RE: Are Big Oil Conspiracies Really Off-Base?

[Zell, Chris]

Title: Message

Are Big-Oil Conspiracies off base?   YES! If any of you really think that oil companies are outrageously profitable, YOU ARE FREE TO BUY THEIR STOCK and share in the profits accordingly.  I don't, because I find them too risky.   Since 1977, government tax revenues on oil have been twice what oil company profits have been.  If every successful company becomes a target for Congressional Thieves, then let's steal some of that $25-40 billion that Microsoft is holding - or tax the unwarranted rise in Google stock value.   Better yet,  the recent rise in your home's value is clearly a "windfall"  - let's have a special tax on that.   Oil is extremely risky since, if you invest enormous amounts of money and work to develop fields, some third world dictator will nationalize the property or demand new concessions, destroying your intended projections.  Or your best workers get kidnapped by local insurgents - Or you can't find any skilled petroleum engineers that aren't ready for retirement.-  Or you put $60 a barrel oil in storage while the Saudis decide to move the price down to $40 a barrel. ( all real, reported issues)   And refineries?  A refinery is almost impossible to build due to NIMBYism.  Barron's ran an article on this months ago.  If we aren't careful, NIMBYism will kill off windmills, too.     Oil has been cheap for a long time, particularily because the swing producers, the Saudis, have kept it that way to prevent alternative development and the US public has little stomach for sacrifice.