Read a little. Learn a lot. • Tightly-written news, views and stuff • Follow us on TwitterBe a Facebook FanTumble us!

04 Mar 2012 20:00

tags

Politics: Gingrich predicts Big Oil will hand the election to the GOP

  • “That’s a pretty big burden while he’s waging war on the Catholic Church and apologizing to Islamic extremists”: In which Newt Gingrich tells CNN’s Candy Crowley that Big Oil will intentionally tank the American economy, placing an insurmountable obstacle on President Obama’s path to re-election. source

28 Jul 2011 10:58

tags

Biz: Exxon Mobil’s back to their track record of insanely massive profits

  • 41% the increase in Exxon Mobil’s profits in the current quarter
  • $10.7B the amount the company made in the second quarter (kind of a lot)
  • $14.8B the company’s largest quarter ever (in 2008), just for perspective source

23 Jun 2011 11:03

tags

Biz: Oil crisis: We’re dipping into the reserves due to Libya crisis

  • 60 million number of barrels of oil the International Energy Agency plans to release from the strategic reserves, at the behest of the U.S. and 27 allies
  • 2 million number of barrels that will see release each day for the first 30 days of the strategic release — the third release of its kind in 30 years source
  • » Blame the conflict in Libya: The supply of crude oil has struggled in the wake of the instability in Libya, which cut off a key supply of oil and has had a bit of a ripple effect on gas prices. Other oil-producing countries chose not to boost their output of oil amid prices above $100 a barrel, which led to the current decision to tap into the strategic reserves. As you might guess, the stock market isn’t digging this news at all, and oil futures dipped over 5 percent in reaction to the news — still over $100 a barrel, though.

12 May 2011 15:29

tags

Politics: Rep. Joe Barton, the white knight of “b** oil”

  • I don’t think it should be a pejorative. We’ve got this mentality on the liberal side of our political debate: big oil, big insurance, big this, big that.
  • Rep. Joe Barton • Sticking up for big oil (oops!) during a committee hearing today. In all honesty, it’s difficult to take Barton seriously on energy issues, and that’s not just a liberal taking a pot shot at the “R” next to his name. Barton is absolutely soaked in oil cash; if last year’s totals remain true, he’s received more contributions from big oil than any member of the House dating back to 1990, over $1.5 million in that span. That money can buy a lot of loyalty, from apologizing to BP over the gulf spill compensation fund, to trying to turn “big oil” into a slur, something we’ve never thought of as inherently pejorative. Barton also insisted the term wasn’t right, as the largest private oil company, ExxonMobil, is only the fifth largest worldwide, the other four being nationalized. Which makes it unfortunate for Barton that he decried “big oil” instead of “biggest oil.” Oh, and lest you think Joe Barton just hates labels, you know what he hates more? Obamacare! source

12 May 2011 11:31

tags

Politics: Democrats take on big oil companies over tax subsidies

  • Businesses should make a profit — that’s what drives the economy — but do these very profitable companies actually need taxpayer subsidies? Energy incentives should help us build the energy future we want to see — not pad oil company profits.
  • Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus • Speaking during a Congressional hearing about big oil profits and tax breaks. The oil industry’s answers during the hearing were predictable. Here’s Chevron’s CEO, John Watson: “Tax increases on the oil and gas industry — which will result if you change long-standing provisions in the U.S. tax code — will hinder development of energy supplies needed to moderate rising energy prices.” So, who’s right, Max or the oil industry? We’re guessing Max is. source

10 May 2011 17:30

tags

U.S.: Democrats push Senate bill to cut big oil’s tax breaks

  • $21 billion saved in bill to cut big oil tax breaks (over 10 years) source
  • » Democrats can pretend to fix the deficit, too! Not to be all gloom and doom, obviously — the oil industry is one of the most successful financial conquests in human history, and if anybody doesn’t need drawing on breaks from the government, they don’t. Stripping their very generous tax breaks would be both a practical and moral victory in our current political climate. That said, the attempt by the Democratic Party to paint this as a deficit-buster is just as disingenuous as the Republican effort to say the same about last month’s budget deal, which cut $38 billion in spending long-term. The deficit is around $1.4 trillion for this fiscal year, though, which makes the earlier figures seem limp and anemic. Still, it’ll be a nice day for American priorities if this thing passes.

30 Apr 2011 15:38

tags

Politics: Obama, GOP appear to agree: Big oil needs no tax subsidies

  • Obama Today, the president used his weekly radio address to suggest, in the wake of high gas prices and huge oil company profits, to remove the oil subsidies big oil companies enjoy. This might just be the time to pull it off.
  • GOP In this case … it appears that top GOP figures agree. John Boehner recently suggested removing corporate tax breaks for oil companies (which his staffers have tried to walk back), and Paul Ryan recently made a similar pitch. source
 

31 Oct 2010 10:41

tags

Biz, Politics: Prop. 23-pushing Valero claims they’re not so eco-evil

Just because we’re pushing for Prop. 23 to pass means we hate the environment! Look! Here’s a worker of ours RIDING A BIKE AT OUR PLANT! SEE? source

20 Oct 2010 10:32

tags

Politics: A reminder to our friends in California: Prop. 23 is evil

  • Hey everyone in California, when you see an ad like this one, remember that it’s not some company looking out for your financial interests. Instead, two giant oil companies, Valero and Tesoro, are pushing the proposition as a scare tactic. (You’ll see their names in the first second or two of the ad.) As you’ll see above, the advertising for this campaign is very manipulative, so we want to point out again: This is big oil looking out for their own interests. source

05 Sep 2010 15:05

tags

Politics: Protip: California’s Prop. 23 designed by big oil to block regulation

  • Live in California? You should read this. One of the propositions currently on the ballot for November is Proposition 23, an oil-company pushed piece of legislation that would prevent a landmark environmental bill from getting passed unless California had four straight quarters below 5.5 percent unemployment. This is a marker that the state has rarely hit over the last 35 years, and likely won’t for a long while due to the current unemployment levels, hovering above 12 percent. And big energy is backing it. Check it out:
  • bad The bill is backed by two of the biggest polluters in the state, oil-hawkers Valero and Tesoro.
  • worse The Koch brothers (remember them?) are pushing it financially with $1 million in help. source