Why? It's their money. You buy their product. If you want to stop buying it, find an alternative yourself. Why should they be asked to pay for people to find an alternative to their product? What law or founding principle are you basing that on?

Should Microsoft be charged extra to perfect Linux? You're a blatant socialist, Col, and further left than the vast majority of Dems in Congress. Can you still claim to be a moderate Republican and post communist bullshit like this?

Should companies that produce alcohol be forced to subsidize temperance movements? Should tobacco companies buy my nicotine patch? If you are addicted to oil, it's your fault.

Bakerstreet

So long as we are running a deficit, every dollar the fed gives in tax cuts ADDS to that deficit that you and I must pay both the interest on the added debt and some day repay the principal. That is OUR money that Bush and the GOP is giving away. I do not recall Microsoft, being granted a $12 Billion Dollar tax credit!

This is PURE GREED for something that every person and every company can not do without!

Col, why don't you just run for president?

Col, this is pure socialism what you are advocating. Not much different than what Chavez is doing.

IslandDog

This has nothing to do with socialism. The fact is that the oil industry is as far from free enterprise as you can get. A few oil companies control the market and competition does not function. They use this power to set prices and extract huge profits for something the public can not do without and for which there is no substitute. Competition has nothing to do with setting the prices. What I am suggesting is a counter balance to their power for something that is essential to our society.

Bullshit, frankly. You aren't posing the idea that the prices be fixed so that the money stays with us. You're suggesting a TAX on those extra profits, so that our money goes to your socialist GOVERNMENT to waste on the pretense of the greater good.

Bakerstreet

You do not know what you are talking about. This is NOTHING to do with socialism. The fact is that the Oil industry is not operating so competition works to control prices. First there was no reason to have granted $12 Billion in tax cuts to this industry. Second, the increased profits clearly show that the oil companies have used the higher crude oil prices to increase their profits. HOW IS THAT JUSTIFIED? That has caused the cost of essential and unavoidable expenditures for EVERY person and business to be higher just so the oil companies can FATTEN the pocket books. ONLY the oil executives and those that receive increased dividends benefit from the increased profits that we all are paying for. Since the oil companies have PROVEN they are acting to the detriment of EVERY person and company, it is time to take away their unjustified tax cuts and when their pricing policies increase the cost above their actual cost increases tax away that unjustified increased profit that results and help and use it to construct alternate energy production. That will benefit ALL Americans with the unjustified greed of BIG OIL!

When I deposited my yearly bonus Gene, I laughed all the way to the bank knowing that you sufffered at the pump for my fat check.

Just john

It is not just me but EVERY American that is paying higher prices for gasoline and heating oil to satisfy the GREED of people like you. You are giving the finger to all Americans and All American Businesses. What an ASS you and others are that support the unjust policies of President George W. Bush!

It is not just me [/quote] Yeah, but it's just you that I was laughing about. [quote]What an ASS you and others are

I'd rather be an ass than a deranged old fool.

Were you whining for those oil and gas companies in the 80's when the industry nearly went bust? What about all of the people who lost their livelyhood that are finally getting some sort of retirement due to the current boom? Do you care about the people of the industry or are you just going to bitch about the bottom line?

One more thing oh great king of the tuck tail and run crowd...

Respond to my comments or are you out of lies to tell?

Chicken?

This has nothing to do with socialism. The fact is that the oil industry is as far from free enterprise as you can get.

It has much to do with socialism.  Oil companies are a business, and you are wanting to take away their profits because you don't like "big oil".

https://forums.joeuser.com/?forumid=34&aid=142849

So I assume you will be supporting Hillary.

Ah, Math.

Big numbers always impress dumb people.

"Exxon Mobile $39.5 Billion - up $3.4 Billion over 2005"

And...?

What was Exxon's Gross?

answer: $378 BILLION.

Go ahead, do the math. Take one and divide it by the other.

Exxon's Net revenue was barely over 10% -- in a year in which gas prices shot up.

In most industries, a healthy company should be generating approximately 15% in profit. Historically, that was the number used to determine a "fair profit". "cost plus" or what have.

But to the statistically impaired, like Col Gene, who just sees lots of numbers he doesn't understand, he just sees $39 billion.

Let's look at Microsoft for a comparison:

For its fiscal first quarter, which ended Sept. 30, the company announced a profit of $2.9 billion, up from $2.6 billion. Revenue was $9.2 billion, up from $8.2 billion.

That's $2.9 billion profit out of $9.2 billion grossed. That's around a 30% profit margin!

But $2.9 billion isn't as big a number and doesn't make people like Col Gene freak out as much even though Microsoft's profit margin is gigantic.

So explain, Col Gene. How exactly is Exxon being greedy? Because they make a lot of money? Is that what greed is to the economically challenged?

If Exxon made $1 trillion a year with a profit margin of only 3% (i.e. basically break even) that would still be $30 billion. Is that greedy still?

 

"You do not know what you are talking about. This is NOTHING to do with socialism."

You can put as many exclaimation points as you like, but it doesn't cover the fact that you are trying to shift money from private industry to the government on the pretense that it is "good" for us.

• Not caring that it will raise the price of energy
• Not caring that it will effect one of our large national employers with a spillover effect to related industries.
• Not caring that it places American oil and gas companies in an uncompetitive position with state-owned companies from the Middle East and South America.

If you say this isn't about socialism you're a liar. You're not that self-deluded, you're just trying to cover your propaganda. You are espousing the idea that we should take money away from private industry to punish them for being too successful. If we can't stomach the product or the price, we can buy vehicles that use less, or look for complete alternatives.