Author Topic: Obama Admn keeping Oil drilling ban ($6 a gallon gas here we come) - Told You So  (Read 57660 times)

Soul Crusher

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Subaru's are notoriously for homosexuals.

Damn it!   I like the Jeep wrangler - but mpg suck and they are usually bad reliabilitiy   

kcballer

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Subaru's are notoriously for homosexuals.

Unless you get the Forester XT or WRX STI.  Then you are a legit badass who can take down any American made trash. 
Abandon every hope...

Soul Crusher

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Unless you get the Forester XT or WRX STI.  Then you are a legit badass who can take down any American made trash. 

got to be honest - right now I am favoring the subaru and not questioning my manhood over it.   The new outbacks are pretty badass.   

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$6 Gas? Could Happen if Dollar Keeps Getting Weaker
Published: Wednesday, 20 Apr 2011 | 1:46 PM ET Text Size By: Jeff Cox
CNBC.com Staff Writer




A dollar plumbing three-year lows is hitting Americans squarely in the gas tank, and one economist thinks it could drive prices as high as $6 a gallon or more by summertime under the right conditions.

 
CNBC
High gas prices in California
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With the greenback coming under increased pressure from Federal Reserve policies and investor appetite for more risk, there seems little direction but up for commodity prices, in particular energy and metals.

Weakness in the US currency feeds upward pressure on commodities, which are priced in dollars and thus come at a discount on the foreign markets.

One result has been a surge higher in gasoline prices to nearly $4 a gallon before the summer driving season even starts, a trend that economists say will be aggravated as demand increases and the summer storm season threatens to disrupt oil supplies.

"All we have to have is a couple badly placed hurricanes which could constrain some of the refinery output capacity in some key locations," says Richard Hastings, strategist at Global Hunter Securities in Charlotte, N.C. "If you get weakness in the dollar concurrent with the strong driving season concurrent with the impact of one or two hurricanes in the wrong place, prices could go up in a quasi-exponential manner."



Using a model that combines "subtle rates of change" with movements in the dollar index [.DXY  74.35    -0.69  (-0.91%)   ] and commodity prices, Hastings figures the low dollar is responsible for about one-third, or $1.31, of the total gas-at-the-pump cost. Regular unleaded Wednesday was $3.84 a gallon nationwide, according to AAA.

While there's far from unanimity about the dollar's future course, the proportionate contribution that currency weakness makes to oil prices is clear.

The dollar as measured against a basket of foreign currencies has dropped 6 percent this year, while regular unleaded gasoline is up about 28 percent.

Gas prices also have been boosted from turmoil in the Middle East which in turn has triggered a wave of speculation that traders estimate has added about $15 or so to the cost of a barrel of crude [CLCV1  111.40    3.12  (+2.88%)   ], which is now teetering above the $110 mark.


RELATED LINKS
Current DateTime: 12:00:31 20 Apr 2011
LinksList Documentid: 42683985
Consumers May Cut BackOil Rallies on Weak DollarOil May Hit $150, Gold $2,000: Risk Assessor
Hastings sees gasoline having "no problem" getting to $6.50 a gallon over the summer after increased demand and storm disruptions come into play.

Others, though, say gasoline prices haven't needed any help so far from other events—the moves by the Fed to keep interest rates in negative real terms are enough to boost energy by themselves.

Michael Pento, senior economist at Euro Pacific Capital in New York, says there is an almost perfect negative correlation between the falling dollar and oil prices—minus-0.9 to be exact.

"When you have negative correlations that strong, it's not hard to understand that the reason why we're having this price spike in commodities is primarily because of the weaker currency and not because of shortages of oil or international tensions or global growth," Pento says.



The assertion from Hastings that the weak dollar is responsible for one-third of the total cost for a gallon of gas "sounds very low," Pento says, adding that a barrel of oil should be closer to the $65 to $70 range if priced properly.

"That's exactly where it would be if we weren't crumbling our currency," he says.

Should events follow their current course, sharply higher gas prices will burden consumers further as they also cope with the rise in food costs this year.

Hastings projects the dollar index to test 72 at some point—another 3 percent drop—while Peter Cardillo, chief economist at Avalon Partners in New York, sees the dollar dropping to the 73.50 level.

"The global economy is quite strong, and the weak dollar is basically fueling even higher energy prices. That's not transitory," Cardillo says. "Gas prices in the Northeast are over $4 a gallon. How could anyone say that's not a burden?"

© 2011 CNBC.com


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wow - so i was right again.  Go figure   . 

Soul Crusher

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Obama: Think about ditching those gas-guzzling SUVs
The Hill ^ | April 21, 2011 | Andrew Restuccia


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President Obama urged the public Thursday to think about trading in their SUVs for more fuel-efficient vehicles, arguing that gas-guzzlers keep the country dependent on foreign oil.

“When you do decide to buy a new car, think about that we’re putting a whole bunch of money into the pockets of some folks who do not like us at all,” Obama said in remarks at a town-hall meeting in Reno, Nev., referring to oil-producing countries in the Middle East and North Africa. Obama noted, however, that not all Americans can afford to buy a new car.

As gas prices continue to rise, Obama has made reducing the country’s dependence on foreign oil a major part of his administration’s domestic policy agenda.

In a speech last month, Obama laid out a goal of reducing the country’s oil imports by one-third by 2025. As part of the pledge, the administration is partnering with major U.S. companies to transition their vehicle fleets to electric and hybrid vehicles.


(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...

________________________ ________________________ _


How about this communist traitor and piece of trash stop taking AF1 across the nation weekly for campaign fundraisers and he stops using his 8 mpg tank that carts his ass around?   


How about he tell his fat nasty bitch wife to stay home and stop flying all over the world as well?   

Soul Crusher

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Battered by gas prices White House starts attacks on oil companies
The Hill ^ | 04/23/11 | Ian Swanson



The White House has joined congressional Democrats in targeting oil companies with criticism for nearly $4 per gallon gas.

President Obama lashed out at oil companies -- and the tax breaks they get from the government -- for a second day in a row on Thursday and again in Saturday's address.

“Four billion dollars of your money are going to these companies at a time when they’re making record profits and you’re paying near record prices at the pump,” the president said at a Nevada town hall. “It has to stop."


(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...

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Obama’s Blame Game Continues: Who’s Behind Oil Price Rise?
By Liz Peek
April 21: President Barack Obama speaks at a fundraiser at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, Calif.


President Obama is at it again. Soaring gasoline prices are hitting Americans where it hurts, and threatening to undermine our fragile recovery. With oil hitting $111 today, and gasoline topping $4 a gallon in many markets, economists are beginning to ratchet down their GDP forecasts, boding ill for continued job growth. Meanwhile, and not coincidentally, the nation is souring on our elected officials, and on the president, whose approval ratings are sinking like a failed soufflé. A staggering 70% of the nation thinks we’re headed in the wrong direction. What’s Obama’s solution? Find someone to blame.

To show he’s on top of our energy crisis, the president has…created yet another commission! This one – a task force from the Justice Department - is charged with ferreting out the scoundrels behind the jump in gasoline prices – surely there must be some nefarious speculators or market manipulators who can be hauled before Congress in one of those satisfying and cathartic inquiries that, at the end, yield almost nothing. But, these hard-light investigations do provide plenty of room for posturing and prime-time sound bites.

President Obama has resorted to the blame-game throughout his presidency. GW Bush was responsible for the recession, the budget deficit, extravagant healthcare costs, the quagmire in Afghanistan, potholes, global warming and quite possibly Charlie Sheen’s meltdown. Wall Street fat cats brought on the banking crisis (not aided and abetted by Barney Frank et al), insurance miscreants are to blame for soaring healthcare expenses, oil companies are guilty of sitting on leases, pharmaceutical companies should be taken out and shot and Republicans have been mulishly resistant to even the most winning proposals. Now, rascals are at work pumping up gasoline prices; what is a president to do?

On oil prices, the president is vulnerable. First, the administration is accused by U.S. oil explorers of issuing misleading information about why offshore drilling is not moving forward. At the moment, the number of rigs operating in the Gulf of Mexico is about half the level of a year ago; the head of the Independent Petroleum Association of America has said that the government has dragged its feet in issuing the permits necessary for work to move forward.

President Obama dismisses these allegations, pointing out that domestic oil production was up last year. He didn’t mention that when oil prices move dramatically higher, production always increases, as marginally profitable wells are brought on stream. Our output would have been even higher if offshore development had moved forward as planned. Instead, the new organization charged with issuing permits is like a deer in the headlights – panicked that they will approve a drilling project that will one day go awry. No one doubts the need to buttress our safety standards, and especially in deep waters, where failed technology led to the Deepwater Horizon blowout. Still, with the impact of climbing oil prices becoming all too visible, no one should prevent us from ramping up domestic supply as quickly as possible.

Also, economists worldwide are blaming the loose monetary policies of Fed Chair Ben Bernanke for having helped unleash commodity price inflation around the globe. Though Mr. Bernanke denies that the quantitative easing programs in the U.S. are boosting the prices of gold, corn, cotton, copper and oil, to name but a few, his is quickly becoming the minority position. The U.S. dollar is sinking and excess liquidity is flowing into commodities markets. Bernanke is singularly focused on preventing deflation; that global food and raw materials prices have climbed as much as 40% to 50% over the past year and that inflation is creeping higher seems to have eluded his gaze.

Finally, Americans may connect the rise in oil prices with disruptions in the Middle East. Though no one can hold President Obama responsible for the popular uprisings in Tunisia or Egypt, our disconnected and inconsistent response has heightened uncertainty in the region. Confusion is the enemy of price stability.

Mr. Obama’s blame game is quickly losing favor. Americans are now ready to hold President Obama responsible for their problems, recognizing that he has had two years in which he and his party were in charge. He needs to channel Harry S. Truman and acknowledge: “ the buck stops here.”

tu_holmes

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Battered by gas prices White House starts attacks on oil companies
The Hill ^ | 04/23/11 | Ian Swanson



The White House has joined congressional Democrats in targeting oil companies with criticism for nearly $4 per gallon gas.

President Obama lashed out at oil companies -- and the tax breaks they get from the government -- for a second day in a row on Thursday and again in Saturday's address.

“Four billion dollars of your money are going to these companies at a time when they’re making record profits and you’re paying near record prices at the pump,” the president said at a Nevada town hall. “It has to stop."


(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...


This is a true statement to be honest.

It's not the entire problem, but it's definitely a part of it... Speculators on oil commodities are to blame as well.

Soul Crusher

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Protecting Soros: Obama's Dishonest Oil Price Investigation
Who's to blame for the high price of gas?


If you listen to Obama, it's the speculators and traders who are to blame. The same people who create the liquid market for commodities. He suggests that they've bid up the price of oil and are rigging the markets to force consumers to pay up for something they need. It's a move right out of Hugo Chavez's playbook - blaming the free market for accurately reflecting reality. Chavez has made a very good career for himself by impoverishing the Venezuelan people while simultaneously blaming capitalism. It's a strategy that depends on a high degree of ignorance in the population.

Now that Eric Holder's on the case, we can expect to see traders and money managers paraded in front of the public like so many criminals for, basically, doing their jobs. It'll make for great press, as the MSM focuses like a laser on the greed that they'll say is causing our crisis. They'll help the left wing and Obama portray a frenzied rush for oil, and suggest that speculators are causing a bubble in the price of this rare commodity that the world's running out of. But that'll be a bunch of crap, a message for the morons, if you will, and here's why.

Oil is a global market, and it's denominated in dollars. What that means is that, whenever anyone, anywhere, buys oil, they are doing so on the basis of its price in dollars. Right now, there's no shortage of oil. Obama and the left wing are lying about that. In fact, Saudi Arabia's talking about reducing the amount of oil produced, due to oversupply. Despite what Obama's administration is saying, there's definitely no frenzied rush for oil right now. So, why the sudden rise in oil prices?

The dollar. What's really going on is that the dollar is crashing. Relative to other currencies. Relative to other commodities. And relative to oil. You may have noticed gold is pushing $1500 an ounce, and silver nearing $50, but you don't pump those in your tank every day. Obama knows that, so he's going after the lowest common denominator - the price of oil. Like every other dollar-denominated item anywhere in the world right now, including the bread I bought today at the supermarket, and the train ticket I buy every month, the price of oil is rising. More accurately put, the instrument we use to buy oil, gas, bread, gold, silver, and train tickets is going DOWN in value. And that's because Obama's monetary policy is devaluing the dollar.

This is no small threat to our national prosperity. Obama, Bernanke, Geithner, and the whole lot of them should be arrested for what they're doing. The America that watches the mainstream news is about to get really angry at the commodity traders who are getting blamed for the rise in the price of oil, but the real villains are the henchmen carrying out yet another George Soros-led attack on a currency. The differentiating factor between this hit on the American dollar and Soros' previous attacks on various European currencies is that this time, Soros has the ultimate inside man - Barack Obama.



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Soul Crusher

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Re: Obama Admn keeping Oil drilling ban ($5 a gallon gas here we come)
« Reply #385 on: April 25, 2011, 05:12:08 AM »
You are such an idiot 333.  

http://www.worldenergyoutlook.org/

According to the report, by 2035 three-quarters of currently operating oil fields won’t be producing anymore. In fact, current fields are only expected to account for less than one-fifth of that year’s production.  And in order for the 'newer' fields to become affordable guess what price oil has to be?  Triple fu*king digit.  

According to IEA projections, it now appears that the production of conventional oil peaked back in 2006, that would be gasoline for your car 333.  So yeah it's Obama's fault  ::)

Get a clue.




$6 Gas? Could Happen if Dollar Keeps Getting Weaker [/b]


 A dollar plumbing three-year lows is hitting Americans squarely in the gas tank, and one economist thinks it could drive prices as high as $6 a gallon or more by summertime under the right conditions.

With the greenback coming under increased pressure from Federal Reserve policies and investor appetite for more risk, there seems little direction but up for commodity prices, in particular energy and metals.

---

Michael Pento, senior economist at Euro Pacific Capital in New York, says there is an almost perfect negative correlation between the falling dollar and oil prices—minus-0.9 to be exact.

"When you have negative correlations that strong, it's not hard to understand that the reason why we're having this price spike in commodities is primarily because of the weaker currency and not because of shortages of oil or international tensions or global growth," Pento says.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/42683030/ 

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Energy in America: EPA Rules Force Shell to Abandon Oil Drilling Plans
Fox News ^ | April 25, 2011 | Dan Springer




Shell Oil Company has announced it must scrap efforts to drill for oil this summer in the Arctic Ocean off the northern coast of Alaska. The decision comes following a ruling by the EPA’s Environmental Appeals Board to withhold critical air permits. The move has angered some in Congress and triggered a flurry of legislation aimed at stripping the EPA of its oil drilling oversight.

Shell has spent five years and nearly $4 billion dollars on plans to explore for oil in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas. The leases alone cost $2.2 billion. Shell Vice President Pete Slaiby says obtaining similar air permits for a drilling operation in the Gulf of Mexico would take about 45 days. He’s especially frustrated over the appeal board’s suggestion that the Arctic drill would somehow be hazardous for the people who live in the area. “We think the issues were really not major,” Slaiby said, “and clearly not impactful for the communities we work in.”

The closest village to where Shell proposed to drill is Kaktovik, Alaska. It is one of the most remote places in the United States. According to the latest census, the population is 245 and nearly all of the residents are Alaska natives. The village, ...

The EPA’s appeals board ruled that Shell had not taken into consideration emissions from an ice-breaking vessel when calculating overall greenhouse gas emissions from the project. Environmental groups were thrilled by the ruling.

“What the modeling showed was in communities like Kaktovik, Shell’s drilling would increase air pollution levels close to air quality standards,” said Eric Grafe, Earthjustice’s lead attorney on the case. Earthjustice was joined by Center for Biological Diversity and the Alaska Wilderness League in challenging the air permits.

At stake is an estimated 27 billion barrels of oil.


(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...

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President “Necessarily Skyrocket” Obama Baffled by Rising Gas Prices
Share  |  | (6) Comments | Subscribe | Back to full Article | Contact Us


 By Fred Dardick  Monday, April 25, 2011


http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/print-friendly/35840


________________________ _____________________-




The same person who promised to bankrupt coal plants and cause electricity prices to “necessarily skyrocket” as a candidate would have us believe that he has nothing to do with Americans paying $4 or more a gallon at the gas pump now that he is President. According to Obama, it’s all a mystery to him.

 

Last week Obama feigned righteous anger towards “traders and speculators” whom he called responsible for our predicament. He promised to hunt down and prosecute any “manipulation in the oil markets”. In that case I guess Obama should arrest himself since no other individual on the planet is more responsible for rising gas prices than him.

His goal has always been to make energy less affordable. Ever since taking office Obama has worked relentlessly to demonize “dirty” fossil fuels and replace them with prohibitively expensive “green” energy. His administration has shut down oil exploration in the Gulf of Mexico, Alaska, outer continental shelf and Western states and has given the EPA free reign to unilaterally set carbon emission limits (energy taxes) on American industries without the approval or input of Congress.

He has perpetuated the myth that America only has less than 2% of the world’s oil reserves. In reality the United States leads the world in recoverable fossil fuel deposits and given the right political environment, we wouldn’t have to import another drop of foreign oil for the next hundred years or so, if ever.

Obama’s latest “solutions” will only make things worse. Last week he called for transferring even more of our national wealth to the unicorns and pixie dust green energy economy and promised to eliminate “$4 billion in taxpayer subsidies we give to the oil and gas companies”, a cost that will “necessarily” be passed on to consumers.

I don’t know how many Americans are still buying Obama’s innocent act, but I have a feeling that regardless of party affiliation many will hold him personally responsible. Until the United States adopts a sensible energy policy that taps into our vast fossil fuel resources and stops throwing away billions on failed green technologies, gas prices will continue to rise.
 


Soul Crusher

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Obama Clears the Way For America's 2 Largest Oil Wells to be Shutdown in Texas
ChicoER Gate ^ | 4/25/11 | Chuck Wolk


________________________ ________________________ ____________


From the moment Richard Nixon created the EPA in 1970, and signed the Endangered Species Act (ESA) into law, they have been the primary engines of social change used by leftists environmental elitists to destroy America. They have done so by infiltrating the EPA, and the US Fish & Wildlife (USF&W) the agency which decides what animals will be listed as endangered. Now, 28 years later, these renegade environmentalist wackos are prepared to use the ESA to shut down oil and gas operations in portions of Southeast New Mexico and in West Texas, including the state's top two oil producing counties. All because of a tiny lizard they claim to be endangered, and Obama who has the power to put it on a waiting list has cleared the way for it to be listed.



Through the years the EPA & the ESA have been used to shut down vast areas of America that we as Americans need to survive in a modern world. Areas that contain, rich farmland needed to grow food that both America and foreign countries need to feed billions of people. Forest areas so rich in timber that the price of building homes could be reduced dramatically if only we were allowed to harvest them. Instead, year after year we spend billions fighting fires that reduce the timber to ashes. When it comes to energy, these government paid earth worshipers have used their power to keep us from drilling for oil, and stand in the way of building needed power plants all across America. According to a recent Congressional report America has the largest oil, coal, and natural gas reserves in the world, if tapped we could be completely energy independent. Truth is, America has enough natural energy reserves, timberland, sustainable farm land, freshwater lakes and underground reservoirs that we could reduce the cost of living for each and every American by more than 50%, if only the governments chains of restrictions were removed.

The earth worshiping environmentalists running the USF&W have used an owl to shut down logging in the Northwest, a mouse to shut down wheat farming in Colorado, a minnow and rat to end vegetable growing in California, a frog has closed fish hatcheries in the deep South, while the reintroduction of wolves are endangering the lives of ranchers, farmers, and hunters all across America from the Rockies to Maine.  Now they are planning to use a lizard to shut down two of Americas largest oil wells in Texas. We already have one of the largest oil reserves put off limits by the EPA in Anwar Alaska, while Obama is ignoring a Federal judges order to allow drilling to continue in the Gulf. This while almost every communist country in the world has oil wells operating in our backyard, the Gulf of Mexico.


In a logical universe, we would have politicians that would do all they can to make sure Americans had a cost of living so low that no one in America would be struggling to make ends meet.  Instead these traitors would rather see Americans struggle to survive while they act as if their various government programs are saving the day. Never before in the history of the world has a countries leaders tried so hard to force its citizens to become so dependent and subservient to other countries. Many of which are our sworn enemies. Can anyone imagine Alexander, Caesar, or even George Washington forcing their citizens to humble themselves before an enemy of lesser power like Persia, Carthage, or England? No, only a modern day Judas, Ephialtes, or Benedict Arnold, would cause their own people to suffer the indignities our leaders so consistently force us to.


The current threat to America's freedom comes from a 3 inch lizard called the Sceloporus Arenicolus, or better known as the Dunes Sagebrush Lizard or the Sand Dune Lizard. It was originally classified as a subspecies of the Sceloporus Graciosus, or Common Sagebrush Lizard. Before they designated the Dune Lizards as a separate species, there were so many of them you could feed them to the Chinese as a delicacy and never run out. It was in 2002 that the Center for Biological Diversity first petitioned to have the lizard listed as endangered. The Bush administration stood in the way of the lizard being listed for 6 years, but last year Obama cleared the way by ordering his administration to back off from delaying the listing. This in spite of the news that Obama has repeatedly refused to grant species the protection for which they are known to qualify adding them instead to the waiting list. So why did he allow this lizard to be listed? There can be only one reason, and that is because Obama wants to destroy America's ability to be energy free. So his relentless attack on America's energy capabilities continues. Go figure.


There was a rally in Roswell NM last week on April 20th that had hundreds protesting the listing and there will be another one on Tuesday April 26th, in Midland Tx at the Midland Center that begins at 5 p.m. with Congressman Mike Conaway will speaking to the concerned citizens. Then on Wednesday April 27th, there will be a public hearing held at 6:30 p.m at the Midland Center. If you want to be heard then be there to support those at the front line in the battle to stop a lizard from shutting down Americas 2 largest working oil wells.

"It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate,
tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds."
-- Samuel Adams --
Leader in our Fight for Independence


The following is from the Federal register PDF file.  In it the USF&W explains what they are attempting to accomplish through the Endangered Species Act,
(here is the link to the official PDF file)

We, the USF&W, propose to list the dunes sagebrush lizard (Sceloporus Arenicolus), a lizard known from southeastern New Mexico and adjacent west Texas, as endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. If we finalize the rule as proposed, it would extend the Act's protections to this species. We have determined that critical habitat for the dunes sagebrush lizard is prudent but not determinable at this time.


Proposed Listing Determination We have carefully assessed the best scientific and commercial information available regarding the past, present, and future threats to the dunes sagebrush lizard. The dunes sagebrush lizard faces immediate and significant threats due to oil and gas activities, and herbicide treatments. Habitat loss and fragmentation due to oil and gas development is a measureable factor impacting the species due to the removal of shinnery oak and creation of roads and pads, pipelines, and power lines that create habitat patches and increase the proportion of habitat edge to habitat interior. In addition, impacts that are not easily quantified such as climate change, competition, and pollution may exacerbate adverse effects caused by habitat loss. Cumulative threats to the dunes sagebrush lizard are not being adequately addressed through existing regulatory mechanisms. Oil and gas pollutants are a current and ongoing threat to the species throughout its range.


We believe the following actions may jeopardize this species, and therefore we would seek to conference with BLM and NRCS on these actions:


The lease of land for oil and gas drilling,
Applications to drill,
Applications for infrastructure through dunes (including, but not limited to pipelines and power lines),
OHV activities,
Seismic exploration,
Continued oil and gas operations (release of pollution and routine maintenance),
Grazing leases,
Renewable resource activities, and
Chemical and mechanical removal of shinnery oak habitat.
Do not place power lines and fences through shinnery oak dune complexes;
Develop transmission corridors for pipelines and power lines;
Limit pollution by inspecting pipelines and equipment;
Develop and implement plans for cleaning oil spills;
Limit hydrogen sulfide emissions;
Maintain wells; and
Limit any further infrastructure that would remove the shinnery oak dunes.

Possible measures that could be implemented to conserve the dunes sagebrush lizard and its habitat are:

Maintain 500-m (1640-ft) wide dispersal corridors in shinnery oak dunes for the dunes sagebrush lizards to disperse between habitat patches;
Discontinue chemical spraying within occupied or suitable habitat;
Place well pads outside of shinnery oak dunes and corridors between dune complexes;
Manage well density to limit development in habitat;
Minimize well pad size and carry out site reclamation;
Develop techniques to recreate shinnery oak dunes;
Limit OHV use in occupied habitat;
Minimize impacts of seismic exploration by thumper trucks;
Develop a public awareness program;

 




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Kazan

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Strange how high gas prices are everyone elses fault now that Obama is POTUS ::) Why is anyone surprised? Hell he told everyone what he was going to do when he was running
ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ

Soul Crusher

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Strange how high gas prices are everyone elses fault now that Obama is POTUS ::) Why is anyone surprised? Hell he told everyone what he was going to do when he was running

He has done EVERYTHING possible to skyrocket oil prices and now people are surprised?   

This is intentional!   He wants us paying $10 a gallon and has said so many times.   Its only the deluded jerkoffs ad 95% ers like mal, benny, andre, et al who give him a pass for reasons I better leave alone.   We all know it.     

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Michele Bachmann: Obama and oil
Article by: MICHELE BACHMANN Updated: April 25, 2011 - 9:26 PM



Why should the United States be one of Brazil's 'best customers' when we need to increase reliance on our own resources?

 
 . Americans are feeling the pain of spiking gas prices, and the unrest spreading through the Middle East seems to point to even higher costs at the pump.

Last month President Obama made a hopeful declaration: "We want to help you with the technology and support to develop these oil reserves safely, and when you're ready to start selling, we want to be one of your best customers."

Sadly, the president's words weren't offered to developers in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) where 30 to 50 years of oil may be available. They weren't offered to developers of the vast shale deposits in the Rocky Mountains, which are estimated to contain three times more oil than Saudi Arabia.

And they weren't offered to the dozens of companies that have applied for Gulf Coast drilling permits that are awaiting federal review. Many have had their hands tied for the year since the Deepwater Horizon spill.

No, Obama gave his enthusiastic support for drilling to Brazil.

Why should the United States be one of Brazil's "best customers" when we need to increase reliance on our own resources? If an all-of-the above energy plan was encouraged here, we could create numerous, high-paying jobs and move our economy forward.

For example, nearly three-quarters of a million jobs could be created if just the northern coast of ANWR were opened to exploration.

In his State of the Union address, Obama said 80 percent of our energy must come from so-called clean sources. How much money will the taxpayer have to pay to subsidize green energy sources like solar, biomass, wave and wind power?

I'm worried about the impact this will have on our deficit, since we know green jobs cannot stand by themselves.

A 2009 study from Spain showed that for every green job, at least 2.2 jobs were lost in other industries. Gabriel Calzada, an economics professor from King Juan Carlos University and author of the report, found a $774,000 cost for each Spanish green job created since 2000.

Last month Verso Economics released a similar study on the United Kingdom which showed that 3.7 jobs were lost for every green job created.

Oil production can create dependable jobs in the United States if given the chance. Too bad Obama has said "no" to American energy production.

There has been no urgency from the administration to grant offshore oil drilling permits. Seventy-seven oil leases in Utah alone are ready to move forward on production.

Gas was $1.83 the day before Obama took office. Now the national average is $3.84 and trending upwards.

Energy production must be opened up to American producers willing to invest in domestic resources. We can and must wean ourselves off foreign oil from the Middle East.

The United States can be its own best energy customer.

Michele Bachmann represents Minnesota's Sixth District in the U.S. House.

* * *

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Gasoline Prices and Speculators: They Think You Are Stupid
American Thinker ^ | 4-25-11 | Joseph Svetlic


________________________ ________________________ ________


It is with great interest that I read this past week about the President's initial response to rising gas prices. What or who was to blame? According to the President...speculators. Nameless, faceless speculators. They are to blame for the rising price of crude oil up and the accompanying price at the pump!

The problem is...speculators and people make various bets, and they say, you know what, we think that maybe there's a 20 percent chance that something might happen in the Middle East that might disrupt oil supply, so we're going to bet that oil is going to go up real high. And that spikes up prices significantly.

Now this interested me because I worked in the petroleum industry and I studied energy law at law school, and I have taken a strong interest in macroeconomics in recent years. (I read Market Ticker and Zero Hedge, if you are wondering.) I'm going to disregard for this note the fact that higher gas prices are not objectionable at all to our President, despite the fact that they are connected to every product we buy. He doesn't have a problem with high gas prices, only wishing that they become high on a gradual basis. I'm also going to ignore the moratorium on drilling in the Gulf and general opposition to domestic exploration and production of petroleum by this Administration.

No, the main culprit here isn't the nameless, faceless "speculators" that are now the object of the President's scorn, but government policy itself, both with the Federal Reserve (monetary) and the budget deficits accrued in recent years (fiscal). What is going on is that the government is trying to deflect blame to these nameless, faceless speculators for their own disastrous fiscal and monetary policies.

In other words, they think you are stupid.

Let me remind you that the Federal Reserve (Fed) began "quantitative easing" (using printed money to buy assets, chiefly Treasury Bonds) in September 2008 with over $2 trillion. "QE1" continued through the end of the first quarter of 2010, the end of March 2010. Thereafter, we got QE2, which continues to this very day but is slowly wrapping up QE2 is a third the size of QE1, but it means the same: monetizing debt.

On the fiscal side, our President has run up a lot of debt in the past two years, despite running in 2008 on a "net spending cut." He's up to nearly 4 trillion in debt over just a little more than two years.

How are we financing this? Well, the Fed is stepping up to buy 70% of treasuries. They're doing it with printed money, "quantitative easing." What's the effect of this? You're dollar is worth less. Using printed money to buy the debt of the same country will inflate the currency. Our dollar is not backed by anything. It floats. Therefore, the money that you have has been drastically devalued since the onset of "quantitative easing." This is what I call "loose money."

Why is it important to you? Because inflation is a stealth tax on every dollar you have.

Whom does this hurt the most? The poor and those on fixed incomes. To any progressives reading this who really do want to help the poor reach the middle class and get off government assistance: is the way to help them through a stealth 20% tax on every dollar they have in their pocket, a unilateral tax that bypasses Congress? That stealth, regressive tax can only drive more middle class into being poor, right? Shouldn't we want every dollar they own to have maximum purchasing power, to be worth as much as possible? Does this have anything to do, you suppose, with the record number on food stamps, one in six Americans?

These are the ravages of a loose monetary policy, high-deficit, spendthrift government. It is impoverishment. It is precisely the opposite of what is necessary for a true, strong recovery. A true recovery will feature fiscal responsibility and a strong dollar. The President ran in part on such a platform in 2008, promising a "net spending cut." Had he run on trillion-dollar deficits and monetizing debt, he would've never been elected. Such a strong recovery will have to wait until the President and Fed Chairman are replaced, beginning in 2013.

This spendthrift, loose (and reckless) policy is also reflected in the price of gold and silver, which are historical safe harbors from inflation because (as precious metals) they store value and are never worthless. Gold as of this writing was over $1,500/oz, silver over $46/oz. Gold at the beginning of the Obama Administration was just over $850/oz, silver at under $11.50/oz. Just this month, the price of silver skyrocketed from $40/oz to $45/oz in only 12 days. The loss of confidence in the dollar has been striking.

So, they are hoping that you don't pay attention to their fiscal and monetary policy. They want you to blame nameless, faceless "speculators" for the rise in the price of gas, even though everything else has risen, thanks to their loose monetary policy and spendthrift fiscal policy. They want you to ignore the rise in commodity prices and the drastic hike in gold and silver. They think you'll go after the nameless, faceless "speculators" because they think you are stupid.

My question is this: Are they right about you?



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Obama says he wants oil producers to boost output
Yahoo ^ | 4/26/11 | Jim Kuhnhenn - ap
Posted on April 26, 2011 10:52:26 PM EDT by NormsRevenge

As the high cost of gasoline takes a toll on politics and pocket books, President Barack Obama said Tuesday he is calling on major oil producers such as Saudi Arabia to increase their oil supplies to help stabilize prices, warning starkly that lack of relief would harm the global economy.

"We are in a lot of conversations with the major oil producers like Saudi Arabia to let them know that it's not going to be good for them if our economy is hobbled because of high oil prices," Obama told a Detroit TV station.

His remarks signaled a broad new appeal in the face of skyrocketing gasoline prices in the United States and they came as he reiterated a call for Congress to repeal oil industry tax breaks.

(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...

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April 27, 2011
Why Isn't Obama Celebrating High Oil Prices?
By David Harsanyi
www.realclearpolitics.co m




It's about time the administration began taking on the ogres of the left's imagination seriously. Attorney General Eric Holder has formed the "Oil and Gas Price Fraud Working Group to Focus on Energy Markets" to expose the speculators, the gougers and those fat cat millionaires. And if we can't confront make-believe distractions with "working groups," well, we are surely a nation in decline.

But of course, Holder will find the biggest frauds right in his administration, which -- as a matter of policy, as a matter of faith -- believes the price of fossil fuels ought to be extortionate and has done all it can to ensure it.

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The left's "energy" initiatives of the past decade -- the entire purpose of energy policy, in fact -- have been aimed at artificially driving fossil fuel prices up to incentivize the bitter clingers to embrace the government's Utopian energy schemes. No secret has been made of it. In 2008, candidate Barack Obama was asked by CNBC's John Harwood, "So could the (high) oil prices help us?" Obama: "I think that I would have preferred a gradual adjustment." Sudden spikes are bad (politically speaking), but gradual price spikes? Helpful. That same year, current U.S. "Energy" Secretary (then just a zany professor) Steven Chu clarified that "somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."

Who says this administration doesn't get things done?

What we need are clean energy investments, properly inflated tires, Chinese-style rail systems -- all free of the distraction of capitalism. Also, we must rid the nation of oil subsidies. This I completely support, as long as the funds are reinvested into projects beneficial for the struggling American worker, say, bike paths or public service announcements.

We all, you see, have to make adjustments. As President Obama explained, "if you're complaining about the price of gas and you're only getting 8 miles a gallon ... you might want to think about a trade-in." What kind of trade-in, sir? Let me guess. A $41,000 economy-class government-made Chevy vehicle (a real cost of 100K-plus without taxpayer support) that plugs into expensive government-subsidized energy produced by the sweet howling wind? Yes, these are the serious people.

Then, of course, there is all the profit-mongering we keep hearing about. The Congressional Budget Office reported that in January, federal and state fuel taxes sucked in about 48 cents per gallon for gasoline and 53 cents per gallon for diesel fuel. Government typically sees more profit per gallon of gas than the oil companies. At least the fossil fuel oligarchs -- smart enough to control the entire world market but too dumb to do it more often -- have the decency to provide a product before taking carnal advantage of us at the pumps.

Let's not forget the Environmental Protection Agency, which, as we speak, is in the process of rolling out the "the most far-reaching environmental regulatory scheme in American history," according to Time magazine. Using the Clean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gases -- so, all useful energy -- the EPA is trying to initiate cap and trade by fiat. It has to because even a Democratic monopoly in Washington was unable to muster the courage to launch this kind of assault on prosperity.

Complaints about our "dependency on foreign oil" -- considering the fungibility of the commodity, where we get it from and how long it takes to increase production -- seem to be nothing more than crowd-pleasing bipartisan talking points. Surely, there could be a useful debate on the topic, if this administration cared one whit about increasing production at home. The de facto moratorium on offshore oil drilling and the regulatory burdens placed on new production prove that any "dependency" on oil, not just the Middle East variety, is the real problem.

The administration, of course, isn't at fault when oil prices spike; it just seems to make matters worse. Or better, if you happen to be an environmentalist. So why isn't it celebrating? Though the left may be wary of the political consequences, it has been pining for high fuel costs for decades. So here they are. Let's see how the economy responds.

Copyright 2011, Creators Syndicate Inc.

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EDITORIAL: Obama running on empty
Leftist policies pump up America’s dependence on foreign oil
By THE WASHINGTON TIMES
The Washington Times
7:32 p.m., Tuesday, April 26, 2011




ASSOCIATED PRESS More than six of every 10 Americans have cut back on other expenses and reduced their driving as a result of the rising gas prices caused by tumult in North Africa and the Middle East. President Obama’s approval rating has taken a hit.

Skyrocketing gasoline prices have sent President Obama's public-approval ratings plummeting. The White House is searching for someone to blame, but the problem rests not with the pumps but with the president.

Mr. Obama maintains that lack of supply is not driving up prices. However, domestic demand is not the issue either, since U.S. energy use per capita has been on the decline. So the White House has formed an interagency working group to root out the "traders and speculators" whom he says are responsible for America's gasoline woes. This type of populist blame-game is typical of the Obama administration's approach to policy challenges, and diverts attention from the true proximate causes of the oil spike, such as the crises in the Middle East.

If prices are being manipulated, perhaps Mr. Obama should take it up with the OPEC potentates who are the most direct beneficiaries. Mr. Obama also said he wants to end what he says is a $4 billion annual taxpayer subsidy to oil and gas companies, though how removing a subsidy will lower gasoline prices has yet to be explained.

Mr. Obama's scapegoat safari notwithstanding, the current energy crisis underscores the general failure of administration energy policies. The promised brave new world of green technologies is slow in coming, and the government is quickly putting reliable domestic fossil fuels further out of reach. Even as vast new energy reserves are being discovered, such as the Saudi-topping Bakken formation in North Dakota, domestic production is declining. Mr. Obama has banned new domestic offshore drilling while subsidizing it in Brazil. This week, Shell Oil Company announced that it is abandoning Arctic Ocean drilling plans because the Environmental Protection Agency is blocking key permits, sacrificing 27 billion barrels of oil. Last month, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projected a reduction in total U.S. crude oil production of 110,000 barrels per day in 2011 and a further 130,000 barrels per day in 2012. Given the current profitability of oil production, the blame can only rest with the White House.

Mr. Obama talked a good game regarding reducing dependency on foreign oil before he was president. In 2006, then-Sen. Barack Obama said the United States should cut oil imports by 7.5 million barrels a day by 2025, which at the time would have amounted to a 50 percent cut. He was highly critical of President George W. Bush's energy policies, but according to the EIA, oil imports declined from a daily average of 13.7 million barrels in 2005 to 11.7 million by 2009. At that rate, a 50 percent reduction would have been reached by 2016.

Since Mr. Obama took office, foreign oil imports have increased. In 2010, oil imports rose by 62,000 barrels per day, and in January 2011, the latest month for which government data are available, the average was up an additional 200,000 barrels daily. Mr. Obama has now reduced his 2025 target to a one-third cut. Ignoring for a moment the disingenuousness of presidents who promise miraculous results arriving years after they leave office, so far Mr. Obama's policies have only dug a deeper hole.

In 2006, Sen. Obama declared, "When it comes to finding a way to end our dependence on fossil fuels, the greatest vacuum in leadership, the biggest failure in imagination and the most stubborn refusal to admit the need for change is coming from the very people who are running the country." In 2011, we could not agree more.

© Copyright 2011 The Washington Times, LLC. Click here for reprint permission.

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Why Gas Prices Are High
By Kimberly Amadeo, About.com Guide

 

Why Are Gas Prices So High?:

The main reason for high gas prices are high crude oil prices. Oil prices normally rise when demand is greater than supply. However, in 2011, high oil prices were caused by investors' fears about unrest in Libya and Egypt. Even before that, oil prices were steadily rising, as commodities traders took bet against a declining dollar, and bought gold and futures contracts. These are agreements to buy or sell oil at a specific date in the future at a specific price. Commodities traders can create a self-fulfilling prophecy by bidding up oil futures prices. Once this starts, it can create an asset bubble.

When Else Have Gas Prices Been High?:

In the summer of 2008, gas prices rose to $4 a gallon as oil prices skyrocketed to $145 a barrel, even though demand and supply were fairly constant. In summer of 2009, gas prices again rose, despite the recession, which decreased demand. Commodities traders were the reason for both. Gas prices also usually rise during the summer vacation season, as driving increases. Finally, gas and oil prices also increase whenever there is concern about surging demand from China and India, or a curtailment of oil supply.

How High Oil Prices Make High Gas Prices:

Crude oil accounts for 55% of the price of gasoline, while distribution and taxes influence the remaining 45%. Usually, distribution and taxes are stable, so that the daily change in the price of gasoline accurately reflects oil price fluctuations. Occasionally, however, distribution lines are disrupted or are down for maintenance, which can sometimes make high gas prices even when oil prices are down.
What Is the Biggest Factor in High Oil Prices?:

Like most of the things you buy, oil prices are affected by supply and demand. However, oil prices are also affected by oil price futures, which are traded on the commodities futures exchange. These prices fluctuate daily, depending on what investors think the price of oil will be in the future. When traders think oil will be high, they bid it up even higher. This soon causes high gas prices..

Another reason for high oil prices is the declining dollar. Since oil is denominated in dollars, the 40% decline in the dollar in the last six years puts upward pressure on oil prices. (Source: BBC, Oil Price May Hit $200 a Barrel, May 7, 2008)

Sometimes commodities traders drive up the price of oil, even when supply increases and demand falls. The EIA cites an increased flow of investment money into commodities markets. In other words, money that used to be invested in real estate or the global stock markets is now being invested in oil futures. (Source: EIA Short-Term Energy Outlook)

What Makes High Gas Prices Go Down?:

The summertime vacation driving season usually increases gas prices by an average of ten cents per gallon. This price increase is despite the increased use of ethanol. Gas prices usually go down in the winter, since transportation needs are lower. This even offsets an increase in oil usage for winter heating in the Northeast U.S.

What Can We Do About High Gas Prices?:

The most immediate thing we can do is reduce our usage of gas, either through driving less or increasing fuel efficiency. Surprisingly, the best way to increase fuel efficiency is to keep tires inflated. These, and other suggestions, are included in the "Related Reading" section of this article.

Longer term, we can change our need for oil and gas by switching to alternative fuel vehicles, using public transit and moving closer to work to reduce commuting time. This will reduce the impact of gas prices on each of us individually by reducing use.

Could this reduction in itself reduce gas prices? It could, if it could reduce demand for oil enough to lower oil prices. It would have to happen on a sustained basis over a long period of time. That's because gasoline accounts for only 20% of each barrel of oil. Oil companies would still profit from the non-gasoline parts of their business. Therefore, even if consumers could conceivably stop 100% of gasoline use, oil prices might only decline 20%.

Furthermore, other pressures on the price of oil, such as dollar decline and commodities traders, would not be impacted by a gasoline boycott.

Could a gasoline boycott force gas prices down even if oil prices stayed high? Probably not by much. That's because the other elements of gas prices would take a long time to change. Taxes, which comprise 19% of gas prices, would require legislative approval, which could take months. Refinery costs (also 19%) couldn't be lowered, and neither could distribution costs (9%), both of which are fixed. (Source: EIA, A Primer on Gas Prices)

A boycott of one brand of gas could actually increase prices, since there would be fewer gas outlets. Those companies that were boycotted would simply sell their gas to those that weren't boycotted, defeating the purpose.

The only real way to lower gas prices is to lower demand for gas and oil over a long period of time. This would work, since the U.S. consumes 25% of the world's oil. This has increased over the last 20 years, from 15 million barrels per day (bpd) to 20.7 million bpd. A concerted effort might convince commodities traders, who have driven oil prices up 25% in the first quarter of 2008, that oil was a bad investment, thus allowing oil prices to return to pre-bubble levels. Article updated March 3, 2011

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Oil tax breaks needed, Congress members say
tulsaworld.com ^ | 27 Apr 2011 | Jim Myers


________________________ ________________________ ____


WASHINGTON - Members of Oklahoma's congressional delegation on Tuesday flatly rejected separate suggestions from an unlikely duo - President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner - to kill or at least review tax breaks for oil companies.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Dan Boren said Obama just needs to be quiet.

"Americans are tired of empty rhetoric on both sides and want a real plan,'' Boren said. "If the president doesn't want to stand up and be a leader, then his silence would be appreciated from people who are trying to find solutions.''

Boren described Obama as completely uninformed about the oil and gas industry.

"The industry is not made up of just major companies,'' he said. "It is made up of small independent firms like those in Oklahoma that produce a vast majority of our domestic production.''

For every CEO of a major company, Boren said, there are thousands of blue-collar jobs that are affected by the Obama administration's energy policy.

"It is a policy that is very inadequate and has left so many on the Gulf Coast unemployed.'' Boren said.

Republican Rep. John Sullivan said he has not talked to Boehner about his comments, but the congressman made it clear he does not support raising anyone's taxes.

"Targeting the oil and gas industry with tax increases would not only raise gas prices even higher, but it would place hundreds of thousands of Oklahoma jobs in jeopardy of being eliminated or shipped overseas,'' Sullivan said.

Sullivan pointed out that the oil and gas industry employs more than 300,000 people in Oklahoma and 9.2 million nationwide, who pay almost $100 million per day in taxes to the federal government.

Republican Sen. Jim Inhofe described Obama's move merely as a distraction from what every American knows can help restrain rising prices *-snip-*


(Excerpt) Read more at tulsaworld.com ...


________________________ ______________________


BOOOOOMMMMMM

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Obama Administration Moratorium on Oil Drilling Hurts Consumers, Report Says
Thursday, April 28, 2011
By Penny Starr




(CNSNews.com) – Although the Obama administration officially lifted the six-month ban on offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico in October 2010, a new report finds that the “de facto” moratorium still in place is harming American consumers and the budgets of local and state governments.

Since October, the Department of the Interior has approved only a handful of deepwater drilling permits in the wake of last year’s BP well explosion and subsequent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The report, issued by the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA), said increasing offshore drilling production could add nearly $5 million in revenue a day to the federal treasury and “significantly” reduce gas prices.

“While President Obama says he supports deficit reduction, his administration’s policies are only contributing to the country’s deficit problem,” Rob Bluey, report author and adjunct scholar at NCPA, said in a statement about the report issued on Wednesday. “Federal revenue from offshore drilling is down sharply as a result of the Obama administration’s anti-drilling agenda.”

Bluey said the royalty fees paid to the federal government on oil produced are significant.

“Oil companies pay an 18.75 percent royalty to the federal government on the oil produced,” Bluey said. “With oil currently trading above $100 a barrel that equals $4.7 million in lost revenue each day.”

Bluey added that if the government’s own projections are accurate, that would amount to $1.7 billion this year.

“The federal government could recoup the lost revenue almost immediately if it began issuing new permits for the Gulf of Mexico,” Bluey said.

Royalties are not the only factor causing a sharp decline in federal revenue, according to the report. Rental and lease fees also generate revenue, and those numbers have for the most part declined.

In 2008, the offshore industry paid $237 million in rent, $8.3 billion in royalties and $9.4 billion for bids on new leases.

By comparison, last year those numbers were $245 million in rent, $4 billion in royalties and just $979 million in lease bids.

Federal, state and local taxes related to the offshore oil and gas operations in the Gulf totaled $13 billion in 2009, according to NCPA.

Sterling Burnett, senior fellow at NCPA, called the Obama administration’s delays in increasing oil production “obstructionist tactics.”

“This research provides yet another reason why the Obama administration should cease its obstructionist tactics and allow more domestic offshore oil and gas production,” Burnett said.



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Like I said - this is intentional.   Obama is trying to collapse the nation and make everyone destitute.


  FFFFUUUUUBBBBBOOOOOOOO