Dave Ross Commentary – Listen: Please don’t hate big oil

Big oil’s quarterly earnings are out. And they make a lot of money.

Exxon up 69 percent, Conoco up 43 percent Shell up 30 percent. What’s wrong with you Shell? Only BP went down, but they still made plenty.

I bring this up because oil is the one business that, even in a capitalist society, has to defend the making of money. To the point that Exxon last night posted a blog to explain just how LITTLE money it makes selling petroleum products.

“These facts probably won’t make anyone feel any better… but … For every gallon … we manufactured and sold in the United States, we earned a little more than two cents a gallon. That’s not a typo.” (UN

In other words, Exxon doesn’t own the oil, they have to pay those high oil prices too, so please don’t hate them.

Ok then Dave, who CAN we hate?

Well, let’s see: cost of getting a barrel of mid east oil out of the ground is something like a dollar, you can sell it for $112, so it’s the oil field owners making the killing. Your money is going … to the Saudi Royal Family, Iranian Ayatollahs, whoever is running Iraq these days, and Mohammar Khadafy.

Here’s what’s really scary.

The last time the price of gas shot toward five bucks was the summer of 2008… it was so bad, we drove less, shopped less, and held organized prayer campaigns.

And then by September — we were in the Great Recession.

On the other hand, the economic collapse that year was so complete that by December, gas prices in some places had dropped back to a BUCK-29 a gallon.

I’m just saying be careful what you pray for.

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