I hope you live a long life and are able to enjoy it. In my 20+ trips driving to and from Alaska I've met hundreds of older people 60's, 70's and 80's making the same trek. It's no small task since it's over 4300 miles one way. Don't discount those golden years,
I hope you live a long life and are able to enjoy it. In my 20+ trips driving to and from Alaska I've met hundreds of older people 60's, 70's and 80's making the same trek. It's no small task since it's over 4300 miles one way. Don't discount those golden years,
Both sides of this need to learn two simple concepts - EMPATHY and HUMILITY.
You don't see oil producers dancing in the street or bragging about how great $100+ oil is for them personally, because (1) they realize how hard it is on the rest of the economy (2) they're all scared $hitless of how hard the market is going to crash the way it always does after a boom.
So if you are personally enjoying sub $30 oil, do so humbly and realize that it has catastrophic consequences for a lot of average Oklahomans.
If you want to b!tch about something, try this. Refineries intentionally closed when oil prices started dropping in early 2015 for "routine maintenance" in order to justify the same retail sales price of oil products to consumers. By their own admission, these refineries can be brought back online at any time and maintenance is typically done whine the refinery is operational. It's just a "justification" for why the price at the pump doesn't track proportionatly to oil price, when it's actually an excuse to increase profit margin.
On the flip side, and the very first increase in oil price, there is immediately an increase in consumer products. Totally justified because "raw material costs increased, therefore retail price has to increase to maintain profit margin".
I'm a hard core republican and capitalist to the core, but that's BS. If there were ever a need for government regulation, this is where it should be.
And another one: I've been around the world and seen some things. Every country in the world that produces natural gas and vehicles has CNG passenger cars. Pretty simple concept, we have the fuel and factories, we should create an infrastructure to utilize what we have. It's less efficient and won't work for heavy vehicles, but it helps plain folks and those are the ones that need help.
So why not in the US? We have so much NG that we burn it off at the well site. It isn't worth the price of the pipe to get it from the wells to the compressor stations we have so much. Many problems. (1) big oil owns too much % of vehicle manufacturing. They don't want CNG vehicles, drives oil price down. (2) government isn't subsidizing CNG R&D because it's perceived as a "half-step" to green energy. (3) even if the first 2 could be overcome, liability insurance for CNG filling stations and CNG vehicles is so unbelievably high no one is willing to build either one. Only way to correct that is total tort reform, which is probably not going to happen in my lifetime.
This is the problem with everything in the US. It's not that there isn't a solution to high oil prices, or medical care, or immigration, or taxes, or (name you complaint here)... it's that the solution causes as as much problems as it cures. So we choose the evil we know. Makes me sad for my kids...
You don't see oil producers dancing in the street or bragging about how great $100+ oil is for them personally, because (1) they realize how hard it is on the rest of the economy (2) they're all scared $hitless of how hard the market is going to crash the way it always does after a boom.
So if you are personally enjoying sub $30 oil, do so humbly and realize that it has catastrophic consequences for a lot of average Oklahomans.
If you want to b!tch about something, try this. Refineries intentionally closed when oil prices started dropping in early 2015 for "routine maintenance" in order to justify the same retail sales price of oil products to consumers. By their own admission, these refineries can be brought back online at any time and maintenance is typically done whine the refinery is operational. It's just a "justification" for why the price at the pump doesn't track proportionatly to oil price, when it's actually an excuse to increase profit margin.
On the flip side, and the very first increase in oil price, there is immediately an increase in consumer products. Totally justified because "raw material costs increased, therefore retail price has to increase to maintain profit margin".
I'm a hard core republican and capitalist to the core, but that's BS. If there were ever a need for government regulation, this is where it should be.
And another one: I've been around the world and seen some things. Every country in the world that produces natural gas and vehicles has CNG passenger cars. Pretty simple concept, we have the fuel and factories, we should create an infrastructure to utilize what we have. It's less efficient and won't work for heavy vehicles, but it helps plain folks and those are the ones that need help.
So why not in the US? We have so much NG that we burn it off at the well site. It isn't worth the price of the pipe to get it from the wells to the compressor stations we have so much. Many problems. (1) big oil owns too much % of vehicle manufacturing. They don't want CNG vehicles, drives oil price down. (2) government isn't subsidizing CNG R&D because it's perceived as a "half-step" to green energy. (3) even if the first 2 could be overcome, liability insurance for CNG filling stations and CNG vehicles is so unbelievably high no one is willing to build either one. Only way to correct that is total tort reform, which is probably not going to happen in my lifetime.
This is the problem with everything in the US. It's not that there isn't a solution to high oil prices, or medical care, or immigration, or taxes, or (name you complaint here)... it's that the solution causes as as much problems as it cures. So we choose the evil we know. Makes me sad for my kids...
I think there are many places in life where these two concepts would help us all as people, but are sadly missing.
Very good post from somebody that really understands what is going on.
No kidding. This mid 60's goes to New Mexico every year and hunts elk in the high country on foot. Life starts at 60!
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Totally agree with your points above. It still amazes me that we live in the heart of oil and gas country and so many people can't see how low oil commodities is really not good for them either. We're all aware of how low priced oil impacts our 401K, and our community suffers from the reduced tax income as state and local agencies are struggling to make their budgets work. But hey, gas is cheap! It's all perspective.
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I just filled up the Tahoe at $1.399 at the local 7-11. I don't kid myself, though. I know some of my tax money - that amount that the Fed doesn't borrow - goes toward the methanol subsidies so I am probably spending more than what pure gas costs. At least I'm recuperating some of the money I've paid out in taxes.
Woody
Woody
there is so much subjectivity in these arguments. has anyone ever empirically compared the effect (on the entire economy) of putting money into the oil industry vs. putting it into other industries? that is, if the average person spends an extra $50 per week on gas (because of higher gas prices) , how does that differentially affect the entire economy compared to the average person spending that same $50/week on clothes, fancy food, hard goods, entertainment, etc. (because of lower gas prices)? this would be incredibly difficult to do, empirically, but well worth the understanding it would bring.
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