Talkin' From The Mountains

Oil Companies Report Record Profits

Last week, Exxon Mobil and Chevron reported record profits again. It doesn’t take an economist to conclude that if the oil companies are making record profits they could charge us less for gasoline.

And what is John McCain doing about it? He’s proposing a general reduction in the corporate income tax rate which will give the five largest oil and gas companies and other fat cats a $2 to $3 billion tax break. Why? Because Republicans always cater to big business and the wealthy.

Meantime, after the news of the record profits, Big Oil and Republican political types are still telling us that we must open up protected areas for drilling if we’re going to get the cost of gasoline down.

The oil industry and Republicans rely heavily on folks out here not keeping up with the news enough to know that the oil companies once again made record profits.

Besides, most analysts and economists agree that increased domestic drilling will not noticeably affect gas prices. It will take years to see any oil and then it won’t be enough to make a great difference. The Republican Party preys on our lack of knowledge about such things.

Many of the lands and waters the Republicans and oil companies want to plunder have been cherished and protected for generations. The oil companies already have millions of acres they haven’t touched yet. Why are they going after more?

Here’s why: The big oil boys are trying to get their hands on as much of our beautiful land and coast as they can right now because they know chances are slim McCain will win the Presidency. The foxes will probably be chased out of the henhouse in November.

Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has led filibusters to stop every piece of legislation that might help solve the energy crisis and then, to add insult to injury, has run TV commercials blaming the high cost of gasoline on Bruce Lunsford, his opponent for the Senate.

Factcheck, the most prestigious and reliable website in the nation for debunking lies told by politicians says McConnell’s claim is baloney. Here’s a summary of what Factcheck said.

“Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is running an ad blaming his opponent (Bruce Lunsford) for contributing to high gasoline prices in the state.

…”At most, prices are 12.1 cents per gallon higher as a result of the 1980 tax change that was favored by Democratic candidate Bruce Lunsford.

That’s less than 3 percent of gas prices today, and actually less than the rise in general inflation since 1980.” (www. factcheck.org. August 04, 2008)

McConnell complains in his latest Email to supporters that the “left wing” Sierra Club is attacking him. The Sierra Club is not some “left wing” radical group as McConnell wants you to believe. It is a very legitimate environmental group that does much good. McConnell got one thing right. The Sierra Club is indeed going after him and for good reason.

McConnell and Fourth District Congressman Geoff Davis continue to shamelessly attempt to block efforts in Congress to wean us off oil and to move us toward long-term solutions like better fuel efficiency, new clean technologies, and renewable energy.

Davis has apparently got something really good going with the nuclear energy lobby. He keeps screaming for nuclear power plants. Where’s the waste that stays deadly for 10,000 years going to go, Mister Davis? I bet it’s not going anywhere near your home.

Building nuclear power plants when no one has any idea how to safely eliminate the deadly waste is akin to building a dangerous experimental airliner and then flying it for the first time with hundreds of people aboard—except a problem with a nuclear power plant could kill not hundreds but tens of thousands.

Nuclear power might be a good energy source in the future but not yet. Too dangerous! Terrifyingly dangerous!

Meantime, Barack Obama is working hard to come up with positive, real solutions to the energy crisis and even says that as President he will go along with some off shore drilling if Republicans will compromise and go along with some of his ideas.

Will the Repubicans compromise and work for the good of the nation? Not likely. The best way to make certain that we get something done when Obama becomes President is to elect enough Democrats to the Senate to stop the Republican filibusters.

More Lies and Spin: Every week, we debunk another lie the Republicans are spreading on the Internet about Obama. The latest lie is that Obama replaced the American Flag on his plane with his own logo and campaign slogan.

Actually, the American Flag that was removed from the tail of Obama’s plane was part of the airline’s logo that was removed when Obama leased it and the plane was refurbished. The American flag was moved to another place on the plane, the same place the flag appears on John McCain’s airplane.

When are the lies and vicious false attacks on Obama going to stop?

Dale Greer is a member of the faculty at Morehead State University. He has an expansive background in media including award winning reporting and stints as a major television anchor and talk show host. He can be reached via email at, ddgreer@roadrunner.com.