The difference between now and then is that the oil companies have always
controlled the supply.  If there's extra, its because the companies
overproduced.  IF there's a shortage, its because they underproduced.
Consumers just feel the end of it.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Gary L. Paveza, Jr.
Production Support Analyst - Lead
(302) 761-3173 - voice
(877) 720-2970 - pager

        -----Original Message-----
        From:   Mark Wonsil [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
        Sent:   Tuesday, April 24, 2001 12:28 PM
        To:     [log in to unmask]
        Subject:        Re: [HP3000-L] gas prices

        Gary asks:
        > "High prices for oil and natural gas propelled Exxon Mobil
        > Corp. to a $5
        > billion first-quarter profit, up nearly 44 percent from a year
ago.
        >
        > "Analysts said the oil giant's biggest problem might be what
        > to do with the
        > gusher of cash flowing into its coffers."
        >
        > And they aren't gouging the consumers?

        No more than when the consumers were gouging the oil companies two
years ago
        when the price of gasoline was 75-80 cents/gallon.  They were losing
money
        at those prices but the supply was greater than the demand.  Too
bad, so
        sad.  While profit reports tend to make some folks angry, others
read it and
        say, "I'm going to get me some of that".  Sure enough, there was an
article
        in the Detroit Free Press recently about how many of the older oil
rigs in
        Michigan are starting up again because they can make some money with
those
        wells now.  Also, when I used to drive up I-75, I would see the
wells
        burning off the excess natural gas.  Guess what high profits are
doing to
        that gas?  They're not going to just burn it off anymore.

        Then Larry Slater suggests:
        >With the oil companies making all these large profits from the high
        >gasoline prices, why not give the profits back to the consumers as
tax
        rebates?

        To make the idea work, the gas stations would have to charge more
than what
        was posted on the sign.  Rebates would not go to the trucks or RV's
because
        they would be getting an unfair amount back.  The rebates would have
to go
        to the drivers of cars that use very little gas - maybe just the
electric
        cars!  Of course, you wouldn't actually get this money until the
ninth or
        tenth year you owned that vehicle...  Nice idea though.  ;-)

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