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See the original image at nytimes.com —

Oil Prices Raise Cost of Making Range of Goods

nytimes.com — Companies that make hard goods using raw materials derived from oil are seeing their costs skyrocket and are pondering difficult choices.

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  • dougvfr750, on 06/08/2008, -0/+16I sure hope we can get some alternative energy solutions soon, so we can stick it to the oil companies in the end. (pun intended)
    • noseeme, on 06/08/2008, -11/+3How ironic, because I actually had buttsex with half of the Enron Board of Directors.
      • Devotia, on 06/08/2008, -0/+14Yes, but doug's way, you get to be the one on top for once.
        • noseeme, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1I don't think I'm ready for that big of a change...
    • scaaven2, on 06/08/2008, -5/+11I don't think it's oil companies as much as it's hedge funds & mid-east speculators that are screwing things up right now. Who knows, maybe they have back room dealings together. Oil and commodity speculation needs to be regulated because this chaos is breeding greed at the expense of everyone.
      • Dumbledorito, on 06/08/2008, -2/+5No, no, no. The invisible hand of the market will save us! Greed is a myth! The invisible hand will pull out the intestines of anyone who even THINKS of using their influence and money to game the system, because if anyone in business ever did anything wrong, they'd somehow be scorned by the invisible hand and never be trusted enough to do business again.

        This is all somehow as natural as a Jeep Liberty spewing instantly-growing tree-seeds from its tailpipe (which they filmed for a commercial, so it's true). Just sit back and relax, and watch the invisible hand at work. Sigh...
      • UtopianComplex, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1speculation in oil exists for a reason though... yes it is inflated to higher levels than normal because people are hedging against the dollar, but I doubt it will never go down to where it was six months ago, and here is why.

        Most of the press about the oil prices is about oil being a scarce resource meaning investors are hyper aware of oil. Even if the economy gets better and people stop hedging these other factors will still exist causing people to see a chance to buy into the market.
        We are possibly at or quickly approaching peak oil, which once recognized will boost oil prices up even more.
        China and other modernizing countries are using more oil than ever and this will continue to rise.


        While the reasons for this rise have not necessarily been these reasons and have been merely hedging against the market, I think these reasons have proved valid, and I know when this hedge bubble bursts and oil goes down to maybe around 100 dollars a barrel again, which one year ago was unheard of, I would think about buying oil futures. It is to safe a bet to take everything off of, there is no way no matter how much renewable energy is pumped into the market, that oil in 5 or 10 years will be worth less than it is today. NO WAY.

        • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Wait and see if the CFTC decides to roll its regulations back. They're the ones who allow this rapeage to continue and it's shocking to see they learned nothing from the Enron scandal.

          To summarize very shortly, previously oil and gasoline futures were only available for trade/purchase by industries that needed to lock in prices and were expecting to take delivery, i.e. airlines and shippers like UPS. Enron successfully lobbied Congress back in 1991 or so and opened loopholes via the CFTC allowing others to trade in these markets. Once the hedge fund managers colluded with Goldman Sachs, they got futures added to NYMEX indexes and the rest, as they say, is history.

          Of course, all the scumbag traders will say "oh speculation is only part of the story". Part of the story indeed, 60% by my estimate, and if you check graphs pre-1996 or so when Sachs added futures indexes, subtract that 60% out of today's prices and it'll match the older prices.
    • goon5000, on 06/08/2008, -2/+4Why do you want to stick it to the oil companies? All they do is provide you with a cheap product that you want use. Besides, oil companies are the ones putting real investment into alternative energy, and they will be the companies that sell you alternative energy in the future. Will you hate Exxon when it sells you solar power?
      • Kyan, on 06/08/2008, -1/+2I agree. If somebody thinks the oil companies are making quick, easy money, it would seem a good idea to invest in buying shares in a few of them.
        • BradleyF81, on 06/08/2008, -1/+1I have to agree too. No one stands to lose more when the world's oil supplies run dry than the oil companies. If they don't come up with alternative energy sources and ways they can market them they'll be out of business, probably sooner than later.
      • nycmac247, on 06/08/2008, -3/+1Way to go - ENJOY your own enslavement
        • goon5000, on 06/08/2008, -0/+2wtf? if you dont want to buy energy then dont buy it
      • Mothrog, on 06/08/2008, -1/+1They're populist assholes who will want to stick it to whomever has more than them. Don't try and understand retards.
    • Hangly, on 06/08/2008, -0/+1I'm all for alternative energy, but I hope you understand that it probably won't make the price of manufacturing go down.
      Energy creation is and will always be more expensive than energy extraction. That's just simple thermodynamics.
      • ravensncrows, on 06/08/2008, -1/+4since you seem to know know all about thermodynamics, it surprises me that you don't know that energy can't be created..............just sayin
        • Hangly, on 06/08/2008, -0/+2My bad. Fuel creation, not energy creation.
    • naniez, on 06/09/2008, -0/+0Try to use NGV as the altenative. The installment might cost you some money.. bu in long term it can save your money to buy petrol or diesel.. We have no choice for this matter but we can try to find the alternative to solve the problem.. Cheers
  • noseeme, on 06/08/2008, -10/+5I didn't know that.
  • Cronikeys, on 06/08/2008, -2/+29http://images.wikia.com/uncyclopedia/images/1/15/C ...
  • FishHammer, on 06/08/2008, -0/+42When I saw Doritos were almost $4 a bag at my local grocery store, I knew right then and there that the economy was in bad shape.
    • scaaven2, on 06/08/2008, -1/+2we need to get Colbert involved
    • XSVfan, on 06/08/2008, -0/+23Dorito's are our new economic indicators
      • okie4life, on 06/08/2008, -0/+4I say with the price of oil going up and beer staying the same we should all just drink and not drive
    • Sil369, on 06/08/2008, -0/+3They're made from Oil?

      /s
      • Kyan, on 06/08/2008, -0/+5Well, they're greasy.
      • TheMachine1, on 06/08/2008, -1/+7Corn that is being driven up by ethanol. Which is up do to oil.

        Cooking oils driven up because they can be used as biodiesel.

        Plastic bag up due to oil.

        Shipping to stores up due to oil.
        • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Plastic bags up due to oil = a good thing. A paper sack made from recycled paper that actually biodegrades is a better choice than the eyesore bags that plague your local trees.
      • BradleyF81, on 06/08/2008, -0/+3Does anyone else think it might be a bad idea to use our world's food supply as a new fuel source for machinery? What good is it to have a car that runs if you starve to death because food costs too much?
    • Haoie, on 06/08/2008, -0/+4Traditionally, the food based measure of price parity is a Big Mac. Hence, the Big Mac Index.

      But hey, chips will do in a pinch.
  • trumpcard, on 06/08/2008, -10/+2Now enough of this crap already.
  • kovac9478, on 06/08/2008, -8/+1can i just drink the oil?
    • krusader3z, on 06/08/2008, -0/+6Give it a shot
    • TheMachine1, on 06/08/2008, -0/+1Theoretically you could grow microorganisms with oil and natural gas. But biomass is cheaper so do not waste your time.
    • BradBrown, on 06/08/2008, -0/+2I'd recommend just sticking with the oil suppositories.
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  • mysterydog101, on 06/08/2008, -13/+3Alternative energy is good, but we ned to get more oil refineries, drill the oil we have, and build nuclear plants. If we don't we will soon become 3rd world
    • OC73, on 06/08/2008, -9/+1Watch it now. You know how the left wingers on digg feel about big evil oil.
      • Tenlow, on 06/08/2008, -1/+4It has nothing to do with big oil at this point. It has to do with finding ways to keep the ***** costs down. Drilling for more oil *won't* bring costs down. Using less oil overall will.
        • OC73, on 06/09/2008, -1/+1Really? What does conservation do to address growing demand?
    • Hangly, on 06/08/2008, -1/+1Yes for the nuclear, no for the refineries.
  • JYoungest1, on 06/08/2008, -8/+0I think we should farm methane from the endless farting produced at sporting events, then sell it to the middle east for 120$ per barrel. Things would even out then bitches.
  • elliotys, on 06/08/2008, -0/+28CNN today, 150$ a barrel by july 4th. Looks like we are right on target for 8$ gallons by next summer.
    • Rekutyn, on 06/08/2008, -0/+10Try this Winter. The price of raw oil has shop up almost 100% in the last year, but the price at the pump has only gone up 25% or so. This is mostly because of long-term contracts between the major oil companies and their suppliers.
      • elliotys, on 06/08/2008, -0/+11It's just funny because I posted the same thing a month ago and everyone laughed at it.
      • goon5000, on 06/08/2008, -2/+1Exactly. 4 years ago, oil: $20 a barrel, gas: $2 a gallon. Now $150/$3.80. Oil would have to go to $1000 for $8 gas.
        • afruff23, on 06/08/2008, -0/+5Oil != Gasoline

          There's all that refinement and *****.

          Even if the relationship were linear, your math is wrong. We would need $577.77 /barrel of oil to have $4 gas if you plot $20, $2 a gallon and $150/3.80 gallon.

          Also, where is it $3.80? Around here, the cheapest is probably $3.96
        • cmapes2, on 06/09/2008, -0/+3$3.96?

          Here the cheapest is $4.29 and premium just hit $5.09. Welcome to Los Angeles.
        • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1@cmapes: Judging by LA's awesome air quality, $15 per gallon is probably too lenient out there.
        • kuzotz, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1I'm in oklahoma. The cheapest you can find right now is 3.77 maybe 3.65 if you are lucky.
    • skyshock1, on 06/08/2008, -0/+6How come the price of oil has suddenly over the course of a few years shot up like 10,000%?
    • wipeout140, on 06/08/2008, -1/+2Its already $8 gallons in the Europe and higher in some countries like The Netherlands which is $10 (UK - $7)
      • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Stop mentioning Europe, we already know it's expensive thanks to huge taxation. Let's talk diesel prices which are closer to parity thanks to higher quality (low sulfur) fuel and less taxation.
  • ChileanGoD, on 06/08/2008, -0/+12Even though we do find an alternative source of energy nothing changes the fact that oil supplies will lower and sooner or later all petroleum products will face the same problem. We need to think ahead and find alternatives. We will have no choice.
    • BradleyF81, on 06/08/2008, -0/+2I was noticing in the article that computer and TV screens require oil, but there's already some work being done on the next generation of screens. Of course, right now the price tag is a bit ridiculous, but give it time!

      http://ces.cnet.com/8301-1_1-9842035-67.html
  • OC73, on 06/08/2008, -13/+8All the more reason we should be drilling for more oil
    • FairDinkumMate, on 06/08/2008, -5/+6Yeh because the only solution to a SUPPLY/DEMAND problem is to deal with supply.

      It wouldn't make ANY sense to look at reducing demand now would it.

      Buried for being a simplistic MORON.
      • Tenlow, on 06/08/2008, -1/+4Maybe I just have an over simplified view on the subject, but you only have two options, reduce demand or increase supply. Since the supply is a finite amount and not in our direct control, reducing demand would make more sense. But somehow a lot of people don't seem to grasp that one. What's going to happen is the costs are going to get so astronomically high that it's not economically feasible to maintain the current status quo, forcing a change at very high cost instead of heading it off at the pass for a discount.

        PROTIP: Invest in the railway system. Using diesel trucks to transport the majority of goods in this country is on it's way out in the next few years as diesel continues to go up.
        • mike7899, on 06/08/2008, -3/+1dugg for using protip, buried for being wrong
        • OC73, on 06/09/2008, -1/+2We've been hearing that oil is running out for more than a half century. The reason these claims have to always be take with a grain of salt is because the technology with which we uncover additional energy supplies is constantly improving. Brazil just recently had a massive oil find that may put it among the top oil suppliers in the world.

          No reason we should be stifling our economy in order to fulfill some feel-good exercise when our nation is rich with resources.
        • FairDinkumMate, on 06/09/2008, -2/+1And do you know ANYTHING about the Brazilian oil find? Like where it is, the fact that it's about 8km under the ocean? Petrobras(the national Brazilian oil company) that found it, is the ONLY oil company in the world that currently has the technology to extract this oil & it won't be cheap. It will take at least 5 years to come online & Brazil isn't exactly in a hurry as we are a net exporter of oil due to our high(& increasing) use of ethanol for the national vehicle fleet!

          Even you must understand there is no way known that any new oil found is going to help reduce the price because most of it(eg. Canadian sands, Brazilian undersea) is only economically viable to extract when the oil price is very high. The days of poking a hole in the ground & oil bubbling up are long gone, get used to it.
      • OC73, on 06/09/2008, -1/+1Dealing with the supply side addresses growth. Dealing with the demand side doesn't.

        You and all your "green" friends (really red) are the ones that are ill-informed.
        • FairDinkumMate, on 06/09/2008, -1/+1Get a clue OC73!

          "Growth" is an increase in DEMAND. Reducing demand, reduces or eliminates growth!

          Supply is the only option if demand can't be reduced. This generally applies when the product being supplied is a NEED rather than a WANT.
          eg.Increasing populations in 3rd world countries living on the bread line are unable to reduce their demand for food because they NEED it to survive.

          You can apply all of the 'labels' (red, green or otherwise) that you like. It won't change the fact that you don't have a clue what you're talking about. If you think you do, try posting some well thought out logic & FACTS in your response.

        • OC73, on 06/09/2008, -1/+2Wait, you guys are supposed to be the "progressives" but you want to reduce growth?

          Maybe you want to implement a one-child-only policy too?

          Why would anyone advocate growth reduction unless they had an anti-American agenda?

          Left wingers having an anti-american agenda? Imagine that.
        • FairDinkumMate, on 06/10/2008, -0/+1You really are a simpleton. How do you go from a discussion of reducing the growth in demand of gas to a one-child or anti-American agenda?

          I'll make it REALLY simpe for you. If Americans begin to drive more fuel efficient vehicles, the amount of gas they use will go down. This will reduce "growth" in the demand for oil. Understand?

          This has nothing to do with population growth or any anti-American agenda. Are you really this stupid?

          I also note(from the post above) that you failed to enlighten us with your brilliant plan to use the recently discovered oil off the coast of Brazil to reduce oil prices. Or did you realise that you didn't have a clue what you were talking about(which seems normal for you) and decide not to respond?
  • StingingNettle, on 06/08/2008, -4/+8All the more reason not to increase the money supply.
    • Rekutyn, on 06/08/2008, -2/+3Not sure why people are digging you down. That's the crux of the problem, though.
  • korvan504521, on 06/08/2008, -5/+14Someone needs to stop the market speculation on oil. it is absolutely out of control.
    • Rekutyn, on 06/08/2008, -2/+9Someone please stop spreading this "speculation" nonsense.
      You would think they were the new "terrorist" if you read the Whitehouse's talking-points memo.
      People are FLEEING paper assets and going into commodities as SAFETY from the dollar.
      As someone above me said, if they would just stop increasing the money supply (inflation) you wouldn't see inflation in prices on the raw goods we have to import.
      • Tenlow, on 06/08/2008, -0/+2Yeah but how are we going to pay for the war if we don't keep financing it with worthless dollars?
      • Tommyhawk, on 06/08/2008, -0/+2It's no surprise that about 6 months after we started drastically cutting interest rates we see the price surges we're seeing. Where does the "blame the speculator" crowd think all that extra money is going to be spent? The housing market? Financial stocks? General Motors stock????
        • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Ben Bernanke is a ***** retard, thanks for outlining that.
          "Oh noes, the market is in trouble, the housing fallout is causing banks to lose liquidity. I know! I'll slash Fed interest rates every single month until we're practically loaning money for free!" And guess what Ben, GDP is barely crawling ahead, unemployment is huge, and the dollar is actually worth less than a Canadian dollar, which is a damn shame. Thanks for the insightful handling of our currency buddy.

          I won't be comfortable until the Fed raises rates to where they should be, around 6% rather than the ~2% currently.
        • Tommyhawk, on 06/11/2008, -0/+1Its going to take a lot more than 6%. The Fed was closing in on 6% before this whole crisis started. They had been steadily raising rates .25 basis points every meeting. What did that do? It CRUSHED the housing market. 6% isn't even that high and that was all it took for the housing to go splat. Meanwhile the whole time the Fed was raising interest rates the dollar was falling and commodities were rising. And that was BEFORE interest rates started getting slashed. And people are surprised at the prices we're seeing? I got news folks its going to get worse, A LOT worse. You think commodities are a bubble now try pouring all the trillions of dollars that were in the housing market into commodities.
      • kuzotz, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1commodities won't save you. It's just building up a bubble in that market. It'll burst soon. Also the only people hurt will be those who didn't bail the ***** out.
    • utexas112, on 06/08/2008, -4/+4Dude..

      Tech boom. Tech bust.

      Real estate boom. Real estate bust.

      Commodities boom. _____________________.

      Yes, demand is up. Supply is not "down" to the point that would justify the recent price run up. What explains it, then? Speculation AND the fact that our nation's economic policy is ruining the US dollar.
      • Hangly, on 06/08/2008, -0/+2Its more likely a little bit of both.

        The Hubbard Peak has been predicted to hit us about now since the 1960's.
      • Rekutyn, on 06/09/2008, -1/+2@utexas112

        The tech boom was all paper. There never was an underlying asset.

        Real estate was fueled by banks wanting to create every increasing mortgage-backed securities (paper).

        Commodities is fueled by paper but for a completely different reason:
        1) People are fleeing paper
        2) The surplus of paper is making the value of said paper go down, thereby making the commodity prices (denominated in paper) go higher.

        Commodities, technically, can't trade in a bubble because they ARE THE UNDERLYING ASSET. The paper can trade in a bubble, or at a low (as is the case now). But the asset can't.

        Ergo: This is a currency problem. Not speculators. Not oil/commodity prices. PAPER. Plain and simple.
    • Devilboy666, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1It's not 'market speculation' people, it's simple SUPPLY and DEMAND.

      The supply is dropping because it's getting harder and more expensive every year to get oil out of the ground. See 'Hubbard's Peak' if you don't believe me. We pumped LESS oil last year than the year before, even with the massive oil prices. Do you think we're pumping less to make the prices go up? Please.

      The demand is increasing because the global economy is growing. We have more people every year. More cars. More stuff to be shipped around. That drives demand up massively, even with the increases in prices.

      Where does market speculation fit in here? Nowhere. Wake up. This is not a 'bubble' that's gonna burst and suddenly give us $50 barrels again.
      • azpat, on 06/09/2008, -1/+2it might not burst, but when real estate was going sky high people looked and said "consider this: A. we have more people in America this year than last year, more next year than this year. B. We have no new sources of land."

        People aren't blaming speculation on the direction, but rather on the rate. Prices are increasing faster than demand is increasing. In the short term, that's fine. Just like in real estate. You buy a house worth 100000 for 300000 and sell it for 350000 and make 50K. It doesn't matter than you overpaid by 200K.

        But then the speculation catches up with the real world and you have millions of people with 300K loans for 150K houses. They can wait and in time, because of points A and B, their house will eventually be worth 300K, even more. But not within months like was happening a couple of years ago. The market got ahead of itself. Yes, someday those houses will truly be worth 300K, but they weren't then (even though they were) and they aren't now.

        I don't know if oil will drop out, but I fully believe that prices are higher than reality would dictate. They're rising farther and faster than actual supply and demand would dictate. This is defended as reflecting reality because people think that these prices will all come to pass because of India and China and pumping less and peak oil theory and all that. But the question is whether the speculation has brought about the eventual faster than need be. Someday, yes, there will be one last drop of oil and it will be worth a bazillion million gajillion dollars. Should that day come within the next week simply because investors can imagine that day coming and want to get in ahead of it?

        The market is very likely ahead of itself. It's out of control. It's worse than real supply and demand dictate. Maybe not for long, and the fact that the market is predicting what will soon be a reality is fair enough to an extent, but the fact that the market dictates reality at the same time makes for a ***** up feedback loop.

        ***** 1 buys a barrel at 120 and says that's a good buy because it will soon be 150. ***** B hears that and buys along with ***** C and now it's at 130. They mention that it's still a good buy because it will soon be at 150 and Assholes D and F buy it at 145 and now ***** A just made 30 a barrel and you're paying for it at the pump. There hasn't been 30 dollars worth of new drivers hitting the road, not in china and india put together. There hasn't been 30 dollars worth of reduction in demand. There's only been 30 dollars worth of speculation going on.

        Now maybe they're right, but how much longer can that ***** go on? Assholes D and F talk about how that was a great price because it's gonna hit 170 and some more assholes jump in to buy it at 155. Next thing you know it is 170. And there still hasn't been the first 30 dollars/barrel worth of increase in ACTUAL DEMAND.

        There is an increase in demand, but not at THIS RATE OF CHANGE.

        Now with houses, people quit buying them. Maybe Assholes A and B will see it at 155 and say ***** that *****, and it will slow up. But as long as we still pay whatever we have to to get to work - and we will. There will be no end in sight to the feedback loop. Prices will get farther and farther away from reality and it won't matter, because we'll pay it, making it reality. Something has to be done. Either we stop buying gas, or the goverment needs to regulate the markets. Or the markets need to regulate themselves somehow - which never ever works.
        • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1*golf clap*

          Very, very well said. I still can't believe people are dense enough to buy the 'supply and demand' argument after glancing at charts from the last 5 years of price vs. demand. It's a market abstraction and a self-fulfilling prophecy. The speculators alone have created demand faster than China and India combined.

          Then you have some ***** looking to fatten up their portfolios, coming out and saying "Saudi Arabia is about to run out because their total supply is a state secret!" or "here comes another strike in Nigeria!" which leads lemmings towards futures thinking they'll make a few bucks. And they do.

          I still stand by the great Spiegel on this whole thing which quotes people deep in the oil business. One more time: http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/0,151 ...
        • Devilboy666, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1How would you propose the government regulate global oil prices?

          lol.
      • octo, on 06/09/2008, -0/+0Dead on mate. what's happening now was predicted 5-10 years ago and more by the peak oil brigade. Things might fluctuate for a while, but anyone expecting life to return to 'normal' is seriously misguided.

        Get out of the suburbs now while you have a chance of selling.

        Check out www.theoildrum.com for intelligent analysis
  • aaeyers, on 06/08/2008, -8/+2/facepalm
  • Elzey54, on 06/08/2008, -11/+0Win!! Vince McMahon's Million Dollar Mania

    Find ways to save gas at http://totalbuznet.com
  • richmomz, on 06/08/2008, -1/+35I work for a small U.S. based housewares company that makes products from petroleum derivative raw materials (ie, plastics) that are sold to Wal-Mart and other big retailers, and the situation is actually much worse than the article states. Anything that is made from plastics, synthetic rubbers, etc. now costs almost 4 times as much to make as it did 10 years ago. Many companies and retailers have absorbed some of the blow in their profit margins but its getting to the point where the inflated raw material costs are clearly showing up in the final consumer price. Unfortunately salaries are not keeping up and so we've already seen consumers cutting back on their purchases of our products because of the high prices, despite the fact that our profit margins have been shrunk to help our customers out.

    Translation: the days of cheap Chinese crap from Wal-Mart are about to come to an abrupt end. Recession/Depression dead ahead folks!
  • connieLingus, on 06/08/2008, -6/+22the real fact is that oil is not so much rising as the U.S. Dollar is falling from it's perch as the fiat currency of the world. The greatest financial weapon against the United States is the EURO. It is the first currency to present a threat against the dollar. The EURO is a shared currency of 15 European nations centered upon Germany and France. The economies and populations of the euro countries are as large as that of the United States, and more tightly bound to the Middle East. As large as the European Union appears today, it continues to grow. The United States is landlocked. The world is suddenly too small for the dollar to grow.

    Since 1945 the dollar has been the global oil transaction currency. These dollars are recycled from oil production to the US as Treasury Bills and assets in US stocks and real estate, which is a substantial portion of the financial market. The EURO becomes the alternative currency to nations wishing to switch.

    Check out the price of oil vs. the EURO and you will see a much different picture...then look at your $20 US bill and think PESO. In 2008, the US debt was $9 trillion against a gross domestic product of $13 trillion. Global economies have, since WWII, captured dollars to service foreign debts, and accumulated dollar reserves sustain the exchange value of their own currency. The world's central banks hold dollar reserves equal to their currency in circulation.

    The more pressure to devalue a currency, the more dollar reserves are required. This makes each economy dependent upon the US dollar, or known as dollar hegemony, constructed mainly by oil -- in other words, oil producing nations historically only accepted dollars, until the EURO. But with this currency game, the US essentially owned the world oil trading market for free, and allows the US to build its debt based upon credit assets they don't physically own. With The United States in control of Iraq, oil trade reverts to dollars it was thought, but foreign countries are growing tired of our endless growing national debt.
    • septicmadman, on 06/08/2008, -3/+1The flaw in that argument is the Euro is overvalued.
      • FairDinkumMate, on 06/08/2008, -1/+4SOURCE?

        Or is this FLAW just in your(overvalued!) opinion?
        • cmapes2, on 06/09/2008, -1/+1I see what you did there...
        • kuzotz, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1the Euro really is overvalued, and that it's value is also expected to drop. The only stable currency is the Yen, and even that is going to drop soon. We are in a world recession, and the worse we in the developed world will have to deal with is higher prices. Thus we just don't buy extra crap. Seriously that's what hard times is defined by the ***** middle class. Our poor already knows how to make a dollar stretch. We in the middle class are going to have to learn very soon unless of course you grew up poor. Which I grew up poor thus I am better off because I know how to make my money work for me.
    • paulmer2003, on 06/08/2008, -1/+6The US is landlocked? Then what's to the west of California? And the east of Maine?
    • TheMachine1, on 06/08/2008, -2/+5Whats up with this common myth on Digg of the devalued dollar explaining oil prices? You have not seen a 800% rise since 1998 in all products like you have seen in oil.
      • Tommyhawk, on 06/08/2008, -1/+6If we had pegged the dollar to the Euro in 2002 oil would be about $70-$80 per barrel. Moreover, if we had pegged the dollar to its price in gold in 2002 oil would be about $40 per barrel. You can account for about 65% of the increase in oil to devaluation of the dollar.
    • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Centered on Germany? IIRC my European history, Germany was very reluctant to enter into the Euro currency because their banks were so solvent. They actually had to create paper debt to join the Euro brigade.
  • remo2012, on 06/08/2008, -10/+1Truth is here now.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNdUV1vysAc
    • Dumbledorito, on 06/08/2008, -0/+5The truth is you're a spammer, and a ***** film maker.

      Here's a helpful hint: If you want to trick people into thinking you're sincere, stop posting in wildly unrelated threads, and choose a login that's not the same as the one you use on YouTube.
    • jana67, on 06/08/2008, -0/+1The truth is also here! http://www.squidoo.com/the-energy-non-crisis
  • FunkyNuts, on 06/08/2008, -3/+4Seems to me that if OPEC and the South American countries are going to dominate oil production and sell at outrageous prices because "well it's just supply and demand", then we should start charging for access to OUR internet. If other nations want to continue to use our infrastructure (top level domains, global routing systems, etc), then I see that as "demand", and therefore we should benefit from it.
    • Kyan, on 06/08/2008, -1/+4So, you want them to set up their own and not need yours anymore at all? I guess you really are isolationists over there.
      • deadbaby, on 06/08/2008, -0/+3There are a lot of Arab oil producing countries who would love to block their population from the American internet.
    • FairDinkumMate, on 06/08/2008, -1/+1That'd be like charging monopolistic, overvalued prices based on supply & demand for YOUR operating system - oh, hang on, Microsoft do!

      Oh I get it, if the US has a product monopoly it can rape whatever prices it wants from the world with no complaints, but if MANY other countries sell something in a more competitive market that the US has to pay for, it's wrong.
      • cmapes2, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Ahh, so I get it, anytime someone who you suspect is American makes a post, you go ahead and pin any dislikes about the country on him/her.

        Great logic asshat.
        • FairDinkumMate, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Did I mention anything about disliking the US? Or did I make a point about how ridiculous I thought his post was.

          Firstly - no country owns the internet
          Secondly - OPEC & "South American countries" are hardly the only oil producers in the world. Try this:

          OPEC Members
          Algeria, Angola, Libya, Nigeria, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Ecuador, Venezuela

          South American NON OPEC producers
          Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Guyana, Peru, Suriname

          Other NON OPEC producers
          Cameroon, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Mauritania, Sudan, Tunisia, Azerbaijan, Brunei, China, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, India, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, East Timor, Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, United Kingdom, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands,Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Ukraine, Bahrain, Oman, Syria, Yemen, USA, Canada, Mexico, Barbados, Belize, Cuba, Guatemala, Trinidad and Tobago

          If anyone seriously believes that all of these countries got together to manipulate the production & pricing of oil then it really is tin-foil hat time!





        • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1@Fairdinkum: Go ahead and scratch Indonesia off that list.

          http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OPEC

          Summary: they resigned from OPEC in May.
        • FairDinkumMate, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Thanks popfrogs, I wasn't aware of that.
      • kuzotz, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Microsoft isn't a monopoly.
        • FairDinkumMate, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1No, I agree, it's not. But it's a lot closer to one than oil producers.
  • jamaster06, on 06/08/2008, -0/+9The price of asphalt has also skyrocketed. Many areas can't even afford to fix the roads. This is affecting the nations infrastructure.
    • stack3r, on 06/08/2008, -0/+3Asphalt was a dumb idea anyway, its a cashflow product really. It falls apart continuously providing jobs and cash flow to everyone involved.

      In australia there is roads that were laid by American army using cement, to this day, they are still in excellent condition, compared to the asphalt surrounding these roads that are ALWAYS full of pot holes and needing work.
      • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Exactly right, ***** asphalt. It's a ***** cheap substrate that pales in comparison to concrete, only reason it got popular is that it was cheaper than concrete to pave.
  • rudeboyskunk, on 06/08/2008, -0/+15This is what M. King Hubbert was trying to tell people back in the 1950s, and now it's all coming true. Peak Oil is dangerous for more reasons than we can't drive to work cheaply anymore. Oil is used in almost every single thing we consume - from clothing to food to medicine. Once it's gone (or at least too expensive to drill for), that's it, folks. http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net
    • jaydoj, on 06/08/2008, -0/+3just bought the army survival guide. Entertaing stuff I'm sure. I'm going to use some of it on my 3 day camping trip...then again, practice makes perfect.
  • BaronSamedi242, on 06/08/2008, -2/+5Don't worry (sarcasm) CNN money is predicting an oil crash soon, and oil going to $50 a barrel.
    • cmapes2, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1lol, I missed that sarcasm the first time I read it.
  • okie4life, on 06/08/2008, -1/+11My husband works for Goodyear and we are hurting bad now because the price of making the tires is going up, the cost of the actual tire is going up, price to consumer is going up, less people are recycling and so on. And because people are buying smaller cars the bigger tires aren't being made anymore so the load weight is going down. Now we make less money because they get paid on weight loaded not on number of tires loaded. It sucks. And there doesn't look like there is going to be any real solutions in the next decade that are going to be affordable to the regular citizen.
    • Hetman, on 06/08/2008, -0/+6Look at Europe. They have smaller cars with better gas mileage. Regular citizens can afford a car.
  • robthom, on 06/08/2008, -1/+9Wow, how insightful!
    Thanks goodness for the NY times, always one step ahead and on top of things!
    • nycmac247, on 06/08/2008, -0/+1You may say that but if the Times went bye bye and FOX was the so-called paper of record we'd be hurting bad.
      So...yes they have BS sometimes but at least realize that something is better than nothing(?)
  • repeater75, on 06/08/2008, -10/+7The U.S. is transferring its wealth at an unsustainable rate to our enemies. Our standard of living is deteriorating as the price of oil increases. We have oil off our own shores and in our heartland. We cannot access it because our hands are tied and we allow ourselves to be crippled and humbled by Green Lefties. Meanwhile China drills off the Florida coast. We all realize what is occurring, yet this 13 percent approval-rating Congress is more concerned about trees, polar bears and caribou than U.S. citizens. Enough is enough. Let's vote the scoundrels out.
    (from http://www.islandpacket.com/opinion/letters/story/ ...

    Here's the truth from 2 years ago that could have saved us:
    http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MjY0YTFkMDQ4M ...
  • bobbknight, on 06/08/2008, -1/+5connieLingus, you left out the most important country today in relation to holders of US Debt, CHINA. Also internationalist currency speculators like George Soros, are also causing part of the economic troubles we are having.

    dougvfr750, you really haven't a clue?

    richmomz, I agree with most of what you have said, with the exception of the plastic wares that come from China, that should be cheaper than what they are right now. We (the USA) up until about 15 years ago used to be the plastics fabrications kings, but when Congress started to tax the crap out of companies in the 80's all that changed. THANK YOU MISTER PEANUT BOY PRESIDENT (carter)
    • Balloondoggies, on 06/08/2008, -0/+2FYI: there is a reply button, use it
  • Leadman584, on 06/08/2008, -1/+14It's easy to blame Big Oil, OPEC, and Commodity Traders.
    OPEC ministers have publicly stated that oil should be in the $70/barrel price range right now. They are being offered $135+ per barrel, and they are accepting it.
    Big Oil is seeing record profits because they are getting record prices. Less than 10% profit margin on sales, but still record amounts of sales.
    Commodity Brokers must be to blame. These folks are gambling that it will continue to cost more for the oil they need, to service their contracts. Why are they willing to pay more? What are they afraid of? It has to be more than just supply and demand issues.
    Our weakened dollar is not helping matters a bit. There is a genuine fear that more producing nations will move to a more stable currency for oil trade. Our Secretary of the Treasury spent last weekend in the middle east. Reassuring OPEC members that the dollar is fine, and "ALL IS WELL". Kinda like the crossing guard near the end of "Animal House".

    Finally we come to the elephant in the room. IRAN.
    When HRC made her infamous "Obliterate Iran" statement, Oil jumped $5 a barrel in less than 24 hours. Friday the Israeli government threatened Iran, again. Mr. O'Bama, our likely next President, didn't calm the market fears with his "Pledge of Allegiance" to Israel, and oil jumped $11 a barrel. Disrupting Iranian oil production will impact the world very quickly.

    Ask your politicians, pundits, and talking heads to quit threatening Iran.
    • Tommyhawk, on 06/08/2008, -0/+6How about we stop asking our politicians to do anything and instead fire their asses.
    • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -0/+2I'd rather ask the CFTC to close their loopholes, kicking these jackass traders out of the oil/gas/diesel futures markets. Then we'd see things go back to normal in pretty short order.
  • joltcola, on 06/08/2008, -0/+6people are going to be in for a shock the next time they buy tires. tire prices are going up nearly every week.
    • kuzotz, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1I gotta get new tires but I am just thinking about getting a hybrid. Because I have great credit, and I think it'll be a decent investment even though cars aren't a investment XD
  • pablo0713, on 06/08/2008, -7/+9***** THE RIAA
  • addicted68098, on 06/08/2008, -1/+10HEMP > OIL

    Legalize it
    • Hangly, on 06/08/2008, -1/+3HEMP OIL

      Legalize it.
    • highlyhigh, on 06/09/2008, -0/+0yes, "hemp", the ultimate renewable resource. all you need is a hydroponic tub and a HPS bulb in your closet. theoretically speaking that is...
  • dagamer34, on 06/08/2008, -3/+4You guys should all watch Mobile Suit Gundam 00 set in 2307AD. The Earth has no oil. Where do they get their power? SOLAR!!!
  • sparechange, on 06/08/2008, -1/+14How is this news? Shouldn't this be economics 101?
  • jana67, on 06/08/2008, -1/+4Realizing that we are the butt of the joke might make you angry...
    http://www.squidoo.com/the-energy-non-crisis
  • mike7899, on 06/08/2008, -1/+9***** THING SUCKS!
  • NealCrosby, on 06/08/2008, -0/+1Maybe all those companies should have thought about outsourcing a bit more in depth! Time to buy local folks!!
  • MildApplause, on 06/08/2008, -3/+0Opec sees no need to pump more.
    http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSL08325671 ...

    How 'bout this: Pump more, or we will nuke the ***** out of you.

    What's really funny is people around the world want to say how mean America is. Ya know... we could be soooo mean if we wanted to. Ohhhh soooo mean.
  • arzthaus, on 06/08/2008, -1/+1wow, who would have thought that an increase in oil prices would raise prices of oil based products?
  • Shanich, on 06/09/2008, -0/+2The cost of sweet light crude oil shot up to a record after Morgan Stanley told its clients that the price would hit $150 a barrel within a month. The bank predicted that investors would continue to buy oil to offset the impact of the weakening US dollar on their portfolios.
  • miketh01, on 06/09/2008, -1/+0what? a story about skyrocketing oil prices? impossible....
  • shrbr, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1ha ha
  • URnotheonly1, on 06/09/2008, -2/+1THANK YOU ENVIRONMENTALIST!!! WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOU ***** UP OUR LIVES ALONG WITH YOUR DEMOCRAT CONSPIRATOR! HOWS THAT ***** OWL DOING.


    PS: ALL WE NEEDED IS 1 MILLION BARRELS ADDED TO THE THE REST OF THE SUPPLY AND GAS WOULD BE $2.50 A GALLON BUT YOU ***** ASSHOLES SAID NO

    • azpat, on 06/09/2008, -1/+1I doubt it. OPEC themselves say that the real value of oil is around $70, but the going price thanks to the market is 120. I bet if we add supply and nothing would change.
      • URnotheonly1, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1there was 85.5 million barrels produced, there is demand for 86.5 million barrels
    • popfrogs, on 06/09/2008, -1/+12.50 per gallon sure sounds sweet now, but get it down to $1 per gallon and you have my vote.

      Oh and by the way, opening protected lands for exploration (read: environmental destruction) isn't the solution. This country just uses way too much fuel, period.
  • Khast, on 06/09/2008, -1/+1The Iraq war wasn't the reason the oil prices went up. Yes, Iraq/Kuwait had something to do with it. We had cheap oil up until Saddam "attacked" Kuwait. But the thing that the US Government didn't want to tell you....Iraq was completely justified in attacking Kuwait.....No you say???

    Kuwait doesn't have oil, yet there was oil drilling rigs pulling our cheap black nectar, so there was oil fields. BZZZZZZzzz...truth time.

    Kuwait was drilling 45 degrees INTO Iraq's oil fields. Iraq told Kuwait to cease their activities, and what did Kuwait say? "Bring on your war brides" Thus, insulting Iraq.

    As far as current fuel prices goes....think about how many new cars are being driven in China this year alone, there is over 1 million new cars there, as China's middle class is increasing in size. How many new cars in the world this year? Oil prices are because of supply and demand. More want oil, therefore, more money will be paid for the oil.

    Only once the need for oil goes down, will the price of oil drop....and I honestly don't see that happening any time soon.
  • andorianoaks, on 06/09/2008, -1/+0ohhh.. Prices are crazy =(( I want to have a magic car wich will use water, not oil =) I think US spent so much money for this democracy making in Iraq, so all oil in this country dont worth it now.
  • mutz, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Hedge Funds should be forbidden, they're now speculating on water and food... people doing that should be lined up in rows and shot in the head.
  • paalia, on 06/09/2008, -1/+0Increasing oil prices are making goods more expensive... this qualifies as news??
  • paalia, on 06/09/2008, -1/+2Increasing oil prices are making goods more expensive... this qualifies as news??
  • mattmy, on 06/09/2008, -1/+1hmm..... no *****
  • mattowan, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Congress is laughing in your face. we are sitting on hundreds of BILLIONS of barrels of oil (along with massive amounts of nat gas), but Congress says hands-off. No drilling means higher prices.
  • djchester, on 06/09/2008, -0/+1Petrol prices in Sweden are quite extreme thanks to fuel taxes. 60% of the price is tax and one liter costs $2.35 right now. That's x4 for gallon = $9.4 per gallon.
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