I'll agree with all of your statements Checkers, except the BIG OIL canard.
Is the next to be references to "magic carburetors" and other "fuel saving inventions suppressed by BIG OIL" ?
Seriously, the margin between production/consumption for gasoline and diesel has been so narrow for so long (thanks largely to the watermelon's continued obstruction of the creation of more and more efficient refineries), the oil companies are running flat out to meet demand most of the production year. Its one primary reason for seasonal fluctuations of fuel prices.
OTOH, the Obama Administration has been so successful in its efforts to blockade new field development the essential tools, (deep water drilling rigs) are leaving the Gulf for contracts with Petrobas off Brazil. Most interesting when you consider the USG guaranteed the EX-IM bank loans for this, and when you note a major stockholder in Petrobas is also a major contributor to the Democratic Party, a player in the US media markets, and a major supporter of the VPC and Brady orgs. Yeah I gotta agree lobbying - and political contributions by foreign nationals - are playing an increasingly larger role in the fate of the American consummer. >Mech
