The Oil & Gas Problem Is Not About Speculation

Blame the Speculators Floyd Norris from the NY Times article 6/19/2008

In Washington, some high prices are deemed better than others. Stocks should go up, and so should home prices. Commodities should go down.
Senator Joseph Lieberman, the Connecticut Democrat turned Independent, has unveiled suggested legislation to deal with the spate of speculation that is blamed for driving oil prices to record highs, and for making food too expensive.
One proposal would require regulators to set strict limits on how many futures contracts could be owned by financial types, as opposed to buyers and sellers of the real commodity, who could keep trading so long as they were hedging.

The Problem is not about Speculation
Woe is you who wander around believing our oil and gas production is what it should be and that there is little the average voter can do about it.

If our US oil and gas giants were allowed to drill in US controlled properties we could impact the supply and demand from a US needs’ perspective. Let’s not forget that the US Congress is the one thwarting the production and exploration of crude on US properties.

There are now close to ½ a billion Chinese being moved into the major cities of China. You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to compute the demand for motor driven vehicles.

Let’s worry less about environmental concerns and pay more attention to managing our resources. Money, exploration, trade, etc. We are the largest and most successful economy in the world; so, let’s get on the ball and do something about it.

Charlie Courtois