In Congress, A New Push for Laws On Oil Speculation

reply to post by Keyhole

Originally posted by Keyhole
In that report, back in 2006, the Senate Subcommittee reported how speculation was the driving force pushing gas and oil prices higher, and yet they DID NOTHING!

I believe you stated this in another thread, and I gave you a star for it. You've earned another.

As for the recommendations, I can see the first one having an immediate effect: Eliminate Enron Loophole. The other 2 listed, I don't see the benefit.

Why is it taking so long?

Because the guy at the top doesn't want it to happen, that's why - he's quite happy to see speculation keep on rising, while in the meantime he's keeping an eye on the oil fields in Kurdistan.

Which, by the way, are estimated to hold roughly 45 billion barrels worth of oil in them.

I'll let you do the math for yourselves.

So America, do you think that kind of money is enough to pay for the broken lives and shattered dreams left behind?

This is taking so long because:
A: This speculation was enacted in 2000..."hello"...And the once again the light bulb goes off on information...Bush>Standard oil>elected 2000>republican congress>gas prices started climing in 2000 shortly after Bush was put into office please click on chart below:

inflationdata.com...

From 2002-03 the price shot straight up and this doesn't even reflect 06-present.

They launch a investigation in 06' because the Demcrats took congress but still.......2 years later nothing is done. This tells me more proof that these two parties are the same!!!!

Originally posted by slackerwire

Lets be honest here, people certainly don't NEED oil. It is basically a luxury. Almost a necessity given todays situation with everything being spread out over large areas, but oil isn't necessary to life.

Actually, in this day and age, I believe people NEED affordable oil now, I don't believe it is a luxury anymore like it was, say in the 1920's.

The price of oil has an impact on a lot of basic necessities in life nowadays.

Due to the high price of oil, we are now seeing electric bills rise and the price of food is creeping higher and higher now!

The price of oil/gas has a direct impact on EVERYTHING we buy due to the transportation the item needed to to the markets/stores where you can buy it! The farming and production industries also rely on oil/petroleum products!

Unless your growing all your own food, the price of oil affects the price of all the food. A lot of the worlds necessities rely on the price of oil to keep the price of that necessity low enough so that everybody [B][I]CAN afford it!

The Rising Impact of High Oil Prices

They pay for it at the pump, with gasoline at a record $3.42 a gallon. They get hit by fuel surcharges when they book airline flights. Higher fuel prices are a major reason for rocketing food prices

Rising Oil Prices Spread Beyond Gas

It's easy to see the impact of record-high crude oil prices at the gas pump.

But what about other areas of the economy?

Anywhere you turn in Hawaii, it's hard to not notice the rising cost of everything from gasoline to groceries.

"You see it at the gas pump, and that's the wake-up call, but it also shows up in the processing costs for food and other manufactured items that are produced elsewhere, but that we then import," said Paul Brewbaker, chief economist for Bank of Hawaii.

High Food Prices Seen Leading to Strikes, Protests in Asia

Experts say soaring global crude oil prices are among the factors to blame for Asia's food inflation. Higher fuel prices directly translate into an added burden for the region's poor through, for example, higher fares on public buses which are often people's only mode of transport.

In Indonesia, higher fuel costs mean a rise in the price of kerosene which is widely used by the poor for cooking.

If these speculators were driving up the cost of, let's say, plasma TV's, no problem! People don't NEED them, they can do without them if they can't afford it, and raising the cost of them doesn't raise the price of everything that is transported and grown.

Whereas affordable oil IS something that is needed, otherwise the price of just about EVERYTHING rises to where people have a hard time affording the oil prices to heat their homes in the winter, to even buying food.

That's why I believe affordable oil IS a necessity in this day and age!

[edit on 6/13/2008 by Keyhole]

maybe some toothless oversight may get aproved.... but

the secretive body called the PPT Plunge Protection Team
are neck deep in all these speculative manipulations of oil futures and OPEC pricing.
the PPT, bouys up different markets at different times,
and the PPT, working along with the Fed, are busy keeping the
commodities and prescious metals at bay, at least until the elections are done.

so any meaningful legislation, is just wishful thinking...
as a definite rules change concerning energy speculation or limiting contracts by the hedge funds/investment banks/fund managers
will by necessity undermine & expose the power plays and manipulations the PPT is fully & totally involved with.
And the PTB cannot allow that to happen !!