Gee... how about a reasonable profits board for the regulation of Congressional salaries and benefits?

How about a reasonable profit board for the regulation of the tax income the federal government receives?

How about a reasonable profit board for the regulation of green energies?

Tax the profits at 100%, and my guess is that the oil companies will suddenly discover that the cost of production is actually 50% higher than it was.

Then we all get to pay higher prices for gas, in the form of a hidden tax.

This shit is like reading Atlas Shrugged, not actual news.

So, the dems want to get into price controls.

"hey let's start with the evil oil companies then we can spread out to everything".

Rank Industry Net Profit Margin
1 Closed-End Fund â€" Equity 81%
2 Publishing â€" Periodicals 51.7
3 Silver 44.7
4 Closed-End Fund â€" Foreign 38.3
5 REIT â€" Diversified 36
6 Copper 24
7 Internet Information Providers 23.8
8 Application Software 22.7
9 Foreign Utilities 20.5
10 Industrial Metals and Minerals 20.1
11 Gold 20.1
12 Cigarettes 19.8
13 Semiconductor â€" Broad Line 19.2
14 REIT â€" Healthcare Facilities 19.1
15 Lumber, Wood Production 17.7
16 Semiconductor â€" Integrated Circuits 17.6
17 Diversified Investments 17.5
18 Healthcare Information Services 16.6
19 Beverages â€" Brewers 16.5
20 Regional â€" Southwest Banks 16.4
21 Semiconductor- Memory Chips 16.1
22 Publishing â€" Books 16.1
23 Networking and Communication Devices 15.7
24 Drug Manufacturers â€" Major 15.4
25 Long Distance Carriers 15.2
26 Railroads 15

112 Catalog & Mail Order Houses 6.5
113 Drugs â€" Generic 6.3
114 Major Integrated Oil and Gas 6.2

6.2% profit margin, not too much is it. Maybe they should start at the top of this list and work their way down???????

Awesome find Glass.

Tax the profits at 100%

Who proposed that?

Never mind.

Tax the profits at 100%

Who proposed that?

#5 | Posted by 726 at 2012-01-20 09:48 AM | Reply | Flag:

Reps. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), John Conyers Jr. (Mich.), Bob Filner (Calif.), Marcia Fudge (Ohio), Jim Langevin (R.I.), and Lynn Woolsey (Calif.).

That is why I said "Never Mind".

Didn't Jimmy Carter enact a profit windfall tax on crude in the late 70's? Driving up the price of gasoline and inflation? Why is it the Democrats feel this constant urge to just tax, tax, tax? That seems to be all you live for. Spending countless days, hours and years just thinking up shit to tax. No wonder the Republicans are fixated with tax loop holes.

You Dems really need to put you addiction to taxing everything into check. Hell try taxing yourselves for once. I'll help;

1. 10 cent tax every time you think of taxing something.
2. 10 cent tax every time you think of taxing some one.
3. 10 cent tax every time you talk to another Democrat about taxing some thing.
4. 10 cent tax every time you...

Who proposed that?

Maxine Waters.

How about a reasonable profit board for the regulation of green energies?

How about a reasonable compensation board for members of the reasonable profit board.

Someone mail Kucinich a copy of the Constitution and tell him to read it, please.

This shit is like reading Atlas Shrugged, not actual news.

#2 | POSTED BY ADAMMM AT 2012-01-20 09:24 AM | REPLY | FLAG

my thoughts exactly. "reasonable profits board" is pretty creepy notion. so, if an oil company decides to plow money into capital investment projects (even alt. energy), then the govt. will have a hand into it? fucking socialistic pieces of shit...

my thoughts exactly. "reasonable profits board" is pretty creepy notion. so, if an oil company decides to plow money into capital investment projects (even alt. energy), then the govt. will have a hand into it? fucking socialistic pieces of shit...

#13 | POSTED BY SOMOCO

There idea may be stupid. But your idea here is just made up.

I know reading is hard. Please try it anyway.

"so, if an oil company decides to plow money into capital investment projects (even alt. energy), then the govt. will have a hand into it?"

NO, that would be a legitimate business cost and would have the effect of lowering their profits. That's the incentive effect of higher taxes.
I understand the feelings of these members of Congress but this bill has as much chance of passing as a lead balloon has of flying.

#14 bullshit. you think if there was such a tax that it wouldn't affect business decisions? it would, and it socializes those business decisions. i know you may have difficulty with the concept, but please try.

"I understand the feelings of these members"
#15 | Posted by danni

And that is all you base your rhetoric on.

Dennis is a poster child for abortion. Absolute idiot, I was in Cleveland he ran them into default in the late 70's. He actually makes apes look highly intelligent. What an absolute moron.

All energy should be nationalized as it is a national and economic security issue and should not be left to the whims of a manipulated market.

The cities with the highest rents have rent control, so price controls on oil will work the same way.

For every government action there is a private sector re-action, and it's usually inflationary.

Here's a scenario. They tell all the big oil companies that they can only make 200 billion each per year. After that 100% of their profits will be confiscated.

What happens if they reach their 200 billion in June?

What would you do if you couldn't make a dollar after June, no matter what you did?

I kind of like the idea. Right now there is another wave of deep water drilling companies stealing each other's employees. It happens every year or so. So the companies reluctantly boost salaries, offer retention bonuses, etc. to keep their people. This time they are even more reluctant because of the economy (it'll end up happening, though). But if profits are kept to x dollars, the employer will be able to up employee salaries as much as they want since they would be guaranteed an otherwise lower profit.

Works for me.

Works for me.

#22 | Posted by goatman

I see your point. What happens when this gets micromanaged down to your pay grade?

What happens if they reach their 200 billion in June?

What would you do if you couldn't make a dollar after June, no matter what you did?

#21 | Posted by STIRSUMUP

Great point. Would they keep it flowing just because we need it?

I see your point. What happens when this gets micromanaged down to your pay grade?

The government micromanaging private sector salaries is unprecedented as far as I know. I'm not too worried about it.

It seems like a good idea given how demonized the oil companies are, but once again this is a dangerous slope to start down. Where will we draw the line? Do we really want government dictating acceptable profit rates?

#19 | POSTED BY PROLIX247

Are you trolling or did Caracas call with a talking point?

The government dictating the profit a company can make is unprecedented. We are not talking about profit margin. I could see if they said you cannot sell for more than a % of the cost. But this is total profit. If they turned around and paid a cook on the rig a seven figure salary to avoid paying the tax you can bet they would start looking at controlling how much he is paid.

The government dictating the profit a company can make is unprecedented.

Not totally. see Obamacare and Insurance profit margins.

If I'm not mistaken another liberal Nixon set price controls.

When I lived in Clevland, Ohio Dennis the Menace was the loopy dem mayor and he bankrupyed the city. After that he barely escaped a recall. He is a goofball and would destroy the country if he could even quicker than the Obungler

No I'm not trolling. I'm not saying their cannot be a market for oil, I am saying private entities should not dictate their business priorities over national interest. Most would call that treason.

Why should someone be able to buy a boat load of oil and never take possession of the oil just to inflate the price?

Why should we allow a pipeline that will choke off refinery access to our northern states in order to sell that oil on the open market?

This may be vulture capitalism and may be legal but we are at war and have been for 10 years and this is treason.

What would you do if you couldn't make a dollar after June, no matter what you did?
#21 | POSTED BY STIRSUMUP AT 2012-01-20 01:13 PM | REPLY | FLAG

they will social engineer this so that if the money is plowed back into capital investments on greener energies, they can avoid the tax. it'll be government fucking with business

Just more liberal nonsense to impose socialism or fascism, which simply depends on the way europe swings.

It is amazing how politicians completely ignore the fact that they get 3 times the amount of oil profits in the form of taxes on oil, oil transport, production, the taxes from the parts made for all of it, taxes on chemicals manufactured, taxes for permits, royalties on domestic, fuel transport, fuel use and tax on all the profits for each company directly or indirectly involved in oil or its uses. Lets not forget, 30% of a barrel of oil ends up in consumer products like plastics, which means the manufacture of all of those oil based products are also taxed at many levels.

So big deal Exxon got 10 billion or something, the goverment got 30 billion, so if we need to make a board to Cap something, how about we cap government spending to 15% of teh economy, state, local and federal taxes combined, which will in effect cap any taxes collected or money borrowed. Then with the return of of about 25 billion in oil taxes back to the people, we would see a much larger price reduction than if we attack the measly 10 billion exxon has.

Label this as Fascism and the people who espouse it as Fascist, because there is no other word for it.

Who was it who voted these clown into office? Price controls have never worked (1973). Or have they? Buying long positions One (1) year LEAP contracts in Oil / Gas could possibly work??? Watch the Sh-t hit the fan!

Someone mail Kucinich a copy of the Constitution and tell him to read it, please.

What makes you think he gives a shit about the constitution?

But if profits are kept to x dollars, the employer will be able to up employee salaries as much as they want since they would be guaranteed an otherwise lower profit.

They could also hire another employee if they cut your salary in half.
Which I fully support.

For a party that claims to worship science they sure are shitting all over it.

Just like rent control leads to housing shortages, this will lead to oil shortages....for us. Not china. For some reason we can't teach them to hate themselves like we hate ourselves.

Bad idea. It's not the gubment's role.

I can't see this ever happening.

It would be better if they could eliminate the billions in oil subsidies.

But, they can't even do that.

I guess they think prices aren't high enough or maybe they want to see long gas lines.They don't believe in the free market place evidently.They should change their name to the Socialist- Marxist Democrats. They will just put the product on the world market and say to hell with you fools and the public will take it in the ass.

We should have done this decades ago...

Fuck the oil corporations and their massive profits...

And, fuck all those who defend them....

They have been price gouging since their inception and there is no end in sight...

And, it won't increase gas prices because once they get to a certain point the tax reaches 100%, after which raising prices is not feasible...

These fuckers have had Americans by the nuts forever...

Finally, Democratic legislation that I can feel food about getting behind....

As for all of you oil company apologists... find another investment.... assholes...

Fuck the oil corporations and their massive profits...

What about the 113 industries more profitable than the oil and gas industry listed above? Fuck them too? Or do they get a pass since bashing the O and G industry is chic?

We should have done this decades ago...
Fuck the oil corporations and their massive profits...
And, fuck all those who defend them....
They have been price gouging since their inception and there is no end in sight...
And, it won't increase gas prices because once they get to a certain point the tax reaches 100%, after which raising prices is not feasible...
These fuckers have had Americans by the nuts forever...
Finally, Democratic legislation that I can feel food about getting behind....
As for all of you oil company apologists... find another investment.... assholes...

#43 | POSTED BY CAPTOFURANUS

History not your strong point Capt?

Large-scale federal intervention into America's energy markets began in the 1930s and continued through the 1970s. A series of major laws and executive actions sought to control energy prices, regulate electric and gas utilities, and limit imports. Competition was stifled and domestic investment was suppressed.

By the 1970s, the Middle East oil embargoes and other upheavals began making the failure of federal energy interventions clear to policymakers. They reversed course, and took major deregulatory steps in the 1970s and 1980s to free up energy markets, to the ultimate benefit of consumers and the overall economy.

What a fucking idiotic idea.

#43 | POSTED BY CAPTOFURANUS AT 2012-01-21 12:22 AM

hey fry cook, do you even know what a Profit Margin" is?

Glass provides some interesting numbers and comparisons. But are they real? It costs $1/barrel to extract Middle East oil. A lot more in the North Atlantic. Sawmills never survive unless they have some private timber holdings. Without that landowner position swings in the market wipe them out periodically. Sawmills never net 17%, like oil, the profits are taken by the landowner. Drug profits are not characterized by the generic industry segment.

An interesting take on closed funds which confirms what's wrong with the economy. Finance, Insurance and Real Estate have run away with all the profits by taking control of the political system. These sectors have managed to take most of our wealth without creating any new wealth.

Dennis Kucinich is a hero to Cleveland, but hated by the Banks, which attempted to privatize Cleveland Power. He stopped them and they launched a dirty campaign against him for it. As the California Energy crisis unfolded Cleveland found itself immune from gouging by the private sector, as a public utility. Grateful citizens rewarded Kucinich by sending him to Congress. He remains a target of the greedfuckers that want to morph the US into a third world nation. So far the greedfuckers are winning, but blowback like OWS and the Walker recall is on the rise.

Wherever monopolistic practices are possible, the private sector charges more and pays less. The notion that competition holds down prices in these cases is not supported by facts. Just more shit rightie tighties make up.

Why don't they cap proffits on movie stars and lawyers?

From article: ....set up a board that would apply a "windfall profit tax" as high as 100 percent on the sale of oil and gas, according to their legislation.

Absolutely out-STANDING!! Nice incentive to keep producing. Oh, that's right.. we have windmills and solar to run the country, so not much need for oil. We can keep buying from the Saudis anyway.

You simply cannot possibly make this shit up. Can you fathom where this country will be if the left takes the presidency again this time around??

JM

All energy should be nationalized as it is a national and economic security issue and should not be left to the whims of a manipulated market.

#19 | Posted by Prolix247

All socalists should be nationalized and put to work on the farm for 3 hots and a cot.

If I'm not mistaken another liberal Nixon set price controls.

#30 | Posted by 90c2cab

You are right, they didn't work then so why should they work now?

well of course...no surprise here...get control of who gets what and who doesnt and you control everything about everyone....health care, profits, what you read, what you EAT and what you can and cannot do every minute of your life....and the left says its us on the right who want to run your life...

its nice to know that somethings just dont change.

#44 Goat...

It almost sounds like you've got a dog in this race...

Have we subsidized those other industries for a better part of a century with American tax dollars???

Do the provide a necessary product that is relied upon by every American, effecting the price of every product we purchase???

Have those other industries gouged the American people at every opportunity through price fixing and monopolies???

Like I said, about fucking time...

"Have we subsidized those other industries for a better part of a century with American tax dollars???"

Yes we have, and the solution is not a cap, but eliminating all subsidies for all energy sources.

#47 Asshouse...

Yeah, I work with them everyday...

Why do you ask, honey bucket boy???

So, do they let you keep what you pump out, or do you have to return it to "the man"???

It almost sounds like you've got a dog in this race...

I do. As I said, I probably would see a salary rise because of it. See Post 22. That's obviously a good thing for me.

Have we subsidized those other industries for a better part of a century with American tax dollars???

I don't know. I'm firmly on record as being against all gov subsidies. Even so, what does this have to do with earnings caps?

Have those other industries gouged the American people at every opportunity through price fixing and monopolies???

There are no monopolies. In fact, when there was, it was broken up although it was many decades ago. If there is price fixing it should be prosecuted. It is illegal. The answer to illegal activity is not to make new laws -- the answer is to prosecute under existing laws.

I am against any government intervention in any private industry -- whether it be in the form of giving subsidies or capping earnings. The only exception is to break up monopolies. I've no issue with that.

#55 Null

Please list, of the more profitable than oil industries that are subsidized...

What about the 113 industries more profitable than the oil and gas industry listed above? Fuck them too? Or do they get a pass since bashing the O and G industry is chic?

#44 | Posted by goatman

Another weasel goat gem.

How many of those 113 industries receive government welfare in the form of billions of dollars of subsidies?

Better yet. How many of those 113 industries require Trillions of taxpayer dollars, a massive Defense Department, the Military Industrial Complex and the blood of our citizens to protect and secure (and sometimes clean up after).

Another weasel goat gem.

Actually, I wasn't the one who put that list up, dummerboy.

How many of those 113 industries receive government welfare in the form of billions of dollars of subsidies?

I don't know. Do you?

I am firmly against government subsidies, so I hope none of them are.

Got anything better than this, dummerboy?

Six House Democrats led by Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) proposed legislation to create a Reasonable Profits Board ..

#57 Goat...

It doesn't really matter that you are personally against subsidies, the fact remains that they are heavily subsidized by the taxpayer, and we rely on fuel for everything, and the oil corporations have us by the nads...

It's time to regulate, cap, control oil supply and prices...

Having an industry whose greed extorts so much control over so many aspects of American life as-well-as our well-being as a country is a long outdated paradigm...

control oil supply and prices...

Impossible. The US cannot dictate the price of a global commodity that comes from so many sources and is used by literally everyone.

I can just see the US telling OPEC and nonOPEC producers that they will not sell their oil for more than $x/bbl. The laughter would shake the planet.

It's time to regulate, cap, control oil supply and prices...
Having an industry whose greed extorts so much control over so many aspects of American life as-well-as our well-being as a country is a long outdated paradigm...

#62 | POSTED BY CAPTOFURANUS

It would impact fewer people in a negative manner if you just moved to Venezuela. I hear they are looking for some dedicated followers.

#64 Tedly...

Maybe...

However, it would benefit hundreds of millions of Americans if we passed this legislation, so you could always move...

Just a thought...

#63 Goat...

Seeing as America uses well over double what China (2nd largest oil consumer) uses and well over four times what Japan (3rd largest oil consumer) uses, I am fairly sure that America can dictate global fuel prices however she pleases. It is high time America starts to use its consumption power as leverage in the global market; don't want to create jobs for Americans? Sell your shit in the 3rd world shitholes where you manufactured it. Don't want to have your oil prices capped? Lose half your market...

Easy-peasy...

Seeing as America uses well over double what China (2nd largest oil consumer)

Sorry, cap'n. I mean no disrespect, that that isn't correct. We are almost tied with China on energy consumption. Granted this link is energy, no specifically petroleum, but I don't think the disparity on source is that great.

My data is from 2009/10, but I assume that it is fairly accurate...

And, if the US stops buying, the market collapses.

As does America.

What is so hard about this concept? I know it is shameful to admit that we are on such a short fucking leash, but that's the facts, cap'n. We have no dictatorial powers whatsoever on the price of oil. Without the daily imports, this country crashes in days. The suppliers? No problem for them.

Thankfully for the supply side of the oil market equation all of that infrastructure to bring oil to the market is free...

If the oil suppliers can supply the US market for 80% of market value, someone will bite...

To say that as the largest oil consumer on the planet we are helpless to the whims of the market is a bit short sided...

IMO...

Yes we have, and the solution is not a cap, but eliminating all subsidies for all energy sources.

Lets take it one step further and eliminate the liability cap as well.

What a fucking idiotic idea.
#46 | Posted by Danforth

I'm very concerned about you. You're starting to make more sense all the time.

Why screw around with price controls, listen to Maxine and nationalize them. That will teach them to make a profit. If they are nationalized the government can have the oil companies losing money by June.

"I'm very concerned about you. You're starting to make more sense all the time."

I'm very concerned about you; I've always made sense.

Lets take it one step further and eliminate the liability cap as well.
#71 | Posted by IraqiBukkake

However, it would benefit hundreds of millions of Americans if we passed this legislation, so you could always move...
Just a thought...

As mentioned up thread Capt, price controls were tried and caused double digit inflation in the 70's. Nixon and Carter.

No need to move for me though. Eventually the nation will call upon the Republicans to fix what the Democrats have done.

so solly.