An Oily Stain
Exxon made 8.4 billion in the first quarter of 2006. Their stock fell today, because investors expected them to make 9.25 billion. Exxon’s retiring CEO will take home about 400 million worth of bonuses. Lots of money floating around, all of it seems to be sticking to those oily fingers. So, what’s an oil exec to do? Bring out the pundits! They can spin anything. Hey, they might even get some free drilling concessions out of this whole deal… it’s happened before. They’re already eyeing the Florida Straits. Right now, the straits are drilled by Chinese and Indian companies. US companies have trouble getting into the area because that would mean doing business with Cuba.
It’s a tricky dilemma. On the one hand, opening up a relationship with Cuba is anathema to any good conservative. On the other hand, denying the wishes of big oil? I don’t see that happening. A true Catch-22 if ever there was one. It should be interesting to see which of these two choices they go with. I think the whole discussion of drilling in the Fla Straits will disappear until after the midterm elections. Meanwhile, the pundits unleashed by the mother ship have been lighting up the airwaves defending their masters. They’re starting to sound like Cigarette manufacturers. Maybe we are addicted to oil after all. :)
Defending Oil Profits - CNN
Today brings a new analogy. “Exxon’s profits are much lower than other companies… it just looks large because Exxon is a large company.” In other words, if Mr. Exxon was running a 7-11, he’d have trouble feeding his family.
Yeah, on planet Klatu, where a slurpy costs $1,500
It doesn’t make sense. Even if Exxon’s profits are relatively smaller than other companies, it just means that Exxon is too big. When a company gets so large that a bad quarter is still the 5th largest profit in history, something has become unbalanced. Remember, capitalism only works when there is “free” competition between companies. What benefit does a cartel of monopolies like ExxonMobil offer an individual like me, or you?
It’s a tricky dilemma. On the one hand, opening up a relationship with Cuba is anathema to any good conservative. On the other hand, denying the wishes of big oil? I don’t see that happening. A true Catch-22 if ever there was one. It should be interesting to see which of these two choices they go with. I think the whole discussion of drilling in the Fla Straits will disappear until after the midterm elections. Meanwhile, the pundits unleashed by the mother ship have been lighting up the airwaves defending their masters. They’re starting to sound like Cigarette manufacturers. Maybe we are addicted to oil after all. :)
Defending Oil Profits - CNN
Today brings a new analogy. “Exxon’s profits are much lower than other companies… it just looks large because Exxon is a large company.” In other words, if Mr. Exxon was running a 7-11, he’d have trouble feeding his family.
Yeah, on planet Klatu, where a slurpy costs $1,500
It doesn’t make sense. Even if Exxon’s profits are relatively smaller than other companies, it just means that Exxon is too big. When a company gets so large that a bad quarter is still the 5th largest profit in history, something has become unbalanced. Remember, capitalism only works when there is “free” competition between companies. What benefit does a cartel of monopolies like ExxonMobil offer an individual like me, or you?
- posted by npanth at 4/27/2006 08:05:00 PM
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