Like Your $5 Gas?

Townhall ^ | May 25, 2008 | Kevin McCullough

[orchid]

In 1995, the republican Congress passed authorization to drill in ANWR. Clinton vetoed it. There were not enough votes to override.

[gogogodzilla]

Was it filibustered? Did the Democrats actually stay in the House/Senate to talk and talk and talk and talk... shutting down the process of government?

Or was it ‘virtual’, where they presented the Republican majority with a list of Democrats they ‘claimed’ would filibuster it... and then the matter was dropped?

If the Republicans had forced the filibuster, it would have lasted for a week or so... before it would have died. All filibusters die in time, when the members are actually FORCED to filibuster. If we used today’s rules of filibusters, where they are simply ‘virtual’, civil rights would never have been passed. And that passed because filibusters actually had to be physically done. And exhaustion eventually caused it to fail.

So then the legislation would have passed.

That said... when are those Republicans going to ‘ever stop whining and actually hold the Democrats accountable for anything’?

Because they surely didn’t back when they had control of Congress.

[Dick Bachert]

Why the hell should Washington give a damn about 5 buck — or higher — gas? They’ll simply vote higher salaries and pension adjustments for themselves and their millions of bureaucratic minions.

[RepublitarianRoger2]

Interesting. That’s pretty insignificant, like an unmanned probe on the surface of Mars. Or like a fly on an IMAX screen. Or a pimple on Michael Moore’s face.

[rabscuttle385]

In the left's refusal to allow us to seek new energy sources they are stunting a nation's economy, they are hurting the average family, and they are starving hungry children.

But they are saving the polar bears! /sarc

[Hardastarboard]

Socialism SHOULD BE illegal.. and communism treason..

Let's put that into the next version of the Constitution, along with a new, improved Second Amendment that clearly says "No word games. The people have the right to own ANY kind of gun unless they're criminals or crazy".

"Anyone promoting socialism or transfer of wealth of any kind, for any reason, including the children, the environment, public safety or convenience, or any other reason, shall be ineligible to hold public office, and shall immediately surrender any office currently held, without question, qualification or reservation."

[Oldhunk]

I’m sorry, but I am quite bitter over how W and the Republican Congress have destroyed the conservative movement since they regained power in the 90’s. Yes, we had many more Democrats voting against drilling, but it is the RINO’s that prevented getting 60 votes. And Johnny boy was one of them.

[varyouga]

I'm saving money by biking and putting every dollar I save into ammo instead(25 cents a mile). I sense it will be necessary when the Rats' scams collapse under their own weight.

Ammo prices are skyrocketing too. Minigunners hardest hit...

[usconservative]

Additionally elected liberals like Chicago's Mayor Richard Daley, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, and U.S. Senator Richard Durbin have worked in concert to see to it that Chicago area drivers now pay a 20% tax on every gallon of gas sold.

Absolutely true. As someone who lives in The People's Socialist RepubliK of Illannoyed, I can absolutely vouch for the FACT that for every gallon of gasoline sold, currently $4.19/gallon where I live in Will County, IL - the total sum taxes on each gallon are 83 cents.

That equates to roughly 20% of the cost of every gallon sold.

Now, who makes more money on each gallon of gas?

Those greedy oil companies and refineries that make 7-10 cents per gallon?

Or is it perhaps the State, County, City, and Federal taxes that add up to 83 cents/gallon as of yesterday?

To make things worse, the State Sales Tax on gasoline in The People's Socialist RepubliK of Illannoyed is applied to the total cost of a gallon of gas - including ALL TAXES. Thus, the State of Illinois "taxes the taxes" on each gallon of gas.

Isn't this un-Constitutional, you may ask? Yes it is. Yet the Courts in the People's Socialist RepubliK of Illannoyed have yet to declare it so.

They of course, cannot get rid of the WINDFALL REVENUES they reap as a result of high gas prices, now can they?

Of course not. Asking the Gov't to stop taking your money is like asking the 400 pound fat guy to leave the $9.95 all you can eat Chinese buffet! He ain't leaving until all the food is gone, and the Gubbermint of The People's Socialist RepubliK of Illannoyed isn't gonna stop until they've taken ALL our money via windfall gasoline taxes!

Theiving bastards, all of 'em.

[Fishrrman]

From the article:
“they mock us for having to beg Saudi princes to increase production, yet they refuse to do the things that would cause the Saudi’s and other members of OPEC to lower prices naturally.”

Frankly, the time is past for “begging” the Saudis to increase production.

The time has arrived for ORDERING the Saudis to increase production AND to lower the baseline price of petroleum.

If they refuse, the time is also right for we of the West to march into Saudi Arabia, depose the sheiks, establish a provisional military government, and then to assume control of the production and pricing of oil from the region.

Our reconstituted prices should be low enough to reflect the TRUE COSTS of production, which will at once break the back of the OPEC cartel and any speculators in the world oil markets (hopefully RUINING them financially, enough so that they’ll never touch oil again).

Saudi Arabia ranks along with North Korea as the most reprehensible nation on earth, and (to steal the words of no less than Dick Cheney back in 2000), “it is time for them to go”. Once deposed, we will have also struck a major blow in beheading Wahabbism as well.

What the Saudis and OPEC are doing is a direct threat to the heartbeat and lifeblood of the economies of The West, not to mention their support of an Islamic Caliphate.

Nations and cultures have gone to war for far less throughout human history.

“No war for oil”? Horsefeathers.

- John
(You asked for comments, and those are mine - and I’m dead serious about ALL of the above)

[2ndDivisionVet]

On YOUR Dime: Congressmen Lease Luxury Cars
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2010089/posts

[2ndDivisionVet]

"We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity. We weren't punctilious about locating and punishing only Hitler and his top officers. We carpet-bombed German cities; we killed civilians. That's war. And this is war." ~Ann Coulter

[the anti-liberal]

I would have liked the graphic to have had a line each for State and Federal tax, but I think it serves it’s purpose and would help redirect angry gasoline buyer’s anger from the gas stations to our democrat congress.

[usconservative]

That not actually correct. The direct tax per gallon when you add both state and federal gas taxes is anywhere from $.54 to $.81 a gallon. It depends on which state you live in.

Your chart doesn't fully account for the duplicative State taxes in Illinois (the flat and percentage taxes) as well as County, local municipal and RTA taxes that are lumped on each gallon.

In Illinois, at $4.19/gallon, the total taxes are 83-84 cents per gallon. As someone who actually understands the taxes that are applied and how they are calculated, that is a FACT.

[usconservative]

Correction:

As someone who lives in The People's Socialist RepubliK of Illannoyed and understands how the gas taxes are applied and how they are calculated, that is a FACT.

[liberallarry]

Presently in territories under US control we have oil reserves that could eclipse that number by possibly 20 to 30 times. We have the technology to go get it with almost zero impact to the surrounding environment. And in some places where we could go harvest it from - like the Alaskan wilderness, we would need less than 2% of the total territory to give us domestic oil production that would rival the output of what we purchase abroad and thus cause those suppliers to drop their prices. Off the shores of California, Florida, and other oceanside states further exploration could be had with no cost to the taxpayer and any reserves we would find would belong to the U.S. and thus allow us to control our own energy future.

Aside from the fact that everything here is wrong it's a terrible article.

All reserves we find go on the world market. We are too dependent on foreign oil to start protectionist schemes. The amount of oil offshore and in ANWR does't even begin to cover the world's needs for any length of time. Right now, at this moment, only one of four barrels of newly discovered oil increases supply. The rest covers supply lost due to depleted fields. That ratio will decrease rapidly as demand increases and fewer and fewer substantial new sources are found, especially new sources of sweet oil in relatively accessable places.

Face it. The era of cheap oil is over. Over. Over.

It is said that about oil represents about 70% of the cost of gasoline. If oil goes to $200 - as is likely by the end of the summer - gas will go to $7-8 per gallon. That's going to happen whether or not we decide to drill in protected places, whether or not we construct new refineries.

At that price the world economy, including the U.S. economy, will collapse. Get used to it. Plan for it.

Here is a picture of the current situation.

[MNJohnnie]

I’m sorry, but I am quite bitter over how W and the Republican Congress have destroyed the conservative movement

Pretty tough to win a battle when 30% of your team does nothing but snipe it own side in the back daily.

Democrat campaign contributors pretending to be "betrayed Conservatives", like Mike Savage and the rest of the Always Whining choir who whined hysterically non stop because they did not get only 100% of only what they personally wanted destroyed the Conservative movement.

They are so pathetically desperate to whine at the GOP every day they have not fought the Democrats on any isse for years.

[Keflavik76]

This should be the burning issue in this years presidential election but the media and their liberals masters in congress have most of the public believing its all big oils fault. What are the odds that as gas goes higher that the people rise up in a sea change, and in a modern day “Boston tea party” throw off the tyranny of liberal policies that keep energy at high prices?

[raygunfan]

why cant the president sign an executive order for this sort of drilling and building of refineries for the good of the nation?

[2ndDivisionVet]

I forgot the rules...