I hadn't thought of it before, but on the surface it strikes me as a good idea. Hopefully, somebody can explain to me why it isn't, or tell me non-surface reasons that it is.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/11/04/feedback.bush.themes/index.html

Quote :

"Andy Park of Key Largo, Florida, posed this idea for combating high energy prices: "Push legislation to regulate oil companies as public utilities -- just like electric, natural gas and telephone companies. This would require that companies obtain regulatory approval before raising gas prices." Hurricanes Katrina and Rita knocked out oil platforms and pipelines as they cut back-to-back paths through the U.S. Gulf Coast, causing a spike in energy prices."

11/6/2005 7:46:36 AM

yea..gas should be considered a utility

i just like how everyone on fox keep saying "whats wrong with making a profit?"

the real issue isnt proffits, its the collusion and monopolization thats going on

[Edited on November 6, 2005 at 7:51 AM. Reason : -]

11/6/2005 7:51:15 AM

no, didn't you know? liberals think business is evil

that's why george soros doesn't keep his money. oh, wait

11/6/2005 9:27:15 AM

i dont know much about utilities, but wouldnt importing the shit necessary for that utility make that not work quite as well (since those prices are so fluid).

i mean we get our own water and coal or whatnot(?). just a thought.

11/6/2005 9:34:52 AM

^^^it's the extreme regulation that creates monopolies in the first place. More won't solve the problem.



[Edited on November 6, 2005 at 9:35 AM. Reason : ^]

11/6/2005 9:34:53 AM

Quote :

"wouldnt importing the shit necessary for that utility make that not work quite as well (since those prices are so fluid)."

They'd just keep the prices at 20 or 30 cents above the stable market price to counter any sort of trouble with fluctuating gas prices.

11/6/2005 10:14:13 AM

Quote :

" This would require that companies obtain regulatory approval before raising gas prices."

That is the dumbest idea ever.

Well, actually its a stupid way of implementing the dumbest idea ever.

11/6/2005 11:25:16 AM

yeah im dumb, ill go back to something that i at least somewhat understand.

11/6/2005 11:50:05 AM

Quote :

"Hopefully, somebody can explain to me why it isn't"

11/6/2005 2:17:52 PM

Its price caps with central planning added on and you need someone to explain why its a bad idea?



[Edited on November 6, 2005 at 2:53 PM. Reason : ]

11/6/2005 2:49:18 PM

On the 10% chance you are not merely trooling, here is one line of reasoning why:

-At a cap of about $1.59 a gallon, the most a refinery could afford to pay for crude would be about $40.
-The current world price for crude is about $60.
-The United States imports stupendous amounts of oil from Mexico.
-The nation of Mexico will not sell crude oil to the United States at $40 when they can sell it to China for $60.
-Without enough crude imports, the pumps at your local gas station run dry.
-Now, instead of paying $2.39 a gallon, gasoline cannot be had at any price.

11/6/2005 3:30:39 PM

^ How come the natural gas industry doesn't collapse under regulation?

I'm actually not trolling, and I was hoping you'd respond.

11/6/2005 6:04:16 PM

jimmy carter had great success when he tried this idea

11/6/2005 6:06:07 PM

^^there were natural gas shortages in the 1970s as a result of price caps as well.

It has gone through partial deregulation since then, and across the board price caps are gone.

http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/NaturalGasRegulation.html

Any effective price cap will always result in a shortage:

11/6/2005 7:49:05 PM

What makes it different than the electric companies?

11/6/2005 8:17:35 PM

^ Simple, nothing. Electric companies are largely free to raise prices whenever they want because many state regulatory boards are manned by representatives from the industry, not government. Also, electricity rates are often already set far enough above the market price for shortages to occur. The equivalent would be setting the government mandated price for gasoline at $4 a gallon, obviously the supply would not dry up under most conditions.

Secondly, the United States is not in a head-to-head competition for electricity. You see, coal costs far more to transport than oil so this nation's coal producers don't have the option of exporting it to china to take advantage of the increased demand.

Quote :

"How come the natural gas industry doesn't collapse under regulation?"

Last I heard, customers are in for a shock, the price of natural gas is going to be double this winter what it was last winter. Not a single government board was involved, many gas suppliers are not run as a utility and subject to regulation, so their price is set by the market:
http://www.wtrg.com/daily/gasprice.html

11/6/2005 8:45:39 PM

its rising 10% not 100% you fucking dolt

11/6/2005 9:57:37 PM

^ It may be only rising 10% <insert wherever you are talking about> but many industrial users were recently receiving bills at twice the rate of last year. Don't believe me? Check the spot price, I linked it in my post above.

11/6/2005 10:20:20 PM

Thanks for the insight. It's seriously what I was after.

11/6/2005 11:44:47 PM

Quote :

"the price of natural gas is going to be double this winter what it was last winter."

!=

Quote :

"users were recently receiving bills at twice the rate of last year"

but i do acknowledge your attempt to begin backtracking out of your original prediction

11/6/2005 11:51:20 PM

prediction? Wow wow, I am terribly sorry, you evidently don't understand what I am saying. I am not predicting shit, I am stating current history, the markets closed last week at a price twice what it was last year.

So, I guess I should edit my statements thusly to be equal:
"the price of natural gas is going to be double this winter what it was last winter."
and
"users wereare recently receiving bills at twice the rate of last year"

I'm not at all saying it will go higher, I believe it will go lower as Katrina production resumes and LNG import terminals come online.

And where is it only going up 10%? In Saudi Arabia?

I think $11.45 is more than 10% higher than the $7 it was last November.

11/7/2005 2:02:36 AM

its not winter yet, hotshot

11/7/2005 10:24:47 AM

^^ inverted dead cat's bounce

11/7/2005 10:27:54 AM