Oil man Pickens puts his money on wind power

[Tigermike 3,047]

“Right now, our strategy on gas prices is ‘Drive small cars and wait for the wind,’ ” said a Democratic aide.

Compromise: The oil companies can drill but the vast majority of their profits from this additional activity must be invested to pursue alternative energy solutions. Every one wins - the right who wants more drilling, the left who wants alternative enrgy, and all American consumers.

Winner winner chicken dinner?

Well at least some of you admit it - you don't want to drill to actually help Americans and help our energy situation...it's all about the oil companies and big bucks.

As evidenced by your two posts, it is not about helping Americans or to help our energy situation.... it's all about hurting the oil companies and getting all the big bucks for your big government.

“Right now, our strategy on gas prices is ‘Drive small cars and wait for the wind,’ ” said a Democratic aide.

[au2004ece 30]

Well at least some of you admit it - you don't want to drill to actually help Americans and help our energy situation...it's all about the oil companies and big bucks.

That's ridiculous. You came up with a ridiculous compromise that really isn't a compromise at all. You say that we will allow companies to invest in finding oil in American areas, but they won't be allowed to make any profits from it. What company is going to do that? Do you want your company to do that? Are you going to take a pay cut so that your company can go do some work and then give away the profits? Would you to invest in a company that is that stupid?

Your above statement is like us saying that you admit that you don't care about helping the country, you only want to give the government more powerful so we can stop those people that own the oil companies (a large chunk of Americans own stock in or mutual funds that invest in oil companies) from making any money. I don't think that is the case about you. I think you just don't understand market economics.

[RunInRed 16,454]

They can break even - the won't make any more to pad their record profits. Just look at as their "charitable contribution" to the greater good.

Of course, we all know the no-spin truth - the oil companies don't want alternative energy...they just want to drill drill drill until they bleed every last drop out of us. Why you guys on the right defend them, I'll never know. Frankly, you all deserve what you get with the current situation. Sadly, every one else has to suffer. However, there is hope - as we all know, the oil days are numbered.

[tiger88 934]

obamacrats will argue he's not a socialist yet his biggest supporters always seem to have a HEAVY socialist slant. RIR is the poster child of obama socialists.

[BamaGrad03 0]

They can break even - the won't make any more to pad their record profits. Just look at as their "charitable contribution" to the greater good.

Of course, we all know the no-spin truth - the oil companies don't want alternative energy...they just want to drill drill drill until they bleed every last drop out of us. Why you guys on the right defend them, I'll never know. Frankly, you all deserve what you get with the current situation. Sadly, every one else has to suffer. However, there is hope - as we all know, the oil days are numbered.

So you're going on record as saying you're a full blown socialist...

[au2004ece 30]

They can break even - the won't make any more to pad their record profits. Just look at as their "charitable contribution" to the greater good.

Of course, we all know the no-spin truth - the oil companies don't want alternative energy...they just want to drill drill drill until they bleed every last drop out of us. Why you guys on the right defend them, I'll never know. Frankly, you all deserve what you get with the current situation. Sadly, every one else has to suffer. However, there is hope - as we all know, the oil days are numbered.

Break even? Why would a company start a project where the best they could accomplish is "break even"? Something could go a little wrong and then they lose a lot of money and people that work for the oil company get laid off or oil prices go up further.

Oil companies are OIL COMPANIES. They sell OIL. They make money off of OIL. They are not alternative energy companies. What alternative energy company are you investing in? Oil companies barely make more than an average profit margin. There total profit is so large because the amount of money they invest is so large. What do you think would happen if all oil companies disappeared tonight?

You can't get past the fact that you think it is unethical to make money selling oil. Why do you believe that? Is it because you consider oil a necessity? If so, shouldn't those that provide us with necessities make the most profit? That only makes sense. If companies selling necessities weren't allowed to make a profit, who would provide necessities? We would only have companies providing non-necessities to us, because those would be the only industries where a company would be allowed to make a profit.

I will defend any legal industry that is attacked for attempting to make a profit. The market economy allows this and the market economy has made this country so strong.

Markets don't work on what you deserve. Markets work based on supply and demand, which you still demostrate that you do not understand. Everybody that was paying attention knew a day where supply was low and demand was high was coming, those that didn't prepare are suffering. These people have to take some personal responsibility for their own situation. If people were not willing to pay $4 for gas, gas could not be that high.

None of this is meant as an argument against alternative energy. I can't wait until we find something cheaper and more efficient than oil. But, forcing companies to invest their profits in anything they don't choose as a good business investment will cause more problems, some described above, than it would solve.

[BamaGrad03 0]

Since when did capitalists...who are good at excelling in a capitalist society...become villains?

I swear the whole country is snowed into thinking that anyone who makes a wage that exceeds middle class is a freaking criminal.

[RunInRed 16,454]

1) The oil industry is not and has not been free market since the early 1900s. It's a cartel. Further its highly regulated and taxed. So this whole idea of a laissez-faire capitalism concept you guys are trying to advance is beyond short-sighted.

2) Further, this whole supply and demand logic is a wash from the perspective most of you want to present because consumers have no control over supply. Despite where BG gets his facts from, every thing I've read states that even with further oil production here (i.e., drill drill drill) the macro effect on the world's supply would be insignificant (especially when projected demand growth is conisdered over the next 10yrs - the time it would take to pull this oil out of the ground).

3) The answer to this situation is on the demand side, not the supply side. You reduce demand (and potentially the entire market for oil) by finding an alternative that truly operates on a free market platform.

[au2004ece 30]

1) The oil industry is not and has not been free market since the early 1900s. It's a cartel. Further its highly regulated and taxed. So this whole idea of laissez-faire capitalism concept you guys are trying to advance is beyond short-sighted.

2) Further this whole supply and demand logic is a wash from the perspective most of you want to present because consumers have no control over supply. Despite where BG gets his facts from, every thing I've read states that even with further oil production here (i.e., drill drill drill) the macro effect on the world's supply would be insignificant (especially when projected demand growth is conisdered over the next 10yrs - the time it would take to pull this oil out of the ground).

3) The answer to this situation is on the demand side, not the supply side. You reduce demand (and potentially the entire market for oil) by finding an alternative that truly operates on a free market platform.

1. What do you mean by cartel? Are you trying to say that the oil companies are colluding to set gas prices? This doesn't make sense because the price of gas has risen at a much slower rate than the market price of oil. Also, if oil companies could set the price anywhere they wanted without fear of losing to the competition, prices would be higher because we would pay them in the short-run.

Do you not think the high regulation and high taxes could be helping to lead to the higher prices at the pump. Regulation has prevented any new refineries from being built since the 70s and has prevented exploration from being done on our own land/seas. Taxes are simply passed on to the customer. So, this whole idea of letting market economics work is valid because the things you bring up as making the oil companies not true models of market economics are causing more of the problems.

2. Consumers do have control over supply. They can elect people that will allow an increase in our own energy production (new oil exploration, new refineries, new nuclear plants). Those are things that we can do now to increase supply. The macro effects of more oil production here will have a signifigant impact on the percentage of the oil we use that comes from inside on our own borders (there wouldn't be a transfer of wealth away from us, and national security would be increased).

3. The answer is on both the supply and demand side. Even by reducing demand per person in America, there is still a large group of people that are going to come in the demand side of the energy market in other countries.

You reduce demand by allowing oil to operate as any other free market. When prices go up, demand goes down. Those that hate the oil companies should be glad for higher prices, because it spurs people into creating alternatives (a result of allowing a free market).

[Auburn85 432]

Compromise: The oil companies can drill but the vast majority of their profits from this additional activity must be invested to pursue alternative energy solutions. Every one wins - the right who wants more drilling, the left who wants alternative enrgy, and all American consumers.

Winner winner chicken dinner?

you do also realize that building one (1) new refinery costs billions of dollars?

[au2004ece 30]

Compromise: The oil companies can drill but the vast majority of their profits from this additional activity must be invested to pursue alternative energy solutions. Every one wins - the right who wants more drilling, the left who wants alternative enrgy, and all American consumers.

Winner winner chicken dinner?

you do also realize that building one (1) new refinery costs billions of dollars?

No he doesn't realize that. The oil companies are evil in his mind because they make money selling oil.

[TheDrewYouKnew 3]

They can break even

Idiot. Come back after you have worked at a real job and understand atleast the basics behind business decisions. What an idiot...