Ralph Nader on the price of oil

[CREATIVE1]

An interesting link and a site to Bookmark for future depressing reading.

http://www.counterpunch.com/nader05282008.html

[CREATIVE1]

Wow, when I tried to get into the Counterpunch site earlier today, it wasn't found. Just a glitch, or shutting down radical news sites?  Scary.  Some of the ones I used to visit required labyrinthine efforts to get into and then went "poof". 

[glenn kangiser]

Black Choppers - 12 o'clock, Creative.

It crashed my browser 3 times so far.  I'll try a couple more things.

[glenn kangiser]

Maybe he said something sensitive.

Crashed my browser a couple more times then switched to IE and it said my navigation to the page/site was canceled -- but it wasn't by me.

[glenn kangiser]

It seems to be in and out -- got it on Opera finally then it came back on Firefox.

From the above link for information purposes

In Search of a Sane Government
What's Really Driving the High Price of Oil?

By RALPH NADER

What factors are causing the zooming price of crude oil, gasoline and heating products? What is going to be done about it?

Don't rely on the White House—with Bush and Cheney marinated in oil—or the Congress—which has hearings that grill oil executives who know that nothing is going to happen on Capitol Hill either.

Last week the price of crude oil reached about $130 a barrel after spiking to $140 briefly. The immediate cause? Guesses by oil man T. Boone Pickens and Goldman Sachs that the price could go to $150 and $200 a barrel respectivly in the near future. They were referring to what can be called the hoopla pricing party on the New York Mercantile Exchange. (NYMEX)

Meanwhile, consumers, workers and small businesses are suffering with the price of gasoline at $4 a gallon and diesel at $4.50 a gallon. Suffering but not protesting, except for a few demonstrations by independent truckers.

A consumer and small business revolt could be politically powerful. But what would they revolt to achieve? Their government is paralyzed and is unable to indicate any action if oil goes up to $200 or $400 a barrel. Washington, D.C. is leaving people defenseless and drawing no marker for when it will take action.

Oil was at $50 a barrel in January 2007, then $75 a barrel in August 2007. Now at $130 or so a barrel, it is clear that oil pricing is speculative activity, having very little to do with physical supply and demand. An essential product—petroleum—is set by speculators operating on rumor, greed, and fear of wild predictions.

Over the time since early 2007, U.S. demand for petroleum has fallen by 1 percent and world demand has risen by 1.3 percent. Supplies of crude are so plentiful, according to the Wall Street Journal, "traders of physical crude oil say their market is suffering from too much supply, not too little."

Iran, for instance, is storing 25 million barrels of heavy, sour crude oil because, in the words of Hossein Kazempour Ardebili, Iran's oil governor, "there are simply no buyers because the market has more than enough oil."

Mike Wittner, head of oil research at Societe Generale in London agrees. "There's various signals out there saying for right now, the markets are well supplied with crude."

Historically, oil has been afflicted with the control of monopolists. From the late nineteenth century days of John D. Rockefeller, and his Standard Oil monopoly, to the emergence of the "Seven Sisters" oligopoly, made up of Standard Oil, Shell, BP, Texaco, Mobil, Gulf and Socal, to the rise of OPEC representing the major producing countries, the "free market" price of oil has been a mirage. Despite the breakup of the Standard Oil company by the government's trustbusters about 100 years ago, selling cartels and buying oligopolies kept reasserting themselves.

In an ironic twist, the major price determinant has moved from OPEC (having only 40% of the world production) and the oil companies to the speculators in the commodities markets. What goes on in the essentially unregulated New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX)—without Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) enforced margin requirements, and, unlike your personal purchases, untaxed—is now the place that leads to your skyrocketing gasoline bills. OPEC and the Big Oil companies reap the benefits and say that it's not their doing, but that of the speculators. Gives new meaning to "passing the buck."

Deborah Fineman, president of Mitchell Supreme Fuel Co. in Orange, New Jersey, summed up the scene: "Energy markets have been dictated for too long by hedge funds and speculators, who artificially manipulate the numbers for their own benefit. The current market isn't based on the sound principles of supply and demand but it is being rigged by companies and speculators who are jacking up prices for their own greed."

Harry C. Johnson, former banker who worked for many years inside Big Oil and ran his own small oil company in Oklahoma, blames the CFTC, the Department of Energy, the Administration, and Congress, as "asleep at the switch on an issue that is probably costing U.S. consumers $1 billion per day."

He cites "some industry experts, who profit greatly from the high price of crude, and have stated openly that the worldwide economic price of crude, absent speculators, would be around $50 to $60 per barrel.

Imagine, our government is letting your price for gasoline and home heating oil be determined by a gambling casino on Wall Street called NYMEX. The people need regulatory protection from speculators and an excess profits tax on Big Oil.

In addition, a sane government would see the present price crises as an opportunity to expand our passenger and freight railroad capacity and technology.

A sane government would drop all subsidies and tax loopholes for Big Oil's huge profits and other fossil fuels and promote a national mission to solarize our economy to achieve major savings from energy conservation technology, retrofitting buildings, and upgrading efficiency standards for motor vehicles, home appliances, industrial engines and electric generating plants.

[glenn kangiser]

the balance

Those are the permanent ways to achieve energy independence, reduce our trade deficit, create good jobs that can't be exported and protect the environmental health of people and nature.

Those are the reforms and advances that a muscular consumer, worker and small business revolt can focus on in the coming weeks.

What say you, America?

Ralph Nader is running for president as an independent.

[glenn kangiser]

Government in the US is the oil cartel.

[glenn kangiser]

Farther comment on that -- are they really broken up hmm-- I have seen every oil company almost on the same credit cards -- It was  Shell/Texaco then went to Chevron/Texaco if I recall correctly - then Exxon/Mobil --

Seems to be all different turds from the same horse.

[glenn kangiser]

Please feel free-- it's an original.

[CREATIVE1]

Thanks for posting the article, Glenn.  I'm going to copy some of the other information from Counterpunch to word documents in case they disappear for good.

[glenn kangiser]

I'm not sure what was going on - ISP problems maybe but a definite problem.

Try Evernote for saving this stuff -- per Daddymem.  Beta still free I think - http://evernote.com/

[desdawg]

Good article CREATIVE1. This is just what I have been talking about:
Don't rely on the White House—with Bush and Cheney marinated in oil—or the Congress—which has hearings that grill oil executives who know that nothing is going to happen on Capitol Hill either.


Meanwhile, consumers, workers and small businesses are suffering with the price of gasoline at $4 a gallon and diesel at $4.50 a gallon. Suffering but not protesting, except for a few demonstrations by independent truckers.

A consumer and small business revolt could be politically powerful. But what would they revolt to achieve? Their government is paralyzed and is unable to indicate any action if oil goes up to $200 or $400 a barrel. Washington, D.C. is leaving people defenseless and drawing no marker for when it will take action.
If an oil insurrection were ever to occur it could start with your local Farmers Union Group. Who could then be joined by an independant truckers group. These organizations already exist and no one would have to re-invent the wheel. I could picture it happening. It is good to see a recognized name like Ralph Nader speaking to the possibility.
The government is paralyzed and that paralysis is what is being relied upon. These people think no one has the grapes. I think sooner or later someone will. JMO. None of our fine slection of political candidates for the next election have come forth with a potential solution to the problem tha I have heard. That would almost guarantee their being elected if one did. I guess they all swim in the same water. To speak to that problem would probably cost campaign contributions that none of them would dare risk. Bought and paid for? I guess we could write in Ralph Nader. That would be about as effective as voting for Ron Paul was.

[glenn kangiser]

The choices are really un-choices.   Just there to make you feel like you had a say.

It's like -- OK -- here are your choices -- who would you like to be lead by?

X__________________Cow Manure

X__________________Horse Manure

[i wish we were up north]

My brother sent me this link as a "must listen" (recorded in 2007) and the predictions of $4 - $5 / gal came true.  It is long but worth it.  It scares me :

http://video.google.com:80/videoplay?docid=3340274697167011147

[ScottA]

Looks like Iran will be getting nuked if Lindsey Williams is right because we don't have the troops to invade them.

[glenn kangiser]

US Population 301,139,947

About 15 Scary main leaders of the US.

About 95% of the population are scared by the leaders bogeyman stories and will surrender all of their Constitutional liberties and rights without resistance and follow unquestioningly to be protected by the scary leaders.

[i wish we were up north]

The leaders of the country appear to have their hands tied.  It won't matter if we have a Democrat or a Republican in office.  If what this Lindsey Williams says (and ok, I'd never heard of him before either) is even remotely true and it really is the World Bank controlling everything that is going on we'll all soon be faced with far more serious problems. 

Those of us who have prepared and have some land will be able to grow food at least if there is a total economic collapse. 

I am a non-gun person, although not for any other reason than I don't have any experience with them.  However, I told my husband he'd better find his Dad's old 22 because I'm afraid we're going to need it to protect what we have.  And I have never felt that way before.

*Note, the guys site says "goodbye"  http://www.lwoil.com/  Wonder who shut him up?

[glenn kangiser]

I see he mentioned concern for his family.

[ScottA]

I cannot understand how the USA could think that the world would allow them to use Nukes on another country... Especially since the last 6 years of war have been all about WMD, NUKES, and weapons of mass destruction....And considering we dragged half the world to war over these issues.... We had better practice what we preach

Easy...the first nuke lands on us or israel and gets blamed on Iran then they can just say it is retaliation.

[glenn kangiser]

Don't forget The Bush admin, still has the one missing nuke from Minot ratholed somewhere.  ie: 6 stolen - 5 recovered in LA.

[considerations]

 http://www.lwoil.com/  All you can get now is the goodbye note. Nothing more.

Money has been running the world for a long time.

Politics just gives CNN something to do.

[ScottA]

Don't forget The Bush admin, still has the one missing nuke from Minot ratholed somewhere.

Maybe they should look under Cheny's desk.

Is it just me or is the mood turning darker in this country. Time to plan a picnic/bbq me thinks.

[glenn kangiser]

I have noticed the light dimming for quite a while now -- ever since I knew 9/11 was a fake (happened -yes - but false flag -- I knew it the day it happened) .  It was obvious something was up.  Research "9/11 false flag" for more info.

We are not alone.

"NFL Star Considered 9/11 a False Flag From Day One
Super Bowl winner and former Dallas Cowboys ace Stepnoski goes further during radio interview

Paul Joseph Watson
Prison Planet
Thursday, November 8, 2007
        

Former Dallas Cowboys Super-Bowl winner and five time Pro Bowler Mark Stepnoski said in a radio interview yesterday that anybody who still believes the official story of 9/11 is either incredibly naive or in complete denial, as he revealed how he considered the event to be a possible false flag operation on the very day it happened.

Stepnoski went public in an interview with the Pennsylvania based Erie-Times newspaper on Sunday, but during an interview on The Alex Jones Show he went further and revealed that his questions about 9/11 began on the very day of the attacks.

"I just remember at the time thinking to myself - is this really a terrorist attack on us by a foreign nation or is this a false flag operation being conducted by our government," said Stepnoski, adding that he had carefully studied the Kennedy assassination, Watergate, and the Oklahoma City bombing, which led him to immediately doubt the official story.

continued: http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/november2007/081107_false_flag.htm

[CREATIVE1]

Yep, it's all pretty scary.  And after 9/11, even TALKING about it is Unamerican.  Excuse me, what is the definition of a Democracy?

[glenn kangiser]

Isn't democracy mob rule.  We are actually a Republic -- yeah -- the one for which it stands, and the doferent branches of government are supposed to control the power of each other - not letting one get out of line -- if I have that right.  Oh well --- so much for that idea.

If only the ones who won't talk about it realized that they are helping to sell us out...  that's my definition of un-American.