How then, do we move backwards? How does a society, with most of the people having no clue of future events, move from being dependent on a vast and intertwined network of goods and services produced by the indigenous people of whereever, to a local resource and renewable energy based society, and do so in the timeframe available (20-30 years using the most liberal extimates, 10-20 with resonable estimates, 5-10 with worst case scenarios), all the while prices on everything increasing, world politics getting more militaristic, governments continuously reducing civil liberties, shortages of goods on the market and weather patterns resembling bad Hollywood movies?
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 10:20 am Post subject: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
Sample:
Quote:
WASHINGTON, March 20 (Reuters) - Democrat Barack Obama would take an active role in U.S. oil markets as president, tackling concerns about the dominance of large oil companies and eyeing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as a potential weapon to combat high prices, his top energy adviser said.
Jason Grumet, the presidential hopeful's key energy and environmental policy aide, told Reuters this week that an Obama administration would crack down on any competition lapses in the sector that have resulted from big corporate mergers.
Grumet also said Obama would seek to link a future U.S. carbon emissions trading system with the European Union's scheme as soon as possible while focusing attention on China and India in forging a global warming pact.
Obama is locked in a tight race with fellow Democrat New York Sen. Hillary Clinton for the chance to take on presumptive Republican nominee John McCain in the November election.
Grumet, head of the Washington-based Bipartisan Policy Center in addition to advising the Obama campaign, said the oil industry had "concentrated incredible market power in a small number of companies" in a way that caused alarm.
"Senator Obama has a deep concern that the consolidation of the industry -- these national mergers, you know, that were allowed under both Clinton and Bush administrations -- are a cause for some concern," he said.
He said an Obama administration would examine "whether these mergers and consolidations have decreased competition in a way, concentrated market power in a way, that is undermining to consumers."
Grumet declined to identify specific companies and would not comment on whether Obama would seek to break up dominant players. Leading U.S. oil firms include ExxonMobil Corp., Chevron Corp., and ConocoPhillips.
"It is premature to try to articulate what the remedy is," Grumet said. "There are indications that there could be some problems there and ... the (Bush) administration has been a bit asleep at the switch, so we would be digging into those questions aggressively."
HIGH PRICES, CLIMATE CHANGE
With oil prices at record highs, Grumet said Obama would seek to tax the "windfall" profits that oil companies are making - a threat that Clinton has also made. McCain, a Republican senator from Arizona, says the United States needs to eliminate its dependence on foreign oil.
The average U.S. price for gasoline hit a record $3.28 a gallon this week. The Energy Department predicts that pump prices in some regions could hit $4 a gallon this spring.
Obama would also consider tapping the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to bring down prices while recognizing that such a move is normally meant to aid in the case of an acute supply disruption, Grumet said.
Joined: May 13, 2005 Posts: 2495 Location: The Urban Village
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 10:26 am Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
Energy policy is one area where I've been less than impressed with Obama. But, then I haven't been impressed with any of them too much. McCain said ethanol was stupid, then said he would consider it and I don't know what he thinks on energy now. The article linked says this about McCain
Quote:
McCain, a Republican senator from Arizona, says the United States needs to eliminate its dependence on foreign oil.
Hopefully, there will be some honest discussion of this during the campaign.
Joined: Oct 23, 2004 Posts: 5342 Location: New Jersey
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 11:54 am Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
This is a bad idea.
When some Wahabbi terrorist group in Saudi Arabia someday cripples their oil infrastructure, the SPR will be the only thing that saves the US from total chaos. Yes, I do mean people with clubs and bats breaking down store windows when they can get no food, because there is no diesel to run the delivery trucks.
Quote:
From Washington, cold comfort for gasoline worries
Forget the photo-ops; in campaigns, it's the long term that counts
By Robert Schroeder, MarketWatch
Last update: 2:24 p.m. EDT March 21, 2008
So what can Washington do about it? Weiss said that there are a few options policy-makers have at their short-term disposal to help take the pain away from the pump. Lawmakers could, he elaborated, subsidize energy use to bring down costs. Releasing oil from the U.S. strategic petroleum reserve would be another way to get more supply on the market in an effort to bring gasoline prices down.
Clinton has called for freezing additions to the strategic reserve for a year, saying it's 97% full and that continuing to fill it doesn't make economic sense. Obama also would consider releasing oil from the reserve to pressure prices lower. "It would be on the table," Obama's energy adviser Jason Grumet told Reuters.
Some are skeptical of the effect that a release from the strategic petroleum reserve, or SPR, would have, though. The reserve holds about two months' worth of oil supply.
"Tinkering with the SPR is a sign of a lack of any good ideas," said Ben Lieberman, an energy and environment analyst at the conservative Heritage Foundation. He contends that tapping Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge would have a bigger impact over time. But getting more oil from Alaska would take years.
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 1:02 pm Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
DantesPeak said:
Quote:
This is a bad idea.
Yes, have to agree, a very bad idea. Cutting into the SPR is like cutting into the country's food supply with ethanol; another classically bad idea. Taxing and cutting up the majors in this period of escalating E&D costs is also a bad idea. There is very little oil worth recovering available to us, and dressing down the firms with the know how, money, and technology to do it, goes into the same bin as turning dinner into fuel.
The unfortunate truth is, that outside of Bartlett and a very few select others, no one in Washington seems to have a clue as to what is really transpiring. Those that do have some idea, as to the seriousness of the situation, have been castrated by indifference, and elevated to tin foil or ignored by the Lame Stream Media. Their opinions just don’t fit into the business as usual category that Washington demands of its participates.
Washington politics may function to some degree for school budgets and Medicaid payments, but it doesn’t look like it is going to work very well for PO. The voting populous is just too ignorant of the problem, and so are most of their representatives.
I seriously doubt that any of the leading candidates can rise above the mediocrity that is now demanded of our leaders. With so few options and probably no politically acceptable ones available, their course of action will, most likely, only aggravate our very critical situation.
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 1:21 pm Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
If there is any doubt at all that Obama is just more of the same fascist/liberal destructive dichotomy that supports the facade in front of corporate America, this quote removes it:
Quote:
"and eyeing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as a potential weapon to combat high prices"
As every PO poster with more than 10 posts knows, the SPR is 3 months worth of oil at regular usage rates.
This bullshit that the "candidate of change" is spouting is sorry vote-whoring.
Welcome aboard Obama - pretend liberals to the back, pretend conservatives to the back, corporate whores, most definitely to the back.
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 1:43 pm Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
I was hoping, before the primaries, that Bill Richardson might have picked up a clue or two as Energy Secretary. Unfortunately, (as foreign readers may not immediately gather), the Energy Secretary in the US deals with both "energy" as we typically call it and nuclear weapons/global nuclear issues. It appears he was more interested in the latter.
Tapping the SPR should indeed be between "moderate rationing" and "severe rationing" on the response list. Maybe even between "severe rationing" and "barbarians at the gate". _________________ At 1% annual growth, human bodies will incorporate every gram in the observable universe in approximately 10,170 years.
Joined: Feb 20, 2005 Posts: 2640 Location: Uppsala, Sweden
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 4:16 pm Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
Now this is a stupid populist idea. I'm sure we all can agree on something for once. _________________ Peak oil is not an energy crisis. It is a liquid fuel crisis.
Joined: Jun 13, 2007 Posts: 3261 Location: Minniesotuh
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 4:20 pm Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
funzone36 wrote:
Sample:
Quote:
WASHINGTON, March 20 (Reuters) - Democrat Barack Obama would take an active role in U.S. oil markets as president, tackling concerns about the dominance of large oil companies and eyeing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as a potential weapon to combat high prices, his top energy adviser said.
Jason Grumet, the presidential hopeful's key energy and environmental policy aide, told Reuters this week that an Obama administration would crack down on any competition lapses in the sector that have resulted from big corporate mergers.
Grumet, head of the Washington-based Bipartisan Policy Center in addition to advising the Obama campaign, said the oil industry had "concentrated incredible market power in a small number of companies" in a way that caused alarm.
He said an Obama administration would examine "whether these mergers and consolidations have decreased competition in a way, concentrated market power in a way, that is undermining to consumers."
Grumet declined to identify specific companies and would not comment on whether Obama would seek to break up dominant players. Leading U.S. oil firms include ExxonMobil Corp., Chevron Corp., and ConocoPhillips.
HIGH PRICES, CLIMATE CHANGE
With oil prices at record highs, Grumet said Obama would seek to tax the "windfall" profits that oil companies are making - a threat that Clinton has also made. McCain, a Republican senator from Arizona, says the United States needs to eliminate its dependence on foreign oil.
Obama would also consider tapping the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to bring down prices while recognizing that such a move is normally meant to aid in the case of an acute supply disruption, Grumet said.
"It would be on the table," he said.
Tackling large oil companies--THAT is going to go over Really big with said oil companies!
Using the SPR to tackle high prices--what definition are They using for 'Strategic??'
Break up dominent players--who does he think he is kidding here?
On the table--makes me think of Hitler and the time his generals put a bomb under the table.
Good thing it was the adviser saying these things, then Obama, after hearing from some of those 'concentrated market players' can announce the whole thing was just one of his staffer's ideas.
Doesn't Barack have two Rs? _________________ "RRrrruuuunnnn!!!" ~Apocalypto
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 7:37 pm Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
Quote:
Tapping the SPR should indeed be between "moderate rationing" and "severe rationing" on the response list. Maybe even between "severe rationing" and "barbarians at the gate".
Look folks, it's really simple.
You know that food supply that you've stashed for when the supermarket shelves are empty?
Are you going to start eating it when bread is 3 bucks a loaf?
Exactly.
The SPR is just that - it is far too small to be used to ease "rationing" and other such measures unless those measures are temporary.
Any fool who taps into the strategic pr should be viewed just as you would your mate when he insists on breaking into the emergency food reserves in your basement because some food items are being rationed.
Wait until you lose all of your excess body fat and then, and only then, hit the stash.
Quote:
"Tapping the SPR should indeed be between "moderate rationing" and "severe rationing" on the response list. Maybe even between "severe rationing" and "barbarians at the gate"."
Joined: Aug 11, 2005 Posts: 637 Location: Eastern NC
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 9:25 pm Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
Well damn, I thought from all the posts here Bush was the dumbest person to ever hold the post of president. Anyone with a blot of intelligence would clearly see the SPR was never designed for cost modification. Now I don't thing Obamalama is dumb, must be counting on dumb people to vote for him.
Joined: Jun 13, 2007 Posts: 3261 Location: Minniesotuh
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 9:50 pm Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
dinopello wrote:
Fishman wrote:
Now I don't thing Obamalama is dumb, must be counting on dumb people to vote for him.
Ding ding! We have a winner !
You've got that right! All those people who are blaming the oil companies for being greedy... yeah, they are, But.. Is it me or are people getting stupider? The stuff they are blindly believing.That includes Obama _________________ "RRrrruuuunnnn!!!" ~Apocalypto
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2008 11:07 pm Post subject: Re: EXCLUSIVE-Obama eyes active role in U.S. oil markets
Who knows how accurate the reporting on this is? I do rather doubt, if any of the candidates had a clue about the real situation, that they would share it with the voting public. Scaring the crap out of prospective supporters over things that can't really be remedied is not generally considered smart politics.
And they're not gonna talk about this either, but they should be thinking about it:
Why now nationalize the oil companies?
We are in the process of nationalizing hundreds of billions and eventually no doubt trillions of dollars of loss from corporations that made bad bets. The fact that we have done this so readily gives the lie to the notion that we are somehow ideologically or morally opposed to socialism.
Why only socialize the risks and the losses.
Why not socialize some of the most lucrative companies in the world, while they are still lucrative, instead of just socializing companies that have gone through the floor?
Most of the worlds oil (what is it, 95%?) is in the hands of national companies now anyway. These private oil companies are something of an anachronism.
Don't just break em up BHO, nationalize the mo fo's!
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