Joe Biden and the Political Left Were Correct.......

[Bubba]

If US oil production increased, it's no thanks to Sleepy.

That's what I've been saying all along. U.S. presidents have very little impact on U.S. oil production. I'm glad we can agree, here.

As to your energy independence comic, again it is based on a faulty premise. We were dependent on oil for Trump's entire term in office. Being a net exporter does not make us energy independent. If OPEC decided to cut production, prices would skyrocket regardless of whether we were a net exporter of oil. Again, you just don't seem to understand the concepts involved here.

not understanding the concept of oil being a globally traded commodity in which the price is decided on by the OPEC cartel seems to be the prerequisite to holding shitty incorrect opinions on politics and jonesing for "strong man" "only i can fix it" trump.

one has to be willfully ignorant to fall for such stupidity. one also has to be willfully ignorant and extremely gullible to think the democrats will do anything they campaign on, but thats a separate discussion.

This statement makes you just as ignorant as those you're arguing with. The price is set based on supply and demand around the world. OPEC is as much in control of world oil prices as are US producers. Our producers could just as easily cut production to raise the world price.

OPEC is the largest supplier on the market - almost 80% in 2018 - and heavily influences the price. if their largest members dont like the current US president, they can just cut supply if they feel like it, raise the prices as a result, and the american public punishes the president. this has been geopolitics since the 1970s. and that ignores the whole petrodollars aspect of it... just wait until countries tired of US hegemony start accepting oil trade in other currencies... looking at saudi arabia. too big to overthrow!

You overlook the fact that when US producers increased oil and gas production from shale deposits, OPEC couldn’t cut production enough to impact the world price of either commodity.

[asher2789]

That's what I've been saying all along. U.S. presidents have very little impact on U.S. oil production. I'm glad we can agree, here.

As to your energy independence comic, again it is based on a faulty premise. We were dependent on oil for Trump's entire term in office. Being a net exporter does not make us energy independent. If OPEC decided to cut production, prices would skyrocket regardless of whether we were a net exporter of oil. Again, you just don't seem to understand the concepts involved here.

not understanding the concept of oil being a globally traded commodity in which the price is decided on by the OPEC cartel seems to be the prerequisite to holding shitty incorrect opinions on politics and jonesing for "strong man" "only i can fix it" trump.

one has to be willfully ignorant to fall for such stupidity. one also has to be willfully ignorant and extremely gullible to think the democrats will do anything they campaign on, but thats a separate discussion.

This statement makes you just as ignorant as those you're arguing with. The price is set based on supply and demand around the world. OPEC is as much in control of world oil prices as are US producers. Our producers could just as easily cut production to raise the world price.

OPEC is the largest supplier on the market - almost 80% in 2018 - and heavily influences the price. if their largest members dont like the current US president, they can just cut supply if they feel like it, raise the prices as a result, and the american public punishes the president. this has been geopolitics since the 1970s. and that ignores the whole petrodollars aspect of it... just wait until countries tired of US hegemony start accepting oil trade in other currencies... looking at saudi arabia. too big to overthrow!

You overlook the fact that when US producers increased oil and gas production from shale deposits, OPEC couldn’t cut production enough to impact the world price of either commodity.

gotta love no sources and talking out of your ass.

from https://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/U ... rices.html (Oct 05, 2021):

U.S. oil producers are keeping a never-seen-before discipline in spending on new supply, preferring instead to reward shareholders and attract investors with higher dividends and healthier balance sheets.

Global oil supply cannot rely on U.S. shale production for significantly more production, Sheffield says, noting that “It’s really under Opec control.”

In the short term, American producers are not expected to add meaningful volumes to global supply, and the direction of oil prices is in the hands of OPEC+, the world’s top traders say.

An executive at one producer said in comments to the survey:

“We are encouraged by the restraint shown by U.S. upstream operators. By restricting capital expenditure, we are healing historic overproduction of both oil and natural gas. We believe investors will be attracted back into the E&P space if, as an industry, we continue on this path for at least a year or two more to deleverage balance sheets and return capital to investors.”

so while it is slightly more complicated than "opec controls prices" — which it does — the actual complication is that american producers are PURPOSEFULLY LIMITING SUPPLY TO REWARD THEIR SHAREHOLDERS.

this is the exact same stupid sh*t as blaming "inflation" on wage growth when companies are boasting record profits. and the same dumbasses continue to fall for it. its not inflation, its price gouging. the oil prices arent going up because of biden, theyre going up because of (what should be) criminal mob-like behavior.

[easyrider16]

He's not talking out of his ass. He's just referring to a different time frame than the one you cite in your source. I believe he's referring to the shale oil boom from ~2014-2019, before Covid popped that bubble. Shale companies are being a lot more conservative now, not because they want to keep prices high, but because they are risk-averse after Covid popped their bubble.

The USA is still the largest oil producer and consumer in the world. The USA's production and consumption is significant enough that any major change in either its production or consumption can affect prices. While OPEC produces more, OPEC is a collection of countries with varying objectives. Getting consensus among them can sometimes be like herding cats.
See here: https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/opec-changing-world

[Mister Moose]

PURPOSEFULLY [TAKING ACTION] TO REWARD THEIR SHAREHOLDERS.

this is the exact same stupid sh*t ...

You do realize that this is job one for virtually every for-profit corporation? Otherwise, why invest?

[asher2789]

PURPOSEFULLY [TAKING ACTION] TO REWARD THEIR SHAREHOLDERS.

this is the exact same stupid sh*t ...

You do realize that this is job one for virtually every for-profit corporation? Otherwise, why invest?

its amazing how close you guys are getting to discovering that capitalism itself is inherently the problem and always has been.

extorting the working class so that the shareholder class can buy a third vacation home off the labor of the working class and rent seeking. oh right, i forgot, im on a ski forum, most of yall are part of the shareholder class, or wish you were so you carry water for them.

i sure am tired of hearing about bidens gas prices and bidens inflation and bidens supply chains when its actually just corporate business as usual to see how far they can get away with price gouging. shareholders come first, working class americans can go get f***.

[Guy in Shorts]

PURPOSEFULLY [TAKING ACTION] TO REWARD THEIR SHAREHOLDERS.

this is the exact same stupid sh*t ...

You do realize that this is job one for virtually every for-profit corporation? Otherwise, why invest?

its amazing how close you guys are getting to discovering that capitalism itself is inherently the problem and always has been.

extorting the working class so that the shareholder class can buy a third vacation home off the labor of the working class and rent seeking. oh right, i forgot, im on a ski forum, most of yall are part of the shareholder class, or wish you were so you carry water for them.

i sure am tired of hearing about bidens gas prices and bidens inflation and bidens supply chains when its actually just corporate business as usual to see how far they can get away with price gouging. shareholders come first, working class americans can go get f***.

Without our Superman - Trump to keep us safe- Same old swamp monsters getting away with the same behavior.

[easyrider16]

@ GIS

Capitalism is not the enemy. I'll agree that it requires regulation to work effectively and limit exploitation. But can you honestly tell me you don't own any stocks/ETFs/mutual funds? Millions of very middle class people depend on these securities for their retirements, pensions, etc. Google says more than half of Americans own stocks.

A corporation's job is to maximize profits. It's the government's job to keep an eye on corporations and make sure they're not exploiting people. When they're working right, these mechanisms produce extremely positive results for society. Of course they don't always work right and require constant monitoring and tweaking, but I don't think we should throw out the baby with the bathwater unless you have something better to replace it.

[asher2789]

@ GIS

Capitalism is not the enemy. I'll agree that it requires regulation to work effectively and limit exploitation. But can you honestly tell me you don't own any stocks/ETFs/mutual funds? Millions of very middle class people depend on these securities for their retirements, pensions, etc. Google says more than half of Americans own stocks.

A corporation's job is to maximize profits. It's the government's job to keep an eye on corporations and make sure they're not exploiting people. When they're working right, these mechanisms produce extremely positive results for society. Of course they don't always work right and require constant monitoring and tweaking, but I don't think we should throw out the baby with the bathwater unless you have something better to replace it.

no, ive always been paycheck to paycheck, and dont own anything. and i make a "high" wage for the area. the high wage is a f*** joke. i havent gone on a vacation in 15+ years, and no, the problem isnt avocado toast or lattes, the problem is capitalism.

where i went to college it was free until saint reagan. credit scores didnt exist until 1988. boomers mortgaged my generation so they could live a freewheeling lifestyle, then gaslight us when were making the same wage as they did in the early 90s yet they claim its a "good" wage. its a load of sh*t. capitalism has always been the problem, youre just lucky enough not to be part of the exploited class. ill never be able to own anything because of student loans. cant even get a car loan because credit isnt good enough - so partner and i have to share a car and a commute, holding us back from finding a better situation or working more hours.

my sin? i went to college. PUBLIC COLLEGE, that was FREE before the boomers elected SAINT REAGAN. not that i have tons of credit cards and live outside my means - no, i committed the terrible sin of graduating college into a job market where you couldnt even get a job at mcdonalds if you tried. im lucky to have the living situation i do, because if my landlord had checked credit scores i would of been denied and homeless. already i have one friend whos homeless, and another who is struggling to make ends meet despite "doing everything right".

a corporations job is to make profits for their shareholders so their shareholders dont have to get a real job, and dont need a pension or social security or anything else because theyre just gonna live off the labor of others. its absolutely laughable that yall think the working class has money to invest in the stock market... so out of teach limosuine neoliberal nonsense. there is no saving when wages dont keep up with inflation and havent since the 1970s. if the minimum wage had it would be $25 an hour... which is more than i currently make. and my wage is "high" for the area. my partner, a skilled tradeswoman, makes even less. its a f*** joke.

cant play the capitalism game if you dont have capital. my generation has no capital, because we were robbed to fund the lifestyle of previous generations. its sickening, the gaslighting and denial of reality. im also sick of liberal excuses about how the government just needs to regulate things more - what the end up doing is hurting the little people trying to be their own small business owners, they never go after the big guys who fund their election campaigns. this country has been completely off the f*** rails since the citizens united decision. and the sheep keep marching off a cliff thinking if we just vOtE bLuE nO mAtTeR wHo it will all be fixed. as if senator mastercard who made student loans unforgivable in bankruptcy has my best interests in mind... sick of the f*** 80 year old neoliberal dinosaurs running the show, its time for them to get the f*** hint and RETIRE. they just voted themselves a big pay raise, where's ours?

[deadheadskier]

You ain't gonna like this ash, but you don't really point any fingers inward when discussing your personal situation that you are obviously unhappy about. You should. Despite it's faults, America is still a place with an attainable high quality of living available to most all citizens. It's a waste of time blaming boomers and politicians over your own choices. Reading the employment market and working harder is the answer. It's because of your choices you live where you do and make the wages you do. Find something better if you are unhappy

[Bubba]

@ GIS

Capitalism is not the enemy. I'll agree that it requires regulation to work effectively and limit exploitation. But can you honestly tell me you don't own any stocks/ETFs/mutual funds? Millions of very middle class people depend on these securities for their retirements, pensions, etc. Google says more than half of Americans own stocks.

A corporation's job is to maximize profits. It's the government's job to keep an eye on corporations and make sure they're not exploiting people. When they're working right, these mechanisms produce extremely positive results for society. Of course they don't always work right and require constant monitoring and tweaking, but I don't think we should throw out the baby with the bathwater unless you have something better to replace it.

no, ive always been paycheck to paycheck, and dont own anything. and i make a "high" wage for the area. the high wage is a f*** joke. i havent gone on a vacation in 15+ years, and no, the problem isnt avocado toast or lattes, the problem is capitalism.

where i went to college it was free until saint reagan. credit scores didnt exist until 1988. boomers mortgaged my generation so they could live a freewheeling lifestyle, then gaslight us when were making the same wage as they did in the early 90s yet they claim its a "good" wage. its a load of sh*t. capitalism has always been the problem, youre just lucky enough not to be part of the exploited class. ill never be able to own anything because of student loans. cant even get a car loan because credit isnt good enough - so partner and i have to share a car and a commute, holding us back from finding a better situation or working more hours.

my sin? i went to college. PUBLIC COLLEGE, that was FREE before the boomers elected SAINT REAGAN. not that i have tons of credit cards and live outside my means - no, i committed the terrible sin of graduating college into a job market where you couldnt even get a job at mcdonalds if you tried. im lucky to have the living situation i do, because if my landlord had checked credit scores i would of been denied and homeless. already i have one friend whos homeless, and another who is struggling to make ends meet despite "doing everything right".

a corporations job is to make profits for their shareholders so their shareholders dont have to get a real job, and dont need a pension or social security or anything else because theyre just gonna live off the labor of others. its absolutely laughable that yall think the working class has money to invest in the stock market... so out of teach limosuine neoliberal nonsense. there is no saving when wages dont keep up with inflation and havent since the 1970s. if the minimum wage had it would be $25 an hour... which is more than i currently make. and my wage is "high" for the area. my partner, a skilled tradeswoman, makes even less. its a f*** joke.

cant play the capitalism game if you dont have capital. my generation has no capital, because we were robbed to fund the lifestyle of previous generations. its sickening, the gaslighting and denial of reality. im also sick of liberal excuses about how the government just needs to regulate things more - what the end up doing is hurting the little people trying to be their own small business owners, they never go after the big guys who fund their election campaigns. this country has been completely off the f*** rails since the citizens united decision. and the sheep keep marching off a cliff thinking if we just vOtE bLuE nO mAtTeR wHo it will all be fixed. as if senator mastercard who made student loans unforgivable in bankruptcy has my best interests in mind... sick of the f*** 80 year old neoliberal dinosaurs running the show, its time for them to get the f*** hint and RETIRE. they just voted themselves a big pay raise, where's ours?

Questions:

1. Where did you go to school?

2. What years?

3. What did you major in?

[throbster]

Someone is wearing victim glasses. "My situation is bad because of someone else". I hope you get past it.

[Mister Moose]

a corporations job is to make profits for their shareholders so their shareholders dont have to get a real job, and dont need a pension or social security or anything else because theyre just gonna live off the labor of others. its absolutely laughable that yall think the working class has money to invest in the stock market... so out of teach limosuine neoliberal nonsense. there is no saving when wages dont keep up with inflation and havent since the 1970s. if the minimum wage had it would be $25 an hour... which is more than i currently make. and my wage is "high" for the area. my partner, a skilled tradeswoman, makes even less. its a f*** joke.

Who are you talking about, Paris Hilton? In that case you're right, she doesn't need to work. However, she and people like her put money in banks and it's that money people borrow to buy their first house. She and people like her invest money to start companies, and those companies hire folks to do the work. Say what you will about rich vs poor, there would be vastly fewer jobs without capital forming corporations and hiring people.

Additionally it's not just rich people that own stock. Employees sometimes get stock. You might get matching contributions if you work for a company that has a 401k plan. If you stop watching cable TV you can invest over $1,000 a year. I don't know if you watch cable TV, pay for streaming, or what plan you're on, but you get the idea.

My grandfather was a railroad worker, and he owned a few stocks. When we were 10 years old he gave the grand kids - are you ready - 1 share of AT&T. Big whoop. Every quarter I got a check for 12 cents, and every year I got a thick annual report. But he planted a seed. I learned what stocks were. My grandfather knew corporations were more than just "The Man". They were gateways to his savings plan. He was a worker that also knew how to participate in capitalism.

You are way off base if you think stocks are just for the rich. They are for anyone, anyone who wants to invest and put something away for the long haul. They do carry market risk, so you do need to invest carefully. Lots of books out there on it.

I graduated to a horrible job market also. It sucked. I drove a $150 car. Life went on. I learned how to fix that car when it broke instead of paying a mechanic. Things got better. You can make choices, and you can realize you're not the only one that scrimped.

Working conditions have improved steadily over the years. 40 hour work weeks, child labor laws, sick pay, vacation days, child care, have all evolved. And while minimum wage has varied, it's not as bleak as you state. Here's a historical look:

1min wage.png (58.07 KiB) Viewed 580 times

Yes, minimum wage in constant dollars peaked in 1968, but has been in the same plus or minus 12% range since 1980. You have had the same labor rate environment your whole working life, subject to various cycles.

[Guy in Shorts]

@ GIS

Capitalism is not the enemy. I'll agree that it requires regulation to work effectively and limit exploitation. But can you honestly tell me you don't own any stocks/ETFs/mutual funds? Millions of very middle class people depend on these securities for their retirements, pensions, etc. Google says more than half of Americans own stocks.

A corporation's job is to maximize profits. It's the government's job to keep an eye on corporations and make sure they're not exploiting people. When they're working right, these mechanisms produce extremely positive results for society. Of course they don't always work right and require constant monitoring and tweaking, but I don't think we should throw out the baby with the bathwater unless you have something better to replace it.

Unemployed Ski Bum here living off fruits of others labor. Squirreled away enough nuts to abandon serious work years ago. Was the only non executive on the Pension and 401K committee back in the work years so I do have handle on how the system works. There are surprising few lazy ski bums as it is not a lifestyle for the unmotivated.

[ifixu]

Blaming others for your failure s very telling, try not spending so much time on here and get another job! I worked my tail off to have a nice life for my family, you can’t even help yourself? Looking forward to hearing your answers to questions 1, 2 & 3

[asher2789]

@ GIS

Capitalism is not the enemy. I'll agree that it requires regulation to work effectively and limit exploitation. But can you honestly tell me you don't own any stocks/ETFs/mutual funds? Millions of very middle class people depend on these securities for their retirements, pensions, etc. Google says more than half of Americans own stocks.

A corporation's job is to maximize profits. It's the government's job to keep an eye on corporations and make sure they're not exploiting people. When they're working right, these mechanisms produce extremely positive results for society. Of course they don't always work right and require constant monitoring and tweaking, but I don't think we should throw out the baby with the bathwater unless you have something better to replace it.

no, ive always been paycheck to paycheck, and dont own anything. and i make a "high" wage for the area. the high wage is a f*** joke. i havent gone on a vacation in 15+ years, and no, the problem isnt avocado toast or lattes, the problem is capitalism.

where i went to college it was free until saint reagan. credit scores didnt exist until 1988. boomers mortgaged my generation so they could live a freewheeling lifestyle, then gaslight us when were making the same wage as they did in the early 90s yet they claim its a "good" wage. its a load of sh*t. capitalism has always been the problem, youre just lucky enough not to be part of the exploited class. ill never be able to own anything because of student loans. cant even get a car loan because credit isnt good enough - so partner and i have to share a car and a commute, holding us back from finding a better situation or working more hours.

my sin? i went to college. PUBLIC COLLEGE, that was FREE before the boomers elected SAINT REAGAN. not that i have tons of credit cards and live outside my means - no, i committed the terrible sin of graduating college into a job market where you couldnt even get a job at mcdonalds if you tried. im lucky to have the living situation i do, because if my landlord had checked credit scores i would of been denied and homeless. already i have one friend whos homeless, and another who is struggling to make ends meet despite "doing everything right".

a corporations job is to make profits for their shareholders so their shareholders dont have to get a real job, and dont need a pension or social security or anything else because theyre just gonna live off the labor of others. its absolutely laughable that yall think the working class has money to invest in the stock market... so out of teach limosuine neoliberal nonsense. there is no saving when wages dont keep up with inflation and havent since the 1970s. if the minimum wage had it would be $25 an hour... which is more than i currently make. and my wage is "high" for the area. my partner, a skilled tradeswoman, makes even less. its a f*** joke.

cant play the capitalism game if you dont have capital. my generation has no capital, because we were robbed to fund the lifestyle of previous generations. its sickening, the gaslighting and denial of reality. im also sick of liberal excuses about how the government just needs to regulate things more - what the end up doing is hurting the little people trying to be their own small business owners, they never go after the big guys who fund their election campaigns. this country has been completely off the f*** rails since the citizens united decision. and the sheep keep marching off a cliff thinking if we just vOtE bLuE nO mAtTeR wHo it will all be fixed. as if senator mastercard who made student loans unforgivable in bankruptcy has my best interests in mind... sick of the f*** 80 year old neoliberal dinosaurs running the show, its time for them to get the f*** hint and RETIRE. they just voted themselves a big pay raise, where's ours?

Questions:

1. Where did you go to school?

2. What years?

3. What did you major in?

1. SUNY plattsburgh for 1.5 years on partial scholarship, CUNY city college for the rest... where my grandfather went for free until he got sent to WW2, my aunt went to CUNY queens college for free, my mom went to CUNY queens then SUNY buffalo (a ~decade younger than my aunt) for a couple hundred dollars per year, my dad, also a CUNY queens/SUNY buffalo alumni, went for free thanks to social security because he lost his dad as a teenager. i also lost my father when i was in my final year of school, and the death benefits were killed thanks to SAINT REAGAN! (in case it isnt obvious, im a NYer who transplanted to VT, and all of this was in state tuition... ironically i wanted to go to UVM but they didnt have my major and i would of been out of state tuition).

2. august 2007 - may 2012. i went one extra year thanks to BUREAUCRACY (higher education is a for profit racket regardless of their "nonprofit" status) and lies about what credits would transfer. spent a semester at SUNY community college because my mother didnt want my education or health insurance interrupted, only to find out that NONE of the credits transferred.

3. design. a TECH field. i work with computers. i can do some coding. i work in design currently. my bachelors was unnecessary, i didnt want it, i was already self taught from 14 on and already making money in the field before i left high school. but if i didnt go to college id get disowned by my family. community college was 13th grade, and unacceptable. trades were for men, not women (interestingly enough, i ended up in the trades when i moved to VT and swore off design, before accidentally getting a job in design). i graduated from my program right as the design world completely changed from print-based to completely online, and i was wildly unprepared for it despite being in a "good" program at a "good" school that was public. timing is everything, if i was 10 years older id probably have a house and land by now as i would of been established in a career by the time the market crashed.

4. when i graduated, there were NO JOBS. not even f*** mcdonalds. i was unemployed for a year (and when that ran out, working stupid service industry jobs that paid next to nothing and had nothing to do with my "career") and sent out HUNDREDS of resumes a MONTH. the only "jobs" that existed were unpaid internships for PRIVILEGED people who could afford to work for free, or "entry level" jobs that required a graduate degree and three years experience for $40k a year. at that point, i lost my dad and i lost my house, my mother and i were scrambling to get a roof over our heads in the NY metro area. and my parents were old school, reagan voting, business owning capitalists. they learned the hard way that capitalism f*** everyone but capital over. medical debt is one hell of a life ruin-er. eventually, about a year and a half after graduating i got a design job for $32,000 a year. in an area where a basement studio apartment went for $2000 a month. i didnt choose to be born in the NYC metro area... after considering suicide and spending a week in a mental health ward where i was told my problem was i smoke two joints a day to keep the migraines at bay, and not our sociopathic and abusive society being the problem, i moved to VT, swore off design, and said f*** it, im never gonna own anything, im not gonna pay back any of my student or medical debts, the man can go f*** himself and i will ride 100 days a year and get by on whatever jobs pay the best in the area. because you cant succeed in a system that sets you up to fail. they cant win the game if you refuse to play. im banking on the market crashing, because if they dont forgive student debt and medical debt thats exactly whats going to happen, or worse. when an ENTIRE generation cant afford to buy houses and have kids, were in for societal collapse and the cracks are already showing.

college was advertised to millennials as an "investment" in their future, that their jobs would more than pay for it. that was a LIE. college was actually just a form of selling an entire generation into debt slavery and our debts are packaged up and bought and sold as speculative assets (known as SLABs, and im looking forward to them crashing the market even worse than 2008 - article that links to is written in 2019 before the COVID pause of loan repayments). all but one of my friends (who was extremely aggressive in paying off her bills, lived at home the entire time, and went to school on scholarship) are still completely saddled with debt no matter what they went to school for. most are stuck living in the NYC metro area because thats where the jobs are, so despite having "high" paying jobs they have extraordinary cost of living thanks to corporate rent seeking and speculation of real estate that eats up 50% of their income.

something is going to give in this completely unsustainable system, and if you enjoy your privileged little ski bubble living on stock market returns and short term rental investments you should be paying attention to the fact that millennials no longer believe in capitalism or democracy. we're collectively in the mood for guillotines since weve been denied a future. and thank god i dont want kids because if i couldnt have kids thanks to government and economic policies making it financially impossible, that would radicalize me to violence. and theres a lot of "me"s out there being radicalized to that point right now.

I LOVE THE GASLIGHTING FROM BOOMERS WHO PAID AT MOST A COUPLE HUNDRED BUCKS A YEAR FOR COLLEGE AND DIDN'T NEED A NON-EXISTENT CREDIT SCORE TO GET A LOAN FOR ANYTHING SUBSTANTIAL WHILE THEY WERE YOUNG ADULTS!