Those Evil Oil Companies

A good friend of mine, who is a regular reader to my sporadic posts, asked me that I should have something to say about our high gas prices. Well, I do, but it’s probably not what you would expect.

I drive around 80 miles per day or around 400 miles per week commuting to my workplace. It’s my choice that I live so far from my work, but I know very well the price of gas. I’ve been making this trip for over 9 years so I am used to paying a lot to the gas stations. You might think that I’m mad at Big Oil. Wrong. It’s because I know better.

The truth is that “Big Oil” only makes around 8 cents per gallon of gas. Am I kidding? No. A good portion of your dollar spent on gas goes to the State and Federal government. At least double the amount that the Evil Oil Companies make. Shocking? Not really. The government continually takes more and more of our income in devious ways like gas taxes.

If you don’t know the way the commodities markets work, then you educate yourself. Oil is a commodity – the oil companies don’t set the price of Oil, Gas, or any other petroleum product that is used. This is the free market at work. Yes it sucks at times, but that’s the way it goes. This article will explain things in a very easy to understand format: http://www.howstuffworks.com/gas-price.htm.

Another myth is that we are dependent on OPEC for all of our oil. The truth is that less than 1/2 of our oil comes from OPEC countries. Our biggest importer for oil are right here in North America – Canada and Mexico. I guess they have got a handle on their Enviro Wackos.

Many things drive higher prices. No refining capacity and lack of drilling are two major culprits. I’m convinced that if we would actually drill our proven resources in this country (i.e. the Alaska tundra) and stop bantering on about switch grass and biofuels (ethanol, et. al.), we could actually make some progress. It won’t happen over night, but it’s never too late to start.

The sad truth is that President Bush is too lame (duck) to do anything and the current crop of candidates are more interested in sound bites than the real problems that can be solved. Nothing will every happen unless we actually DO something. Wishing and hoping for alternative fuels might sound sexy, but oil is here to stay. Unless we can find a plentiful supply of something else to run our vehicles on, without a government grant, we’re in it for the long haul. Thank God for the Oil companies for drilling that nasty crude oil that we love so much.

Of Course, that’s just my Opinion.

Rob’s Rant

Sources: http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/dnav/pet/pet_move_impcus_a2_nus_ep00_im0_mbbl_m.htm
http://www.howstuffworks.com/gas-price.htm