Should the oil industry be nationalized?

[clarquistador]

I believe it should because the oil industry in this country is one gigantic colluding monopoly. Furthermore, when they're not starting wars or manipulating third world countries....they are gouging consumers back home, while stifling any real progress on initiatives pertaining to climate change and alternative energy.

Oil companies have accumulated too much power and should be nationalized. The stockholders should of course be reimbursed for their shares if nationalization occurs.

[wtmusic]

1. Already is nt

[Retired AF Dem]

2. No

I think there are some changes that should be made, but I doubt if the Govt can run the oil business. Hell the govt can't even run amtrac for shit and the oil business is much more complicated than Amtrac.

[clarquistador]

5. We need to study state-owned oil companies around the world.....

Such as STATOIL in Norway and PETROBRAS in Brazil.

[rfranklin]

9. Dumb comparison, Amtrak is not run for profit...

It is run and subsidized for votes. But many heavily-regulated services are far superior to and cheaper than the private sector, i.e., water supply, electric supply, VA hospitals.

[clarquistador]

11. That's because......

the government does a much better job of running things than the private sector when it comes to managing resources and maintaining infrastructure.

[Retired AF Dem]

16. Yes that is where the old saying of

"good enough for govt work" comes from.

[Retired AF Dem]

14. VA hospitals?

I take it you never been in one.

[Trillo]

21. "I doubt if the Govt can run the oil business"

Pemex. As but one example.

Nope, a government can't run an oil biz. The whole industry is too "complicated".

[rfranklin]

3. If we're paying to secure the oil, we should have a share of profit...

The history of these corporations as well as many others is to use the might of the American military to seize assets and resources, but not to pay for those services, leaving the taxpayers saddled with the debt incurred.

[Peace Patriot]

4. Yes. And we should also nationalize the U.S. military.

And our election system. And bust up the war profiteering corporate news monopolies.

I'm not sure in what order. (But probably the election system has to be removed from private corporate hands first, before we can do what else is needed.)

(Note: The U.S. military is way too privatized. Humongous thievery and abuse of power in the corporate-military complex.)

[ashling]

6. Welcome to DU

How about some good old fashioned trust busting?

[cali]

7. not just no, but hell no.

I don't trust the gov to effectively run the oil industry. There are measures that can be taken against corporate monopolies.

[clarquistador]

10. That's kind of hard....

considering the sheer power these companies have and how easily they have bought off our politicians.

Oh and thanks.

[TheFarseer]

8. no

but I think a tax on windfall profits isn't out of line, if nothing else to help pay for the military effort that aids their company.

[Heewack]

12. Given Venezuala, Mexico, and Russia as examples

I would say hell no. It opens up vast corruption and reduced production capacities.

[Trillo]

22. Cheny/Bush energy meeting.

Nope, no corruption there. Absolutely, positively not.

"reduced production capacities": U.S. oil companies have been closing up U.S. refineries. This happens in the timeline of record gasoline prices. Same generalized time period we hear of 400Million dollar retirement package for oil company executive.

Nope no corruption there, Absolutely, positively not.

[HereSince1628]

13. No. We need to enforce anti-trust laws and related regulations

The alternative energy in commercial energy production is growing. It will continue to do so.

Yes we do need to consider the costs of maintaining access to world energy reserves through military interventions. If the oil industry had to internalize the cost of Iraq, it would be bankrupted many many times over and we'd have alternative energy in place.

[Schema Thing]

15. No, but yes, sorta.

Oil should be seen as our number one national security issue, and should be dealt with as such.

And I don't mean simply procurement of oil, I mean especially the finances, the health of our economy, and mostly, the future of our planet. National security isn't just about "keeping America safe till the next election cycle", it should be about "keep America safe for the next generation".

In short, oil money should be buying a better future for America's 10 year olds, not $200,000 bottles of wine for a handful of 65 year old oil executives.

[welshTerrier2]

17. of course

we cannot allow any group to control our government for its own greedy interests ... the oil industry likes to portray itself as procuring desperately needed oil to fuel the American economy ... but the oil industry has blocked the obviously necessary transition to alternative fuels, blocked conservation measures and development of forward-looking technologies like the electric car, and has been responsible for most if not all wars the US has been engaged in ...

here's a previous DU thread on the subject: http://journals.democraticunderground.com/welshTerrier2/12

what we need to understand is that JOB ONE is to restore power to the people and strip it away from the evil oil conglomerates ... until the oil industry is nationalized, i see no way to wrest power from it ... discussions about efficiency of production and the pros and cons of socialism are irrelevant here; the issue is the fundamental restoration of democracy ...

[Mark E. Smith]

18. In a heartbeat

[aquart]

19. Yes. Energy is too vital to a nation's economy to be in private hands.

[stillcool]

20. it's kind of funny...

that to me, the reason why we are in the mess we are, is because of the few who own so much. Concentrated wealth is concentrated power. If the government were to be a tool of the people, I can not understand why anyone...except maybe that top 1%, would not welcome public ownership of utilities. Of course, that would require the government be in the hands of the people...and not the 1%. The real problem, as I see it, is one of perception vs. reality.

[threadkillaz]

23. Perhaps on Refining end, but not Exploration

The industry has created a bottleneck on refining capacity under the guise of environmentalists not wanting more refineries, so that they can control output. At minimum, we should have a National Refinery that can be switched on in times of Katrinas. We have a strategic petroleum reserve, why not a strategic petroleum refinery? Then the oil can come from whomever.

[happydreams]

24. It is a neccessary first step in changing our energy policy.

It would first and foremost destroy the fascist Bush oil Empire, which, itself is essential to getting us off of oil. Second it would put our energy future in the hands of the people's representatives without the corrupting influence of big money.