SPOILED OIL



So finally, the gas prices have finally fallen below the $3 mark. So can we give a sigh of relief? Why am I still not satisfied?

I read a few articles from different online newspapers and online sources about the recent testimonies between the Senate and the big-wig oil companies about their record breaking $33,000,000,000 in profits for just the past 3rd calendar quarter! (did your eyes dry out like mine reading that number? sheesh.).

As an accountant, I know that it's quite a ways down the income statement from the Revenue line item, to the Net Profit line. $33-Bil PROFIT in just 90 days, is GINORMOUS!! Anyone else a little upset and skeptical as I am, mostly because we each had to pay big $$ for fuel. Hundreds of companies combined don't even come close to that figure over an entire year! For example, Bank of America posted something like $23 Million in profit in 04 (don't quote me, but it's around that figure). That's like pennies in comparison to the oil companies. That's just NUTS!!!

(I promise not to bog you down with numbers; this is just an honest opinion and perspective as a fellow consumer).

I read one article that aimed to explain the large taxes that these oil companies actually pay to the government, and that due the prior year operating results, the topic of discussion is to see if it is justifiable to impose a "windfall" tax on these profits. (Yeah, I know that look, I have as much a clue as you about what a "windfall" tax is. At any rate, as I finished reading the article I couldn't help but smirk my lip and shake my head. Pay more taxes to the government? Great, how does that help the situation? How does that help us? If you ask me, I don't think at all.

I wouldn't be suprised if there was a government imposed audit, or SEC-imposed one (who is independent from gov't..thank God!). There might be some some eye-opening findings. So what exactly are these giant oil companies going to do with $33 Billion profit? Buy more land and build more drills only to still retain the power to set prices and production? Is it an issue of corporate social responsibility? Too many people will probably have lost their jobs while money-wasting debates continue to go on. It's just like sports athletes who talk smack and become "contraversial"...and somehow at the end of the day profit from it. While it makes for good drama and probably another cinematic movie, where is the justice?

I know there are many dynamics at play, from the economics of the oil industry, supply v. demand; emerging fear of resource depletion (I think "fear" has been used as a marketing ploy to control emotional behavior; I mean c'mon, is there a E.........F meter stuck in the ground somewhere; don't sell me "fear", where is the proof I said!); discussion of possible regulatory action; R&D for alternative fuel innovations; inflation and impact on the retail industry (i.e. clothing, food, travel). While I understand that the biggest stake holders of a company (public and private) are its stockholders, where is the line drawn? What will the oil companies do with all that money? I believe if they just pocket it, and continue to draw in record breaking profit figures qtr after qtr, without indication of how they would "give back to society", then it's almost like stealing; almost like rape. I know its strong words, and I don't mean to offend anybody personally, but as a consumer, I feel taken advantage of.

I wish....I wish that the oil companies would be more pro-active about helping out, like for instance, help fund new fuel efficient buses for schools across the nation; or help subsidize fuel costs for lower income individuals meeting certain qualifying criterion; or small businesses that rely heavily on transportation to conduct commerce; or more scholarships (I know some exist, but I think they can afford to dish out and publicize more $$) for students interested in pursuing engineering or the sciences as a prospect career; or help third-world countries build infrastructure to learn and become self-sustaining economies; or to help me build my restaurant...haha, you still with me here? J/k, but hey if they offered... Without having done super extensive research, I will claim some ignorance if oil companies are in fact doing things to give back. But they need to kick it up a notch, because I can't see beyond those zeros right at this point.

I don't know if my ideas would actually materialize. But wouldn't be great if we saw these oil companies make a bigger effort to restore trust, value, and goodwill in the public eye. And I don't mean tag teaming with government, but going solo. Government has it's own reputation to fix. A good company must stand on it's own two feet.

When I first began reading about this topic, the first things that popped in my mind were "Enron/MCI" and the tobacco industry. Big bulls that got taken down by their horns. Hopefully it is not the case with these oil companies; the country, and world for that matter could use some good news, don't you think?

Mindless tidbit, only because I saw it on Yahoo! Finance: there was a link to Forbes magazine of this years top-fitty richest people. Of course Mr. Gates is still #1, sitting pretty with a a net worth of $51,000,000,000. That's just NUTS!!! But Mr. Gates also owns his own non-profit corporation that helps out in 3rd world countries. The last I saw was a BW article a couple years ago, where he dumped a whopping 40+% of his wealth into it. If one man can do it, don't see why 8 giant oil companies couldn't rise to the occasion and spare a $1,000,000,000.

Ok, I hope I don't have a wierd dream because of all the zeros I alowed myself to type. I need a hug.

Thoughts? Rebukes? (please be gentle, I'm vulnerable right now...j/k.)