Has anyone stopped to think that had we not invaded Iraq that gas prices

[rateyes]

wouldn't be so damned high?

[YDogg]

1. yup

[polpilot]

2. Bush's oil buddies & Exxon would be PISSED about that!

[VolcanoJen]

3. Daily.

:thumbsup:

[wellst0nev0ter]

4. Nope, That Would Be Divisive

:sarcasm:

[mrreowwr_kittty]

5. Just the added tax we pay for Operation Liberate Iraq's Oil. nt

[heidler1]

6. IMO Bush thought that the Iraqis would be so happy to be rid of Saddam they'd give us there oil.

No way were they that stupid.

[mcctatas]

7. Everyone apparently except the pukes and the MSM...

of course, I have come to expect willful ignorance from both of those! :grr:

[hokies4ever]

8. I thought we were going into Iraq for the free oil?

:rofl:

[whosinpower]

17. Sorry - you got it all wrong

Invading Iraq was not for free oil. Invading Iraq was to CONTROL THE SPIGOT.

Imagine a scheme where you make more money by producing less......and there lies the real plan.

It does not matter if Iraq oil never hits the markets - just as long as the spigot stays turned off. As long as it is in the ground, and they have boots on that very ground - they are quite happy to shrug sadly and say - it is china--supply and demand....demand is high.....therefore prices are high.

The oil barons could not be happier just the way things are now.

Why is Iran the big bad guy now? They are selling oil in euro's - not the greenback anymore. What do you think would happen to the american economy if all the major oil producers said - no....we aren't going to tie our oil to US dollars....we are selling in euro's now. Think about it. THAT is the real threat to american security. It surely isn't Iran's supposed support of terror groups infiltrating Iraq. And it surely isn't Iran's stand on Israel - despicable as it is. And it surely isn't the vapourware of nuclear weapons production we are bombarded with.

[jordi_fanclub]

22. But you didn't got all right neither...

I'm european.
For me the oil price is almost FLAT in the last 3-4 years. Yup... FLAT!

I pay my bills in euros.
As of today I can buy $2000 exactly with the SAME amount in euros that I could bought $1000 some 5-6 years ago.

That SHOULD be your concern about "national security".
Not if the oil is quoted in $US or not, BECAUSE that it's only a formality in any worldwide electronic exchange!

[bigbrother05]

23. Thanks for the update

Shortly after the euro went "live" (Jan 2002), $1 = 1.16 euro. Now $1 = 0.63 euro. Basically the dollar has tanked under W.

[hokies4ever]

24. Ron Paul explains this as the result of a weak US dollar

since the cost of oil with respect has remained flat over the past few years.

[chknltl]

9. Preaching to the choir on this one...

...Try asking a republican at the gas pump how that war to stop Saddam from taking over the world is working out for them.

[Exilednight]

12. Why? You only get stupid answers. I use to hang out on the MSNBC boards ......

and the one thing I have learned is that the most vile people in the world support Bush without question.

[Yurovsky]

10. I think they'd be high either way ...

Exxon and their friends in the Saudi Royal family knew they had us by the short hairs, given all the fucking SUV land-barges stupid-fuck Americans have been buying over the past 10-15 years. They're just maximizing profits. Yeah, having most of the Iraqi oil off the market has made it a little easier, but the folks putting the screws to us could be doing this regardless.

Funny, when the cost of raw materials/supplies goes up, most businesses get pinched because they can't pass all of the increase on to customers. The oil companies, OTOH, have recorded profits that are off the goddamn charts. I'm tired of freepers telling me about the wonders of the market. It ain't so wonderful right now, and if there ever was a stronger case for government control over an industry, I don't recall it.

NATIONALIZE. THE. OIL. COMPANIES. NOW.

[ShortnFiery]

11. Floating 1 to 2 Aircraft Carriers (Persian Gulf) & the "Goddess of Peace" threatening to OBLITERATE

Iran probably didn't help give OPEC the "warm fuzzies" (peeing their pants with worries of bombing runs) either. :shrug:

[spindrifter]

13. The billions we are wasting on this

war have caused the dollar to drop. The falling dollarhas led to more commodity investment. More commodity investment means higher oil prices--not to speak of a lot of other errors these idiots who are in control of the country have made.

[bhikkhu]

14. In a mailer from Barack's campaign:

With the money we spent on the war last year we could have build over 12,000 schools in this country, or

We could have paid for health insurance for 42 million uninsured Americans.

[cornermouse]

15. Yes.

[davsand]

16. Iraq didn't help any. Pissing off Chavez probably didn't help much either.

I'll grant you that destabilizing the entire Middle East Probably has made OPEC less then happy with the US. Invading sovereign nations tends to do that, as does killing off civilians.

I'm thinking that maybe Dubya and the cadre's attempts to kill off Chavez probably left him feeling just a tad bit harsh toward the US. I'm thinking maybe that hasn't helped make OPEC terribly worried about the "poor" American suckers--er...patriots driving SUV's in the US.

Do a Google on Chavez + OPEC and it won't take long to realize that dubya and the lads have not only screwed us at home but also internationally. They really ARE big Dicks.

YMMV.



Laura

[whosinpower]

20. OPEC is rolling in it and very very happy

If they were seriously unhappy with the invasion of Iraq - they would of pegged oil to the euro.

They still might. And then all bets are off.

I am pretty sure OPEC and the Saudi's have been well informed and well advised what would happen should Iraq be invaded and occupied.

Imagine a scheme where you make more money by producing less....and that is what we have today. It has worked beautifully for them - the oil IS still there after all - the spigot has just been turned down. I am pretty sure Iraq has not been producing oil at the prewar levels. And the instability has not allowed any major reconstruction in those areas - to my knowledge.

OPEC gave dubya their blessing - and they have record profits to prove it.

[L0oniX]

18. And the dollar would be worth more too.

[featherman]

19. My spouse has a button: "Gas was $1.58 per gallon when Bush took office"

I just did a calculation on Milton Friedman's "Inflation Calculator".
Normal inflation makes our $1.58 only $1.89 in 2007. This is WAY out of hand.

[Forkboy]

21. And oil was around $12 a barrel in '99.