The oil belongs to them. They're entitled to triple the price if they want!

[BillyTheMountain]

NYTimes front page today: "To many Americans, oil companies like Exxon Mobil or Chevron appear all powerful, pocketing huge profits as energy costs soar. But in other countries around the world, huge oil prices are also making life considerably harder for big oil companies."

It's a good idea, because drivers and home heaters are captive customers. Got huge profits now? Even huger profits if we quadruple the price!!

[monkeyman]

How would huge oil prices make life hard for the big oil companies?

[unisteve]

People tend to buy less of stuff if it's more expensive.

[john_childs]

Originally Posted by monkeyman

How would huge oil prices make life hard for the big oil companies?

Bolivia has decided that they can do with a little of that big profits action for themselves, rather than sharing with the big oil companies. That causes a problem for big oil. It causes risk and risk causes the oil companies to charge more to cover that risk.

Google News Search for Bolivia nationalization

Picking a few articles from that search:

Opinion piece:
Public anger toward big oil is misdirected

Analysts estimate that as much as $20 of today's crude price results from risk associated with future supply. Dependence upon foreign sources of supply controlled by the leaders of countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Nigeria and Venezuela, some of which are unfriendly to the United States, adds to risk and therefore price. Bolivia is the latest country to announce nationalization of its oil resources, following Russia and Venezuela's lead.

Leaders Back Bolivia Gas Nationalization

Bolivia says to forge ahead with nationalization

[john_childs]

Originally Posted by BillyTheMountain

It's a good idea, because drivers and home heaters are captive customers. Got huge profits now? Even huger profits if we quadruple the price!!

We don't need to regulate prices in that way.

That doesn't solve the real problem and ignores the source problem.

The solution is to wean ourselves from oil as a primary energy source. We can do it with current technology. Electric cars and electric plug-in hybrid cars will cut down on the need for oil. But to make that work we need to wean our electricity generation from oil and natural gas as well. Big investments in nuclear power and possibly coal gasification with appropriate CO2 capture technology so we don't belch all the CO2 back into the air. Use the nuclear electricity and coal gasification electricity to power our cars and heat our homes and pop our popcorn. Simple really. We have the technology to do it. Now who has the cojones to implement?

Solves two problems: our dependency on oil and the global warming threat. Seems like a no brainer.

So who cares about big oil profits now. They're going to be a has-been technology soon enough.

[madmattunipro]

Capitalism is all about free enterprise, so we shouln't really regulate the prices. Problem is oil companies have a monopoly, something that was seen as a problem for a capatalistic society from the very start.

High oil prices suck, but as long as people are willing to pay the price, it will remain high.

Switching from oil as a primary energy scource is possible, but not the most probable at the moment. Here in Alberta, heating with natural gas is still cheaper than with electricity. And our entire transportation system is carried by the oil industry, other technologies are still not advanced enough to replace gasoline. The switch would probably be more expensive to the consumer than taking action(maybe a temporary boycott?) to lower the price of what we have.

Although the changes will occur, they will probably be more gradual than popular mechanics leads us to believe. Oil will be around for a while.

[Jerrick]

Luckily for me, I ride my unicyle way more than a car, so gas prices arnt a problem for me, yet.

[john_childs]

Originally Posted by madmattunipro

Here in Alberta, heating with natural gas is still cheaper than with electricity.

Canada is a big producer of natural gas. I don't believe you have to import any of the natural gas you use so it's all local stuff.

We have simply got to reduce our economies reliance on oil. It's going to bite us soon with dwindling supply and high high prices. Not to mention the issues with greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels.

If panic from $3+ (US) gas prices per gallon (0.878 Canadian dollars / liter) is what it takes to get people to take action and actively endorse alternatives like plug-in hybrids then that's all the better. Heck, higher prices would be better to speed that transformation in thinking forward. We don't need the Congress getting involved and artificially lowering prices or blaming the oil companies.

Plug-in hybrids with electricity from nuclear, coal gasification (with CO2 emissions control), green energy and other non-oil electricity generation is the answer. Nuclear is going to be the most cost effective way to generate the additional electricity (and clean electricity) needed for the plug-in cars.

We need to save our limited oil supplies for jet planes and other vehicles that can't go green.

This isn't about being a tree hugger. This is about economic survival in the near (your generation) future. Saving the environment from global warming is a side effect.

Here's a neat summary of what's about to happen: The Oil Age Poster

[steveyo]

Originally Posted by john_childs

...We have simply got to reduce our economies reliance on oil. It's going to bite us soon with dwindling supply and high high prices. Not to mention the issues with greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels.
...
This isn't about being a tree hugger. This is about economic survival in the near (your generation) future. Saving the environment from global warming is a side effect.

You're right, though you are starting to sound downright left. What you said needs to seep into US citizens' consciousness enough to make the a$$holes in Washington stand up and toughen mileage requirements.

[unisteve]

Fossil fuels NEED to become expensive before most people will stop using them. Because you can't afford something is a good reason to cut down on using it.

[Brian MacKenzie]

Originally Posted by john_childs

If panic from $3+ (US) gas prices per gallon (0.878 Canadian dollars / liter)

I remember the days of it only being $.87! It's ususally been about $1.10, highest I've seen after Katrina was $1.44

Luckily we don't drive all that much, I sure do like working from home!

[unisteve]

I've seen gas prices of more than €1.50/L here in France. That's like $2 CAD a litre.

North Americans can stop whining about gas prices now.

[Brian MacKenzie]

Originally Posted by unisteve

North Americans can stop whining about gas prices now.

I wonder who has the highest prices?

[Brian MacKenzie]

Originally Posted by Brian MacKenzie

I wonder who has the highest prices?

drivers all over Europe, where fuel prices are the highest in the world: a gallon of gas in Amsterdam now costs $7.13, compared with just $2.61 in America.

[Gilby]

Originally Posted by BillyTheMountain

It's a good idea, because drivers and home heaters are captive customers. Got huge profits now? Even huger profits if we quadruple the price!!

You heat your home with this foreign oil? The US and Canada are huge producers of natural gas.

Meanwhile, higher costs of oil will only drive the production of alternatives, and speed up my buying of a plug-in hybrid, which means hacking a Toyota Prius, highlander or 400h to have stronger batteries and run mostly off electric power... you'd only have to fill up the tank with gas every 1500-2000 miles. If cost of electricity got high, the solar panel industry will boom and we'd start putting them on all our roofs. A community going together to invest in wind power would also be more common.

The gas price at the pump is too cheap because our income tax is financing too much of the oil supply.