Bucky, you have been hoodwinked and you believe hook line and sinker what you have been told by the big corporations. Your view is juvenile and sheep like…
POLITICAL PEDDLING
The return ExxonMobil gets for the millions it spends on lobbyists and campaign contributions comes back in the billions. The industry as a whole receives up to $113 billion per year in direct federal subsidies, according to experts. (3)
Records filed with the Senate Public Records Office show that Exxon lobbyists focus most of their time on bills that address energy, global warming, environmental rules, and foreign policy. Targets of Exxon lobbyists are not just members of Congress, but nearly every agency as well. In 2005 alone, Exxon reported lobbying the State Department, White House, Environmental Protection Agency, Energy Department, Office of Management and Budget, Department of the Interior, and the Transportation Department.
The 2005 Energy Bill is a prime example of how political dollars translate into legislation. The Energy Bill, in effect until 2010, authorized $4 billion in federal subsidies to the oil and gas industry. Below are a few examples of handouts to Exxon.(4)
PERKS FOR EXXON FROM THE 2005 ENERGY BILL
Deepwater Drilling. ExxonMobil is the self-declared leader in deepwater oil and gas, which it claims will account for 20 percent or more of its production by 2010. The Energy Bill dolled out $1.5 billion in oil subsidies for ultra-deepwater activities.
Tax Royalty Relief. Oil companies supposedly pay a royalty to the government for the privilege of extracting resources off public land owned by all Americans. The Energy Bill dolled out billions worth of unnecessary “royalty relief” for ExxonMobil and other oil and gas companies. Ironically, Exxon has already settled several lawsuits for $52 million for not paying or underpaying royalties. In Alabama Exxon was found guilty of royalty fraud and fined $3.6 billion, which the company has appealed since 2000.
LNG: Liquefied Natural Gas permits. ExxonMobil plans to build at least two new liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities in Texas. Yet, when ExxonMobil wanted to build a LNG facility in Alabama in 2003 it faced vociferous opposition from the locals who were concerned about potential health hazards and by Republican Governor Bob Riley. The Governor demanded that an independent safety assessment be done before the project went forward. A year later ExxonMobil canceled its plans. The 2005 Energy Bill changed the rules so that the state no longer has the right to determine the location of LNG facilities. Instead, location assessments will be done by federal agencies, which are typically more industry-friendly.
Public health laws. Laws under the Clean Water Act and the Clean Air Act used in the permitting of LNG facilities and natural gas pipelines were also weakened by the Bill. It is now vastly easier for ExxonMobil to get approval for its LNG facilities – despite legitimate objections from the state or local community.
WHY IT MATTERS
There is no denying that America needs a separation of oil and state. ExxonMobil’s backward policies on global warming and oil dependence make that separation even more urgent. The company’s policies are like an anchor holding America down from achieving a safer, cleaner energy future. ExxonMobil is the largest and most profitable private oil company in the world. Coupled with its spending on politicians and lobbying, it is also among the most influential.
Exxon’s policies on energy and environment make it a rogue company among its peers. ExxonMobil is the only major oil giant arguing that renewable energy is a bad investment, that global warming isn’t a real threat, and that U.S. energy independence is undesirable and impossible. These policies are among the greatest threats to the future of America’s national security and energy policy.
exxon’s profits
October 29, 2005
well, to put the high gas prices in perspective…exxon’s profits for the 3rd quarter of 2005(aka-last summer) were over $10 billion dollars, on total earnings of $100 billion dollars.
it was the first time in corporate history that a publicly held corporation had quarterly sales of over $100 billion dollars.
kind of disgusting, huh?
well, let’s look at another salient fact:
exxon were the 2nd largest campaign contributor to bush’s first presidential campaign(2nd only to enron…).
exxon in the last election gave 80% of their campaign contributions to republican candidates.
another salient fact:
exxon executives have participated in a few bush sponsored energy think-tanks, including the one that was involved, with dick cheney, in establishing u.s energy policy.
oh, did i mention that exxon received $2.6 billion in subsidies from the bush administration?
in other words: we as taxpayers gave exxon $2.6 billion so that they could go on to have record earnings and record profits.
these subsidies were a part of the energy bill that the oil industry helped write, along with dick cheney(who, surprise surprise, is the former ceo of halliburton, an energy company).
the bush ideology is so ****ing transparent: take money away from people and give it to corporations. tax the poor and subsidize rich corporations.
all of this other right-wing nonsense is just a smokescreen. the bush administration has one goal: funnel taxpayers money to the energy and defense industries.
i hope that the democrats are paying attention.
note to democrats: voters probably won’t be too happy when they find out that their tax money has subsidized oil companies who have been making record profits from grossly inflated gas prices.
Is it just me or does anyone else find it curious that when oil company haters talk about record profits it’s never expressed as a profit margin? How much have their margins increased over the years? Of course, their profit dollars have reached record levels. Many formerly third world countries are reporting record consumption of petroleum products. And to you, Moby, who would you propose as a knowledgable source to craft our national energy policy? Sean Penn? Alec Baldwin? Ed Begley Jr.? Hezbollah? I’d rather have a knowledgable energy professional than some boneheaded partisan but that’s just me. When we end up with “Univeral Health Care” should we exclude medical professionals’ advice from the mix, too?
Buckeye, it is not a vilification of profit but a vilification of profit over people. The news media does a terrible job in relaying the story of those impacted by the harm commited. We all read the paper of how so and so was paralyzed in an awful accident etc. The person injured and the family are impacted for the rest of their lives on a daily basis but as reader of the story we go on to the next story and forget about the misery that individual contines to suffer. That ongoing suffering never hits the papers because it won’t sell newspapers. In addition the media also likes all stories to have a happy, tidy ending. Businesses shd make profits but not at the expense of damaging others. And when they do damage others they need to step up and be responsible instead of doing everything in their power–like dragging out a case for 19 yrs–to make it right.
Moby, Chris & Killer – Thanks for the re-education offer, but I think I’m going to pass. I’m quite comfortable with my position based on reality and the facts.
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Bucky, you have been hoodwinked and you believe hook line and sinker what you have been told by the big corporations. Your view is juvenile and sheep like…
POLITICAL PEDDLING
The return ExxonMobil gets for the millions it spends on lobbyists and campaign contributions comes back in the billions. The industry as a whole receives up to $113 billion per year in direct federal subsidies, according to experts. (3)
Records filed with the Senate Public Records Office show that Exxon lobbyists focus most of their time on bills that address energy, global warming, environmental rules, and foreign policy. Targets of Exxon lobbyists are not just members of Congress, but nearly every agency as well. In 2005 alone, Exxon reported lobbying the State Department, White House, Environmental Protection Agency, Energy Department, Office of Management and Budget, Department of the Interior, and the Transportation Department.
The 2005 Energy Bill is a prime example of how political dollars translate into legislation. The Energy Bill, in effect until 2010, authorized $4 billion in federal subsidies to the oil and gas industry. Below are a few examples of handouts to Exxon.(4)
PERKS FOR EXXON FROM THE 2005 ENERGY BILL
Deepwater Drilling. ExxonMobil is the self-declared leader in deepwater oil and gas, which it claims will account for 20 percent or more of its production by 2010. The Energy Bill dolled out $1.5 billion in oil subsidies for ultra-deepwater activities.
Tax Royalty Relief. Oil companies supposedly pay a royalty to the government for the privilege of extracting resources off public land owned by all Americans. The Energy Bill dolled out billions worth of unnecessary “royalty relief” for ExxonMobil and other oil and gas companies. Ironically, Exxon has already settled several lawsuits for $52 million for not paying or underpaying royalties. In Alabama Exxon was found guilty of royalty fraud and fined $3.6 billion, which the company has appealed since 2000.
LNG: Liquefied Natural Gas permits. ExxonMobil plans to build at least two new liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities in Texas. Yet, when ExxonMobil wanted to build a LNG facility in Alabama in 2003 it faced vociferous opposition from the locals who were concerned about potential health hazards and by Republican Governor Bob Riley. The Governor demanded that an independent safety assessment be done before the project went forward. A year later ExxonMobil canceled its plans. The 2005 Energy Bill changed the rules so that the state no longer has the right to determine the location of LNG facilities. Instead, location assessments will be done by federal agencies, which are typically more industry-friendly.
Public health laws. Laws under the Clean Water Act and the Clean Air Act used in the permitting of LNG facilities and natural gas pipelines were also weakened by the Bill. It is now vastly easier for ExxonMobil to get approval for its LNG facilities – despite legitimate objections from the state or local community.
WHY IT MATTERS
There is no denying that America needs a separation of oil and state. ExxonMobil’s backward policies on global warming and oil dependence make that separation even more urgent. The company’s policies are like an anchor holding America down from achieving a safer, cleaner energy future. ExxonMobil is the largest and most profitable private oil company in the world. Coupled with its spending on politicians and lobbying, it is also among the most influential.
Exxon’s policies on energy and environment make it a rogue company among its peers. ExxonMobil is the only major oil giant arguing that renewable energy is a bad investment, that global warming isn’t a real threat, and that U.S. energy independence is undesirable and impossible. These policies are among the greatest threats to the future of America’s national security and energy policy.
exxon’s profits
October 29, 2005
well, to put the high gas prices in perspective…exxon’s profits for the 3rd quarter of 2005(aka-last summer) were over $10 billion dollars, on total earnings of $100 billion dollars.
it was the first time in corporate history that a publicly held corporation had quarterly sales of over $100 billion dollars.
kind of disgusting, huh?
well, let’s look at another salient fact:
exxon were the 2nd largest campaign contributor to bush’s first presidential campaign(2nd only to enron…).
exxon in the last election gave 80% of their campaign contributions to republican candidates.
another salient fact:
exxon executives have participated in a few bush sponsored energy think-tanks, including the one that was involved, with dick cheney, in establishing u.s energy policy.
oh, did i mention that exxon received $2.6 billion in subsidies from the bush administration?
in other words: we as taxpayers gave exxon $2.6 billion so that they could go on to have record earnings and record profits.
these subsidies were a part of the energy bill that the oil industry helped write, along with dick cheney(who, surprise surprise, is the former ceo of halliburton, an energy company).
the bush ideology is so ****ing transparent: take money away from people and give it to corporations. tax the poor and subsidize rich corporations.
all of this other right-wing nonsense is just a smokescreen. the bush administration has one goal: funnel taxpayers money to the energy and defense industries.
i hope that the democrats are paying attention.
note to democrats: voters probably won’t be too happy when they find out that their tax money has subsidized oil companies who have been making record profits from grossly inflated gas prices.
-moby
Is it just me or does anyone else find it curious that when oil company haters talk about record profits it’s never expressed as a profit margin? How much have their margins increased over the years? Of course, their profit dollars have reached record levels. Many formerly third world countries are reporting record consumption of petroleum products. And to you, Moby, who would you propose as a knowledgable source to craft our national energy policy? Sean Penn? Alec Baldwin? Ed Begley Jr.? Hezbollah? I’d rather have a knowledgable energy professional than some boneheaded partisan but that’s just me. When we end up with “Univeral Health Care” should we exclude medical professionals’ advice from the mix, too?
Buckeye, it is not a vilification of profit but a vilification of profit over people. The news media does a terrible job in relaying the story of those impacted by the harm commited. We all read the paper of how so and so was paralyzed in an awful accident etc. The person injured and the family are impacted for the rest of their lives on a daily basis but as reader of the story we go on to the next story and forget about the misery that individual contines to suffer. That ongoing suffering never hits the papers because it won’t sell newspapers. In addition the media also likes all stories to have a happy, tidy ending. Businesses shd make profits but not at the expense of damaging others. And when they do damage others they need to step up and be responsible instead of doing everything in their power–like dragging out a case for 19 yrs–to make it right.
Moby, Chris & Killer – Thanks for the re-education offer, but I think I’m going to pass. I’m quite comfortable with my position based on reality and the facts.