GASOLINE- Kucinich calls hearing on prices

[Algorem]

Source: Cleveland Plain Dealer

U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, chairman of the domestic policy subcommittee, said he will conduct a hearing June 7 in Washington into why gasoline prices are more than $3 per gallon. On April 10, Kucinich sent a letter to the chief executives of seven major oil companies asking for the cause of high prices. He is reviewing the responses. The subcommittee has jurisdiction over the Department of Energy.



Read more: http://www.cleveland.com/business/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/business-0/1178369719209450.xml&coll=2

[AzDar]

1. Kooch!!!

[Rude Horner]

2. This is overdue

Go Kucinich!! Anybody remember that around the last election, gas prices were sinking and sinking, all the way to $1.99 for a few days (at least around here). Since then, it's been a steady rise all the way back up to $3.09, as of yesterday.

[tblue]

54. I saw $3.47 for regular where I live in Nor Cal. $4.45 in San Francisco. For Regular!!!

[mcg]

69. graph of gasoline prices shows low prices around last election

http://www.gasbuddy.com/gb_retail_price_chart.aspx?time=24

[OnyxCollie]

3. I was wondering who would be the first to investigate gas prices.

I'm thrilled it's Kucinich. GO DENNIS!

[doc03]

4. Every time the gas goes over $3.00 someone

calls for a big investigation. They have a "dog and pony show" all the oil company stooges come in have a dozen excuses for the prices. Eventually the prices go down and the public forgets about it and goes back to buying their SUVs and nothing ever gets done.
on edit: I am not saying they shouldn't be investigated, just nothing is ever done about it.

[William769]

6. I am sad to say...

I agree with you.

[ClintonTyree]

22. Precisely....

if I had a dollar for every time there's been an "official investigation" into gas prices I'd have........ well, a hell of a lot of dollars. :shrug: They always investigate and NEVER find any evidence of price gouging and everything returns just as it was before the grueling, intensive investigations began. :sarcasm: When one of these investigations actually finds evidence of wrong-doing THEN it will be headline. Until then it's business as usual I'm afraid. Don't mean to be a gloomy-gus but that's the way it is with BIG OIL in this country. They're very adept at covering their tracks and many Congressmen are more than willing to help them do it.

[Raksha]

25. Yeah, but this will be the first time in six years

they've had an investigation with the Democrats in the majority. I don't think Dennis is going to let them get away with the kind of bullshit the Republicans swallow.

[Bjorn Against]

43. You know normally I would agree with you...

But this is the first time the investigation has been led by Kucinich, he has proven in the past that he is not afraid to go to the heart of the matter. I am hoping his leadership will finally result in accountability for the oil barons.

[Greyhound]

45. They never have investigations, they have hearings, but no investigations.

Your description of what happens as "a dog and pony show" is exactly right, they are a show for us so that the politicians can say "we tried", while continuing to do nothing.

Investigations would involve actually looking at business practices, going over the books and exposing the reasons, if any, for the innumerable "coincidences" that just happen to have them all raise prices at the same time, by the same amount. They would also require an explanation as to why, when whatever excuse is given for the latest increase no longer exists, the prices do not go back down.

[Kindigger]

64. Prices

"for the innumerable "coincidences" that just happen to have them all raise prices at the same time, by the same amount."

I asked a clerk the other day, "I know your gas was 10 cents cheaper than everyone else's this morning. Why is it 10 cents more 5 hours later?"

She replied, "That's why. When they raise theirs, we raise ours." Plain and simple.

I asked her if they jumped off the bridge if she would follow :sarcasm: and got no reply.

Wouldn't you think a chain of stations that undercuts the competition by 10 cents, would make the same amount of money by getting more customers? I've seen stations that are behind the norm with lines at the pumps!

[Greyhound]

66. Funny you should mention that, there was a story about a franchise

owner back east (I think it was Marathon but not sure) who decided that his mini-mart was more profitable than his fuel sales, so he dropped his prices $.15 p/gal, believing he would make far more in the increased store business. The corporation told him he couldn't do that, he told them to fuck off he owned the franchise and would do as he pleased, they sued him out of business and closed the station.

Tel me they're not colluding to gouge us for every penny they can.

[AllyCat]

68. In WI, we have "minimum pricing"

No one is allowed to undercut the competition in their area. Poor neighborhoods always have higher prices too.

[Greyhound]

71. That's outrageous. Who the hell is responsible for that? n/t

[TheFarseer]

46. some oil exec will say

"You see, Timmy, that's the law of supply and demand" and all the republicans will say, see, I told you there was a rational explanation and that will be the end of it.

[ProudDad]

78. This time those oil company f*cks

will be under oath and eligible for perjury convictions.

[liberal N proud]

5. I hope he exposed the pattern to the price increases

All this bull about change over from winter to summer blend around the Easter/Spring Break period when many travel.

The price increases around every major travel holiday and on here in the Cleveland area and I am sure elsewhere, the weekly pre-weekend surge.

It is painfully obvious that the oil companies play games with our wallets.

[acmavm]

7. The whole gas price thing is an oil company/bush** admin scam. They

claim that there's problems refining gas. Well no shit Sherlock. The oil companies shut down shitloads of refineries just to manufacture this 'crisis'. They did that a looooooooooonnnnnnnnnnnngggggggg time ago. It'be been paying off for them for years.

<snip>

Myths and Facts about Oil Refineries in the United States

Myths and Facts about Oil Refineries in the United States

The Bush administration and some members of Congress blame environmental rules for causing strains on refining capacity, prompting shortages and driving up prices. But in reality, it is uncompetitive actions by a handful of companies with large control over our nation’s gas markets that is directly causing these high prices.

Myth 1: Oil refineries are not being built in the U.S. because environmental regulations, particularly the Clean Air Act, are so bureaucratic and burdensome that refiners cannot get permits.

Fact: Environmental regulations are not preventing new refineries from being built in the U.S. From 1975 to 2000, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) received only one permit request for a new refinery. And in March, EPA approved Arizona Clean Fuels’ application for an air permit for a proposed refinery in Arizona. In addition, oil companies are regularly applying for – and receiving – permits to modify and expand their existing refineries.<1>

Myth 2: The U.S. oil refinery market is competitive.

Fact: Actually, industry consolidation is limiting competition in oil refining sector. The largest five oil refiners in the United States (ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, BP, Valero and Royal Dutch Shell) now control over half (56.3%) of domestic oil refinery capacity; the top ten refiners control 83%. Only ten years ago, these top five oil companies only controlled about one-third (34.5%) of domestic refinery capacity; the top ten controlled 55.6%. This dramatic increase in the control of just the top five companies makes it easier for oil companies to manipulate gasoline supplies by intentionally withholding supplies in order to drive up prices. Indeed, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) concluded in March 2001 that oil companies had intentionally withheld supplies of gasoline from the market as a tactic to drive up prices—all as a “profit-maximizing strategy.” A May 2004 U.S. Governmental Accountability Office (GAO) report also found that mergers in the oil industry directly led to higher prices—and this report did not even include the large mergers after the year 2000, such as ChevronTexaco and ConocoPhillips. Yet, just one week after Hurricane Katrina, the FTC approved yet another merger of refinery giants—Valero Energy and Premcor—giving Valero 13% of the national market share. These actions, while costing consumers billions of dollars in overcharges, have not been challenged by the U.S. government.

Myth 3: The United States has maxed out its oil refining capability.

Fact: Oil companies have exploited their strong market position to intentionally restrict refining capacity by driving smaller, independent refiners out of business. A congressional investigation uncovered internal memos written by the major oil companies operating in the U.S. discussing their successful strategies to maximize profits by forcing independent refineries out of business, resulting in tighter refinery capacity. From 1995-2002, 97% of the more than 920,000 barrels of oil per day of capacity that have been shut down were owned and operated by smaller, independent refiners. Were this capacity to be in operation today, refiners could use it to better meet today’s reformulated gasoline blend needs.

-MORE-

http://www.citizen.org/cmep/energy_enviro_nuclear/electricity/Oil_and_Gas/articles.cfm?ID=11829

[Orsino]

16. And yet they're not chartging so much that we're willing...

...to stop driving so damned much. If we have keep driving, shouldn't we subsidize for working folks, and tax the hell out of conspicuous consumers?

[meldroc]

18. That's the thing - we've got to make a living, we can't stop driving.

Because so much of this country is suburban sprawl, and because jobs are more scarce that we have to take jobs 50+ miles away instead of being able to find one in your town, we're forced to keep driving. We're forced to bite the financial bullet, and big oil knows it.

[ProudDad]

79. Oil and gas prices

are immune to supply and demand.

The whole business is a corrupt, criminal industry filled with price fixing and collusion.

[Raksha]

23. I think it's a large-scale behaviorist experiment,

and we're all rats in a maze to them. Right now they have what I call a "captive market." They want to see how just exactly far they can push us before there's a massive backlash and rebellion, which could take many forms. They have part of their answer right now: Kucinich is calling for an investigation.

[ClintonTyree]

26. After Hurricane Katrina...

Kuwait offered to build another oil refinery (gratis) on American soil to help with the shortages caused by the Hurricane. The American government turned them down. Sure, it would have taken a while to get it built and on-line, but we'd have increased refining capacity by now. Nope, nope, nope.....the oil men in the White House wouldn't hear of that! :grr: Thanks, but no thanks, they told the Kuwaitis. :banghead:

[mduffy31]

67. One of the few things that I have agreed with the boy king about

is when this myth is propagated that along with the environmental regulations, another reason that they seem to give that the NIMBY crowd stands in the way of a new refinery being built. Now a few years ago I saw the president of the Sierra Club talking about that they don't oppose new refineries because they are cleaner, also Bush has offered large tracts of land that are decommissioned Army bases that are in the middle of nowhere, so they would a good place to build because they have a lot of the infrastructure already there so it would be easy to start building, well they don't because it would cut into short term profits.

[Greyhound]

72. Arizona has cleared the way for building a refinery there and the industry simply

refuses to do it. They have received exemptions from environmental standards as well as tax incentives, but they still refuse.

[Miss Chybil]

8. Company Response: Because Dick Cheney said we could charge

whatever we want and if prices start to fall, he and George will threaten to blow up Iran to make them go back up.

Sincerely,
Participant in Cheney's Secret Energy Meeting

[williesgirl]

9. Glad to be 5th rec - this needs to be investigated and their obscene profits

taxed thru the roof!

[file83]

10. The cheapest gas near my house is $3.40/gal. The premium is $3.60/gal.

This is fucking ridiculous.

[Vinca]

11. The gas companies are whining about not being able to refine

enough gasoline. Here's a hint: invest some of your megaprofits in new refineries or, better yet, renewable fuels.

[meldroc]

14. They had plenty of opportunity.

The oil companies could have bought legislation in the six years of Bush's presidency and rubber-stamp Congress - they have a history of being very friendly towards big oil. If EPA regulations were too obnoxious (and they weren't,) they could have built refineries in Mexico and polluted as much as they want. They could have (and did) expand and renovate existing refineries.

Big oil's claims the refineries are inadequate is bullshit. The refineries are producing exactly as much fuel as the oil companies want them to produce - less than demand so they can squeeze more money out of us serfs.

[rateyes]

24. Or reopen the ones they shut down....

What a bunch of crap about "refining capacity." They have enough refining capacity. They just don't want to refine more. They control the supply to keep prices high. Bunch of highway robbers.

[meldroc]

12. Just wrote my Representative and both Senators.

Two of the three are Republicans, unfortunately, but hopefully my message gets them to reach for their Maalox.

Dear Senator Salazar:

Last week, gasoline prices in the Colorado Front Range jumped back above $3.00 per gallon. This would be a significant financial hardship for me, because I have to commute from Fort Collins to my job in Westminster, but I'm able to alleviate the financial hit by using the VanGo van pool. Still, the fact remains that gas prices are much higher than they have to be, and many of your constituents are experiencing serious financial troubles because of this.

When I read the news, I hear various excuses from people in the energy industry, explaining that prices are high because of switching to the summer blend of gasoline, because of production and capacity difficulties in the refineries, because of troubles in the Middle East, etc.

Quite frankly, I don't buy it. I find the gas price drop below $2.00 per gallon just in time for the election, and the sudden rise back to $3.00 per gallon afterwards far too convenient. You may think I wear a tin-foil hat, but I smell price gouging.

So I ask you to initiate or support investigations into high gas prices, and legislation designed to get gas prices back into sane territory. Representative Dennis Kucinich has called a hearing on June 7th to investigate the causes of these high gas prices. Please work with him to try to find a solution to this problem. And please initiate or support similar investigations in the Senate into high gas prices.

Sincerely,

Meldroc

[Purveyor]

13. You can bet that the oil company representives will be under oath 'this time".

And some say 'elections don't matter'.

[meldroc]

15. I love the smell of perjury charges in the morning. n/t

[DemSoccerMom]

17. Kick

:kick:

[4dsc]

19. What a bunch of short sited responses

I guess no one here is thinking long term about oil.. Most responses deal with the short term and the bigger picture is that oil production is falling around the world.. $3.00 gas next year will look cheap in comparison.. And just waiting until the end of the decade if you think its high now!! I see $6-10 gas by 2010..

But the biggest oil field in the world is called CONSERVATION!!

[eridani]

37. Don't confuse the underlying swell with the ripples

Ripples = short term price gouging by oil companies
Underlying swell = we have to reinvent our economy to get off of oil

[Just-plain-Kathy]

20. I'm going to vote for any democratic candidate during the general elections,

but I'm going to vote for Dennis Kucinich during the primaries because he is the only candidate who speaks for us.

He "got no strings" and he's a patriot!! :patriot:

[stimbox]

33. Me too.

I whole heartedly agree.
Dennis Kucinich is Superman!

[Telly Savalas]

21. Will these hearings touch upon the subject of the environmental devastation

that oil consumption causes, or will it just focus on making such this environmental devastation can be done as cheaply as possible?

[Critters2]

59. Hey, pal, we don't take kindly to you rational types 'round here.

There's a rabble to be roused!

[musette_sf]

27. K & R

:kick:

$3.51 for premium at South San Francisco Costco.

$3.99 for premium at Condi's Gas n Snack Shack (aka Chevron) across W Airport Blvd.

of course, ya have to take into account that this is right by the airport, so ppl would rather pay $4/gal to fill up than whatever the hell the auto rental place is charging at SFO.

[hippiechick]

28. While I appreciate the endeavor ...

... it amazes me that when stuff like this comes up - gas prices, health care, etc - nobody ever addresses the real issue, which is right at the TOP.

What's keeping all of these prices artificially inflated is CEO/shareholder compensation. PROFIT. GREED. Period.

[Greylyn58]

29. It's about freakin time

and long over due.

I WANT some straight answers from these freakin Oil Barons. I'm sick of being jerked around by everyone connected to the oil industry. Tell us the truth. No matter what. We deserve some answers...truthful answers.

[The_Casual_Observer]

30. gasoline could be $20/gallon & inflation would still be at .01%

since the only thing measured by the inflation index is textiles and footwear imported from China.

[yurbud]

31. kool--Now ask them about the Cheney Energy Task Force

[gillamonster]

32. He never stops.

Kucinich '08!!

[lovuian]

34. He is listening to the people

instead of telling the people what to think

Love him

[LWolf]

35. Unique concept, isn't it? n/t

[vssmith]

36. Having two oil men in charge is like letting the fox guard the hen house

[graywarrior]

38. Dennis RULES!

[mikelgb]

39. I have cut my gasoline usage a lot.

but I was shocked to pay nearly $4/gal for gas the other day. I can't wait until we are off oil alltogether. My next car will not run on gas.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

40. He is listening to the people, BUT "the people" are wrong in this case

Most people have painted themselves into a corner by buying into the whole automobile-centered suburban strip mall lifestyle that the commercial media have been touting for as long as I can remember (and I'm in my mid-fifties).

Finding ways NOT to drive would have two beneficial effects 1) Hitting the oil companies where it hurts, and 2) Cutting down on auto emissions, which are 1/3 of U.S. greenhouse emissions.

Instead of whining, everyone who can should find ways to NOT drive, whether it's by carpooling, taking public transit, riding a scooter, cycling, or even walking. Yeah, yeah, I know. Some people really can't avoid driving because they were suckered into the fiction that the most desirable lifestyle is a new tract house in a former cornfield two miles from anything else. But a lot of people live close in enough that they could take transit all the way to work, take transit part of the way to work, ride a bus and then cycle, etc. etc. They could walk to the store. They could cycle to the store. They could ride a scooter to the store.

And if they're moving to a new community, they can chose a house that is within walking distance of essential stores and services. These exist even in many suburbs. "Oh," you say, "but I can't afford a house close-in."

Well, there are alternatives. You can buy a smaller house. You can give up one of the family cars and have several hundred dollars extra per month so that you can afford a close-in house. And there's no law that says that you have to buy. In some communities, it may make more financial sense to rent and put the savings into something else.

One of the weirdest things about the middle American mindset is the idea that car expenses don't count. Americans will complain about having to "pay to go everywhere" in Europe or Asia, as if their cars back home are free.

After I moved back here, where I now have to do some driving after ten years car-free, I began wondering why I was always strapped financially, even though I had about the same expenses. Then I realized what was going on. Even though I got my car "free" when my mother stopped driving, I was spending $3000 a year on gas, repairs, and insurance, and I don't even drive more than two days a week max.

I LOVED living car-free, and having to drive is the thing I dislike most about the Twin Cities. The proposed light rail lines can't be built soon enough to suit me.

But the typical American is like a small child being introduced to a new vegetable. "No, I don't want to not drive! I'll hate it! I know I will!"

Yet as several of my friends in Portland found, being car-free is easy and pleasant if you have the infrastructure to support it.

So if you're really against high gasoline prices, scold yourself the next time you circle the parking lot endlessly to avoid walking 200 feet or hop into the car to pick up a carton of milk three blocks away.

I'm a big DK fan and campaigned for him in 2004, but he's wrong on this issue. We need leaders who will lead us OUT of automobile dependence and toward an earth-friendly future.

[Critters2]

42. Exactly. If high gas prices cause us to drive less,

they're a good thing in the long run. I live within walking distance to many necessities, and use the city bus for many others. I drive a small car with good mileage--and only drive when absolutely necessary. The day will come when we'll all have to learn to do with less-and someday, no--gasoline. If high prices start moving us toward that discipline now, they are a good thing.

[skepticscott]

48. Thank you, Lydia

I'm no big fan of Big Oil and their enablers in the Bush administration, but I also get tired of the constant whining over gas prices by people who do little or nothing to cut back on their own usage. Here's a tip for everyone who hates paying more than $3.00 a gallon for gas: DRIVE LESS! The vast majority of drivers in this country could easily reduce their driving by 10%, if not more, and if everyone did that, I guarantee the price per gallon would go down. As someone else on this thread hinted, I think that what really annoys people in all of this is not the price of gas per se, but that the oil companies are taking full advantage of their willingness to pay almost any price in order to have unlimited automotive freedom.

I like Kucinich too, but I also think he's off-base on this issue. The question is not why gas is $3.00 a gallon (if you adjust for inflation, it's been much higher), but why it isn't a lot higher. I hate to say it, but I almost welcome that $4.00 gallon of gas. It may take that or even more to get people in this country to really re-examine their driving habits in the short term and, in the long term, to re-examine how our whole transportation system is set up.

[llmart]

55. I have nothing else to add except......

amen. Wonderful post. Du'ers must look in the mirror for the answer to this conundrum. Stop rationalizing your usage

[MadHound]

82. Ah, yes, just continue to be bent over an oil barrel, after all, it's good for us

I love people like you. You take this high and mighty position and fail to think through the complete ramifications of what you're proposing. First of all, you are willing to allow the oil corporations get away with major price fixing schemes, on the scale of Enron. I guess justice means little to you then eh? You're willing to throw the poor onto the bonfire of high oil prices, for they don't have the wherewithal to live close in, in fact it is gentrification by the middle class that has driven the poor out to the burbs. You casually talk about people giving up a car, well gee, some of us are down to our last one and can't really afford to give it up. Same with buying a smaller house, some of us could only afford a small house close to the city, any smaller and it would be an outhouse. Then there is the issue of living in areas that are devoid of mass transit options, period. What, small towns and rural areas are just supposed to dry up and blow away? Everybody move into a large urban area, crowded on top of each other, all competing for scarce real estate? Let me guess, you're a real estate broker?

And then there are the myriad ways that high gas prices are passed on to the consumer, even if we don't have a car. Higher food prices, higher utility prices, higher prices for almost all goods and services. This sort of inflation kills the poor, but hey, you are willing to sacrifice them on the alter of energy efficiency. And they say Dems are supposed to be the compassionate ones:eyes:

Look, I fully support the idea of increasing energy alternatives, it is one reason that I live out in the country, so that I can put up a wind turbine, grow my own(and other's) food, have the room to get into biodiesel, etc. But getting from where we are to where we want to be via high prices is simply not the way to go. It hurts the poor, the most vunerable among us, all out of proportion to any other sector. It's a drag on the economy, and such ongoing high prices can, and will if they go on, drag our economy down into a recession, or worse yet, depression. Instead of applying negative reinforcement such as high energy prices, let us rather employ substantial positive reinforcement. Tax credits for buying energy efficient vehicles, grants for putting up solar or wind facilities, lowered tax on biodiesel, etc. etc. It was this sort of positive reinforcement that, for a short while, promoted a swing to alternatives during the Carter years. Sadly Reagan stripped these reinforcers out of the budget immediately after getting into office.

And then there is the abhorent notion of not punishing the oil corps. for price fixing. Ignore justice all to promote conservation? Sorry, I don't think so.

I just don't agree with your premise, especially when there are kinder, more humane and more just ways of achieving the ideals, alternatives that won't hurt the poor or the economy.

[Cant trust em]

41. One word...

AWESOME! Dennis, you are the man.

[Auggie]

44. Dennis TAKES THE INITIATIVE AGAIN. Clinton? Obama? Kerry? Biden?

[IndianaGreen]

50. The wealthier candidates don't seem to mind paying $3 to $4 per gallon

To the rest of us working stiffs, the high gas prices means that we have to cutdown on other consumer spending in order to fill up our tanks.

[whistle]

47. Long overdue, the repukes would never have initiated such hearings

...Way to go Dennis. Remember, it costs less that $1.00 U.S. per barrel for crude oil at the well head regardless of location.

[misternormal]

49. I have a unique idea....

... Have them testify under oath this time, huh???

The last time the stooges were in there, they told fish stories without any kind of threat or repercussion hanging over them...

We all know that they are going to have record profits again...

Hey!!! The working poor needs a break... OK???? :headbang:

[Redstone]

51. Or, we could all just DRIVE A LITTLE LESS. But bitching instead of doing is the Maerican Way, yes?

Redstone

[Lydia Leftcoast]

56. Yes, we have some of the LOWEST gas prices in the non-OPEC world

Japan's prices have hovered around the equivalent of $5.00 a gallon for years. Last year in the UK, the most common price I saw was 99p per liter, or about $1.80 per quart or over $7.00 a gallon.

Of course, in both countries, people drive smaller cars (and live to tell about it!) and have better alternatives to driving, especially in Japan. But they also never got used to having drive-in and drive-through everything.

[primative1]

52. Its Called a Free Market ...

Free to gouge until someone stops them.

[NNadir]

53. Actually the cost of gasoline is still too low.

Kucinich should be raising fuel taxes.

Climate change is fatal.

[AndyTiedye]

57. OK With That, IF The Taxes Are Used to Build The RAILROADS WE NEED!

[Lydia Leftcoast]

58. Yes, a federal gas tax dedicated to building high-speed rail

REAL high-speed rail, like they have in Japan or France, first regionally, among clusters of cities like Boston-New York-Washington or Chicago-Cleveland-Pittsburgh, or San Francisco-Los Angeles-San Diego, and finally connecting the sections to RE-create a true nationwide rail system for the 21st century.

Add to that modern mass transit for each city over 100,000, whether light rail, subways, or Curitiba-style buses on dedicated roads.

[Rambis]

73. I would ride a train daily

With the money we have spent in Iraq we could have built high speed rail across this country 285 times. It would create jobs for the next 25+ years why aren't we doing this?

[dapper]

60. It's gouging, plain and simple.

Each year, more and more older oil equipment is replaced to more efficient equipment. New houses are being built with 90% efficient equipment. We have alternative fuels, fuel efficient cars, there is "green" energy - Wind Mill farms, solar energy..etc. Homes are being built and refurbished to be more energy efficient. Our appliances are more energy efficient. More homes are being fueled by Natural Gas than ever before!

Yet the price of oil keeps going higher?

Global Warming? I suppose we may drive more but we are not using as much fuel to heat our homes. I know over the past few years, the winters have been very mild.

Katrina was to blame for the final push over $3, Government regulations, the troubles in the middle east have been to blame. If a refinery has some technical glitch, the price jumps up. a 50 percent jump in price over the course of a few months has nothing to do with the things going on around the world, it is price gouging!

Dapper

[GreenTea]

61. $3.67 in Humboldt County, CA! Record profits from gouging-Yes, corporate oil monopolies, pure greed!

BushCo criminals, and their republican supporters, oil companies & their stockholders are making hundreds of billions (through their untraceable, tax free offshore accounts) in kickbacks and unmetered Iraqi oil...Republicans ideology & their mantra, deregulation, (no oversight) which breeds collusion...Their war for profit.. coincides with the republicans greed; i.e. Fuck the troops and our kids dying daily for their profits. While ignoring the peoples will for their profits. Not to mention what they are stealing from our tax dollars...124 Billion more dollars wanted to add to their unaccountable 420 billion dollars they've already stolen from us. And who keeps track of the 600 billion plus dollars the Pentagon receives each year, from our taxes?

[Eurobabe]

62. Someone still needs to find out what DeadEyeDick was doing in those energy task force meetings

Probably ALSO scheming ways to keep his buds rolling in dough, with the end of oil coming.

[camero]

63. Hopefully he'll also look at collusion in the market. n/t

[Kindigger]

65. No gas

SE Iowa there are many stations that have run out of 85 octane ethanol. I suppose they will say the ethanol plants can't keep up with demand.

If you have time you can drive up the street, and shop around. Otherwise, you have no choice but to buy the 30 cent more expensive Super (which I do anyway because I get 1/3 more miles or more per gallon.

[lonestarnot]

70. There he goes again,

being the leader that he is and all.

[Freddie Stubbs]

74. Will the hearings produce any concrete results, or just

grandstanding politicians 'standing up for the little guy' railing aginst oil companies?

[Bushknew]

75. How much is the cost of gas in Venezuela?

[bamacrat]

76. Saw Schumer on CNN this morning talking about this hearing as well.

He said that refineries were to blame, that they are running at the lowest capacity ever even though the demand is so high.

[happydreams]

77. Dennis sure earns his paycheck. Here he shows another dimension

of the culture of corruption that is capitalist America.

[ProudDad]

80. I would be happy to pay more for gasoline

if:

1) Oil company profits were subject to a 5% profit ceiling
(After putting the current crop of thieves into jail)

2) Taxes on oil will be significantly increased!!
and the money used for alternative energy research
and tax credits for solar, wind and other truly
clean energy sources.

3) Until the technology is there to supplant trucks for
delivery of goods, that independent truckers would
receive breaks on fuel prices. These subsidies
would be for independents ONLY and would gradually
be decreased as alternative forms of transport
become available (thanks to #2)

[Harper_is_Bush]

81. Let 'em go up Kucinich. Spend yer time increasing fuel efficiency.

[TX-RAT]

83. Will he start with OPEC?