BIG OIL AND THE REPUBLICANS THAT LOVE THEM

Check out the Yahoo! article today about the Republicans in the Senate blocking legislation to impose a windfall profit tax on the oil industry. This windfall tax imposes a tax when the industry acquires suspiciously high profits for the market price of its product.

The oil industry reported a record setting $40 billion in profits this last year despite the skyrocketting prices at the gas pump and the insistence that it was coming from the price and availability of crude. The prices per barrel aren't going up in comparison to some shrinking demand, however, they're going up in comparison to the weakening US dollar.

Republicans argue that it would cause the lessening of domestic production and an increase in imports. We already import more than 2/3rds of our oil, what's the difference? They also blocked the passage of further tax breaks on alternative energy industries. Why? Because someone called them up and told them to hold on a little longer until they buy their next house in Spain before they impose an extra tax.

My proposal is this: We sued the tobacco industry for the long-term effects of their cigarettes, it's time to sue the major oil companies so that we can all benefit from a lowered fuel price. We are slowly being crippled by some of the most flagrant corporate manipulation of the market and control of the government, so much so that now that we are finally aware of how bad it's getting, it is already too late for millions to lose their jobs and homes, for our food costs to get too high to be able to eat, and for our "great nation" to be crushed under the stupidity of leaders owned by a corrupt industry.

The article is at:
http://http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080610/ap_on_go_co/congress_oil_profits

GAS PRICES!!!!! AAAAAAHHH!!!!

Oh JESUS! The gas prices are so high and they aren't going to be going down. By summer they will be over $4/gallon and while this isn't nearly as bad as it is in the Europe, they don't have nearly as far or much to drive as we do in the US. What is the biggest problem? If you work anything of a 'typical' work day, 9am-5pm, you are going to end up sitting in traffic and using some of those precious gallons of gas just sitting on the highway.

I love it how there was a big mess in the news about high gas prices and how oil execs were posting record profits and paychecks. That they were then brought before Congress for a day or two of hearings and then no one was indicted is a crime. how is the working class supposed to survive when the prices of food are escalating, the prices of gas is continually rising day by day, and the rate of new jobs created and people hired continues to proportionally go down. You cannot have an economy that bounces back or has any hope of surviving when more and more people are being put into poverty and unemployment while every aspect of living costs skyrocket.

Meanwhile our half-whit-in-chief talks about taking measures to curb rising gas prices by getting Ethanol to wider markets. Meanwhile Ethanol is incredibly cost-ineffective and is causing the change of cash crops in countries around the world to switch from rice to corn for ethanol while most of the world is starving for and paying record prices for the rice they depend on as part of their diet.

It's a good thing all those truck-drivers with their 'support the troupes' and American flag stickers on their trucks voted for George Bush. I hope they suffer the most.