Who is Guy Fawkes and why is he relevant to America and the world today?

"People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people."

We've apparently "unlearned" what's good for us

From The New York Times today:

ON THIS DAY

 

On May 15, 1911, the Supreme Court ordered the dissolution of Standard Oil Company, ruling it was in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act.

What a vastly different country we are today, compared to that 100 years ago, eh?  And we're bound to be but back then, the people and government realized and recognized the dangers to the country of having one person and family and company wield so much control over an industry and they had the strength and wisdom to do something about it.

Now, it seems, we're both not bright or strong enough, either one, to do what's right and best for the country and people.

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/  

It's a small window, and it's closing

We've all watched the price for gasoline--both the price per gallon and per barrel, on the world markets.

We know it's gone from too high to ridiculous. The ridiculous part was when it hit $147.00 per barrel on those world markets, due mostly to speculation and people successfully, unfortunately, making a killing in the market.

Well, it fell to a bit less than $35.00 per barrel at one point and now it's back up to around $43.00 per barrel.

I have said several times that I should have--heck, we all should have--been very sarcastic, cynical and opportunistic back in 2000, when "W" and his cabal were about to take over, and invested heavily in oil and Halliburton stocks.

It only made sense.

We would have made a TON of money.

Of course, it would have been on the backs of the American people and the world but then we could have done some good with it.

So anyway, now, here we are, back in about the same situation.

If and when the world economy turns back around and people sense a "bottom" to the markets and economies start coming back, you can be sure people will start speculating--and speculating wildly--on oil, the price of oil and the oil markets.

There are a whole lotta' people out there who would like to make at least some of the money back that they've lost in these last months.

And that's where our government's plan to add $1.00 in tax or fee or whatever you want to call it comes in.

This should happen and it should happen now. It should happen right away.

It won't but it should.

This $1.00 per gallon could, would and should, then, be put to use getting us freer from Middle East oil. Parts of it could and again, would be given back to the American consumer but the rest would be used to get us onto renewable energy sources and so, again, out of the Middle East.

This would also, as I've written before, help clean up our environment, since it would be based on clean fuel and would help reduce the carbon dioxide being fed into our atmosphere so less climate change, God willing.


This, then, is what should happen, in a smart world--a perfect world.

It won't, though.

Not in a million years.

We haven't got the political fortitude to do it.

We haven't got the guts.

The politicians haven't got the guts.

In the first place, they'd all say it would just keep us in a recession--or worse. And actually, I'll admit, given that we're in financial and economic territory we've never been in before, it may even be true. (It shouldn't be, however, because of the returning of a good protion of the $1.00 per gallon to American consumers).

So the price of oil was outrageously high.

It came down.

And now it's creeping back up.

If and when the economy comes back, hold onto your hats.

It's gonna get ugly.

And expensive.

On a brighter note, if/when you see the bottom of the market, this time, buy lots and lots of oil stocks.