a dollar for donuts that on the day that the bill is passed to open ANWR for drilling, the price of oil will drop 10-15%.
I agree with that - in fact, what would be just peachy for Iran is for security tensions to keep ratcheting up - an occasional speech about wiping out Israel here, a threat to remove funds from European banks there - while they make money hand over fist from $100 a barrel oil.
Even if they cut oil production by half, and the price of oil doubled, then they would lose nothing, at least in the short run.
You beat me to it.
The EPA will regulate that to death, and make it impossible to be cost effect. But oil refineries have a different set of rules to play by. Trust me, there is to much money in big oil for the biomass to truly take hold.
Oh wow, since it was just posted, I thought that it was a new position speech.
Thanks for the heads up on that one.
Hell no! Nor can we build nuke plants. And for reasons why, just dial 1-800-DEMOCRATS.
Trouble is that it takes energy to get energy. There's a point where you expend more fuel to get more fuel. Pumps and other technologies for getting the deeper oil require fuel.
Nicely put.
Maybe we should just bomb their oil fields and then they couldn't GET $100. a barrel...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.