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Dog and Pony Show

Once again, the Neanderthals in Congress dragged the CEO’s from the big oil companies into DC for a public flogging. And per usual, not a single one of the elites had a clue about why oil and gas prices have been rising, and certainly none of this will have an impact on oil and gas prices any time soon. Today, let’s not provide analysis on the long term impacts of such theatrics, but reflect on something else.

Why didn’t our lords and masters demand that the rebels and incumbents in the North African and Middle Eastern countries come marching into Congress to explain how they plan to end supply disruptions? How come Hugo Chavez was not dragged into the hallowed halls to be harangued over his nationalization of that large oil producing nation’s fields? Did Charlie Schumer place a call to the Supreme Court justices in Ecuador for what they did to Chevron a few months back?

Or how about this? Maybe Congress should call in the CEO’s of all the companies in China and India who are “evilly” inducing all of those once poor people to want to live like the unsustainable and greedy middle class Americans do?Why not haul in the Chinese and Indian car dealers? Why not haul in the Chinese mining firms and manufacturing firms who are increasingly demanding all of this oil and gas?

Of course those are silly questions. Everyone in Congress understands that what they are doing is playing to the biases of the public; to appear that they are “doing something” and who better to haul in than the hated CEO’s of corporate America?

Here’s a thought question for you. If it is, as I suspect, as much an increase in demand causing the recent run-up in prices as a small amount due to disruptions in Africa and the Middle East, why is that a far more desirable outcome for us than from the situation that prevailed in the 1970s?

One Response to “Dog and Pony Show”

  1. Harry says:

    Wintercow nails it again.

    It is dishonest or ignorant to demagogue US oil companies, or even North American oil companies for that matter. If Senator Schumer wants to screw the Canadians with regulation and tariffs, he should have the courage to say so, and he should have the courage to say he wants higher energy prices for fuel oil paid by people in flyover New York.

    He is not the only problem, but he has made himself the poster boy for disgorging, his own word, money from ExxonMobil. The imagery is revolting. One wonders what kind of person actively tries to damage, or ruin, the lives of other people for his benefit.

    The other day I was listening to a person on PBS, who was a self-described economist, describe free-market capitalism (I think he said Laissez Faire) as kicking out the ladder of the guy ahead of the person ahead of you.

    We all have much work to do to move these folks out of the middle ages, when serfdom was in vogue.

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