It seems the recession is depressing to Big Oil. Apparently, global economic woes have resulted in a blip in the record-breaking pace of profits that the oil giants have enjoyed over the past few years. Less demand these days means less cash flowing to oil companies.
As reported in the Washington Post, Exxon Mobil -- the world's largest oil company -- is reporting a 68% slump in profits, to $4.73 billion. During last summer's silly season of skyrocketing prices at the pump, Exxon reaped record revenues of $14.8 billion. Meanwhile, Royal Dutch Shell reports a 62% drop in profits, to $3.25 billion. ConocoPhillips is bemoaning a 71% profit decline this quarter, and is looking to cut capital expenditures and sell off some pipelines to offset the losses.
Naturally, consumers can expect that gas prices will rise as a result of lower profits for the industry.
We also shouldn't be surprised that Big Oil and its allies in Congress are doing everything they can -- like continuing to spend millions on lobbying -- to kill clean energy legislation.
Call it karma or cosmic justice -- or whatever you want -- but now is our best opportunity to break Big Oil's stranglehold on our energy supplies by passing a comprehensive clean energy and climate bill that puts American back in control of our economy, our security, and the future of our planet.
So let's all save our crocodile tears and urge Congress to watch our for our bottom line for a change.
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OPINION:Recession Hurting Big Oil? Boo-Hoo-Hoo
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Seem's hopeless.
Why can't cold fusion have worked out for us?
The only way to "break Big Oil's stranglehold" is to centralize them.
One way would be for a non-profit employee-owned company to buy out controlling shares of all the oil companies. Course, that company would probably need to include most of the country to afford to do it.
- Submariner October 30, 2009 1:48PM
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Your brand of hope.
You. You are on board with centralized healthcare .
You also root for centralized energy ? Is there any industry you don't want to see centralized?
The problem with your philosophy, of course, is that socialism is great-- Until you run out of other people's money . The Government might provide you with your every need, you being in the military and all, but know that not every American wants to have the government run everything. We don't all want the government to be our provider. It is not only a trust issue; it is a competency issue.
- SolarSanitizer
October 30, 2009 3:29PM
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Thing's to not socialize:
Hollywood , and any entertainmnet media and service in general.
Most consumer technology . Especially digital electronics.
Financial Investment industries; that is, making money with money crowd, especially banks , that's our biggest problem.
Jewelry, Antiques, Art, and Collectibles.
Toys, holiday consumer goods.
I mean, consumer services, media, products, and monetary services and products, are a lot of our industry and economy. This stuff is good cloth to make capitalism out of.
Any system, service, media, or product should that is intended for universal consumption and requires universal standards should be centralized, whether by government or by private non-profit.
The telephone service, for example, has made and still makes for a lot of bad capitalism:
It was developped and built with a lot of tax payer money. Not contracts - direct subsidies.
No competition was involved, and this is one of the industries that wrote the book on operating a cartel.
It quickly became intended for universal use across the population.
It inherently requires standards for it to function.
Also, supply and demand are nonreal functions of the economy of telecomms for the consumer.
Energy and Healthcare are even more standards based and even more universally applicable.
But more importantly, the moral onus is actually on government to not poison us all, destroy the earth, stifle R&D, and profiteer off of minimaly incremented development of resources (resources that largely are or should be public domain.
For profit "private" industries are excused from have a long view of things, or operating for the common good.
That's fine for pop music and chewing gum.
It's shortsighted, assine, suicidal, and frequently corrupted greed for something like Health care.
And I think the line is drawn somewhere after shelter, clothing, food , and general health and safety, civil infrastructure, and even education and transportation on a good day.
Seriously, why are teachers, cops, and firefighters government service providers but doctors are not?
Because there is a lot of profit to be made. That's it.
- Submariner October 30, 2009 7:02PM
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