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rainy

(6,321 posts)
11. I posted what is below plus what "old and in the way" said, thanks peeps
Sun Feb 19, 2012, 11:28 PM
Feb 2012

"Ok so, gas prices continue to go up all the wile the U.S. is exporting gas and oil companies are slowing down the refining of gas. What’s wrong with this picture?
I know, right wing economists will spout “well that’s just the free market responding to supply and demand…”.
There’s no such thing as a free market. Our markets are not free. Our markets are the best money can buy and oil companies buy a huge chunk of them. Our Congress has long since been captured by the petroleum industry. It’s so bad that oil companies which make hundreds of billions of dollars in profit actually get U.S. tax dollar subsidies. They also get access to Federal Lands at very cheap rates.
Not only that but Oil Companies rely heavily on our tax payer dollar funded military to protect their shipping lanes and secure new oil supplies (see Iraq). Oil Companies have so much money they can afford to throw billions of dollars at Congress without even noticing it to make sure no other industry can compete with them. We are at their total mercy.
So ask yourself why the oil companies are driving up gas prices? Well, for one, they don’t want to see Obama re-elected. Look for Republicans to pivot in the summer and start blaming Obama for high gas prices. Second, the Oil Companies desperately want to build this Keystone XL pipeline. Why do they want the pipeline so bad? Is it so out of the goodness of their heart they can then lower gas prices?
No. They want the pipeline (which will go to the Gulf States where the bulk of refineries are) so they can export even more gas. This pipeline will do nothing to reduce gas prices. But oil companies know how the public thinks. They know that as gas prices go up the public will be more susceptible to propaganda such as “we need to drill more oil here at home so we can lower gas prices!”.
Why else would oil companies spend so much money buying commercial time on CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News trying to convince you that all we need to do is drill more and frack more in order to solve our energy woes?
The oil market is not free. If oil companies could drill on every last square foot of land in this country and everywhere offshore gas prices would still not drop. Why? Because oil companies control the supply and as gas price drop they just stop refining gas.
In this case though their rationale is even more devious as they are trying to influence a Presidential Election and push through Congress the Keystone XL pipeline with the excuse being it will lower gas prices. They know full well it will do nothing to lower gas prices because they set the price."

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Obama shutting down refineries?! Obama has handed out a SHITLOAD of drilling permits. SHITLOAD! FarLeftFist Feb 2012 #1
Tell them you want to see the articles and facts first Angry Dragon Feb 2012 #2
When I google it there are all kinds of articles about gas prices going up and Obama rainy Feb 2012 #5
The oil companies are closing refineries pscot Feb 2012 #21
That's usually a sign it's so much RW hot air... JHB Feb 2012 #28
I'm not going to do your legwork but check out US exports of gasoline. Jackpine Radical Feb 2012 #3
If they'll pay more for the gas elsewhere, then why not? bhikkhu Feb 2012 #23
I'm not arguing the merits of the exporting, Jackpine Radical Feb 2012 #29
Ask him for a link. Old and In the Way Feb 2012 #4
I think I post what you just said:) rainy Feb 2012 #8
Hey, I'm no macro-economist who pretends to understand world energy markets... Old and In the Way Feb 2012 #14
Misinformation And Propaganda TheMastersNemesis Feb 2012 #6
Show them this: TalkingDog Feb 2012 #7
I was just going to find that link for the op. NT Mojorabbit Feb 2012 #20
Those That Assert, Must First Prove. Ikonoklast Feb 2012 #9
the real deal is that gasoline has become one of the USA's largest exports NMDemDist2 Feb 2012 #10
I posted what is below plus what "old and in the way" said, thanks peeps rainy Feb 2012 #11
not sure of the implication of your friend's fb post handmade34 Feb 2012 #12
I would first tell him that the 'liberal media' is no such thing. The MSM is GOPonziconz Feb 2012 #13
Speculation TomClash Feb 2012 #15
here is an interesting link about OUR oil- Bluerthanblue Feb 2012 #16
The UK imports very little oil from Iran, yes; France also imports very little. Spider Jerusalem Feb 2012 #17
Maybe they'll buy more from Libya now... Amonester Feb 2012 #18
Gas prices are tied to oil prices, oil prices are tied to the cost of production bhikkhu Feb 2012 #19
What I would say.. BrentWil Feb 2012 #22
It has been my experience that when I google RW talking points Ohio Dem Feb 2012 #24
The oil companies shut down the refineries EC Feb 2012 #25
What don’t they understand about free market concepts? left is right Feb 2012 #26
The facts are out there. toddwv Feb 2012 #27
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