Posted by
jwinkles on Thursday, May 22, 2008 10:42:38 AM
I want to take a few minutes to applaud our extremely hard-working elected officials for their tireless effort on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. They held yet another grilling of the oil company executives blasting them for running successful businesses. That’s basically what our government has come to. I defy anyone to find a quote by some representative in Washington which praises any industry or business. They attack the private sector relentlessly. They use propaganda and fear tactics to turn all of us against the private sector. Many of us take the bait in spite of the fact that our livelihood is found there.
I had no idea that the members of the House and Senate were experts in the oil industry. I guess I should have known since they are experts on everything else. It wouldn’t be so frustrating to watch if these pompous Senators weren’t so closed-minded and block-headed. They refuse to actually hear what the witnesses say at the hearing. If they would quit flapping their jaws for just a minute and listen, perhaps solutions could be found. Instead they would rather grandstand and propagate.
According Stephen Simon, Senior VP of Exxon Mobil, his company makes 4 cents profit on every gallon of gas sold. So, how does that huge profit margin correlate to the price of a gallon of gas? He also said that this number is down from the massive 10 cents per gallon profits recorded last year at this time. Wow, they are some real modern day Robber Barons aren’t they.
Since our government won’t allow new drilling for oil or building of new refineries, I have a suggestion that might help increase supply. Oil privileges should be revoked for all those states who hate the oil industry. Wisconsin, New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, and California are all states whose Senators have blasted away at this industry so let them do without. They need to be punished until they elect sensible people to office.
The idea that the most wasteful, corrupt, and inefficient entity known to man would criticize private citizens for having the gall to turn a profit seems ridiculous to me. However, our Senate seems to think that bringing in the oil executives every couple of months to yell at them will bring gas prices down. It’s no wonder this group of Senators and Congressmen only claim to fame in the end will be having the lowest approval ratings of all time.