Remember how, just a few years back, when we had a real president, every time the price of gasoline would go up, you could count on some liberal to screech about how Bush and Cheney were "oil men" and they were just "helping their buddies in the oil bidness"? (Actually, they didn't say "bidness". They weren't cool enough to pull it off!) Wish I had a nickel for every time I heard that!
And now we have in the White House, a man who's never been in any kind of business and the prices have gone up even faster. How can that be? Does Obama have friends in the oil bidness, too? What's his excuse?
And then, there was Nancy Pelosi. When she assumed the speakership, gas was around $1.80- $2.00 a gallon. She was outraged! And she pledged that her Democrat controlled House would "do something about it"! I guess we should have asked her to be a little more specific about what they were going to do!
And two dirty little secrets, one, Democrat social planners have been advocating raising taxes on gasoline to drive the price up to five dollars a gallon, to reduce gasoline consumption (and keep us all poorer). And two, government already pulls in more cash from a gallon of gas than oil companies make in profits.
Look at this chart from Daily Markets last year:
State and Federal gas taxes combined, take 26 to 68 cents a gallon and funnels it straight to the government. Oil company profits are around two per cent, and those evil SOBs are just out to screw you.
So, let me get this straight...the people who stand to make the most from high oil prices are...the government tax collectors. And some politicians want to demonize the people who actually bust their hump to bring the energy to you, when the government levies taxes twenty five times as high as oil company profits, on every gallon of gas you buy. As our progressieve friends like to say, the gas taxes are regressive taxes that hit the poor hardest. The poor pay proportionally more for gas to look for work or to commute to a job than the upper or middle classes. Why doesn't some good liberal suggest lowering the gas tax? Because it is a cash cow for government. And as long as they can keep the common folk focusing on how evil Big Oil is, they'll keep spending. But, think about it...if Exxon/Mobil is making millions off their two cent profit...how much more is Big Government siphoning out of your pocket every day?
Vote your pocketbook this November. We can't afford the cost of the Green Utopia Obama and his social planners have picked out for us. Some people are putting Post-it notes on the gas pumps: "How's that hope and change working out for you?" But, whenever you drive down the street, point out all those gas signs to your friends as political advertisements for Anybody but Obama.
Cross posted at LCR, Say Anything.
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They're going to need to do something about gas prices if it hit 5 dollars per gallon. Obama will not reelected with gas at 5 dollars a gallon. It's that simple. I think we will see the oil man emerge.
ReplyDeleteIt would be fun to watch him try to blame Bush for $5 gas if it didn't mean the suffering of so many people.
DeleteCompared to Obama everyone is an Oil Man. With oil prices inevitably on the rise, and O having done things to exacerbate the situation rather than mitigate it, the point needs to be made loudly and often - this is much worse than what would have been if the president had done nothing. He has not only not made the situation better, he's made it worse. Just like Obamacare. Just like the unemployment situation. Just like the debt. Just like America's reputation. Just like...
ReplyDeleteDean: I agree with everything you've stated. Unfortunately, I have seen, in my life, some of the most abysmal politicians get re-elected.
DeleteWe cannot take anything for granted until November is behind us. keep the faith!
I agree with everything you've said, however...
ReplyDeleteMaybe some $5 per gallon gas is the swift kick in the ass that some of the belligerent public needs to prompt more rational thought about what constitutes efficient transportation.
The vast majority of what passes for a commuter vehicle in Texas are quad-cab Ford Lariats, Chevy Tahoes, GMC Yukons, and other monstrously oversized vehicles. And those are predominantly SINGLE occupant vehicles, at that! The prevailing attitude here - and I suspect most other areas of this country - is something like, "By God, if you ain't got yerself a big dick truck, well heck, ya just ain't much of a man!"
When we were kids, Dad loaded all 5 of us into a sedan and off we went on epic road trips (usually without even air conditioning)! Nowadays, soccer Moms use Hummers to shuttle 2 kids across town to a game.
So maybe the rednecks need a jolt in the wallet to consider more sensible driving options.
Except, more expensive energy, in any form, slows the growth of the economy. Conservation in any amount is not going to change that.
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