If we have Western European socialism, most Americans would be better off.

ROTFLMAO!!!! There is simply nothing to say to someone that is this out of touch with Euro standards of living, taxes, petrol prices, economy, etal, but BWA HAHAHAHAHAH.

And what is so great about the Socialism in Eurabia??? The Muslims taking over, the unemployment, the caste system, the wait for medical care????

No I would rather have the rugged individualism of the Good Old USA.

The Commuists won’t get into power simply because there are too few of them. If we have Western European socialism, most Americans would be better off.

Communism (note the captical C) also requires the sharing of all property. You can_not_ walk away. You do _not_ have a choice – unless it’s to live or die.

A Christian Democracy WOULD be Communist.

Steve J

Do you know the difference between “voluntary” and “enforced by law”?

The early Christians were indeed communists – but they made that as a personal choice. They could walk away anytime they chose.

Communism (note the captical C) also requires the sharing of all property. You can_not_ walk away. You do _not_ have a choice – unless it’s to live or die.

You can join a commune if you wish. If the Socialist/Communists get into power, you will have to leave the country – if you find one that will allow you to keep your personal wealth.

Suek: do you know the difference between “following the word of God” and “going to hell?” For Christians, following the word of God is not supposed to be a choice–at least that was my understanding. For truly religious people, religion is not optional.

And by the way – legally requiring a morally good action serves to remove the morality from the action. Morality (in a spiritual sense) requires freedom of will. Impose a decision by law, and freedom of will is removed, hence so is morality.

Where’d you get this crapola? The right thing to do is the right thing to do, whether or not it’s enforced by law.

It’s all the tax revenue that the government is getting from the increased profits of of the oil companies. ExxonMobil made $12 billion profit last quarter while paying $34 billion in taxes.

Obama just wants it all. How much did you make … Send it in

I suggest you step back and look at the larger tableau of a $6 billion profit at Chevron” next to a jobless rate hitting a 4 year high.

Where you get to the company’s profit, as tied to a jobless rating, is baffling, Doug. In fact, your resentment at profit is also baffling, and seriously misguided.

The company isn’t responsible for employing the nation. Actually, of late, that’s the govt’s job. They employ about 1000 in their San Ramon headquarters, and about 65,000 employees world wide. Heaven knows if they could expand US business endeavors, they’d employ a lot more. But hang, they pulled out of Alaska themselves in the early 1990s, frustrated at spinning their wheels with a reluctant federal govt. Those job losses lie squarely on the shoulders of a PC Congress.

As far as the unemployment rates, perhaps you need to be reminded that today’s rates are not all that all fired different from the past.

U.S. unemployment rate average, 1982-1993: 7.1%
U.S. unemployment rate average, 1994-2005: 5.2%

This makes today’s rate, despite having the economic set backs from 911 and forward thru the subprime mess, Iraq & Afghanistan wars, and high oil prices, not much higher than during the Clinton “prosperity” years. You are, again, premature in your chicken little dance.

The point many wish to ignore is that the “gouging at the pump” is a pile of crap, as Chevron, BP and Shell (and we’re dealing with the smaller private companies and not the state owned giants here) are all losing their shirts at the pump. Chevron, in particular, is making their money from foreign nations, for exploration in foreign locations, as they do their exploration and production activities in Canada , Angola , Australia , Indonesia , the United Kingdom portion of the North Sea and the South China Sea

As is usual for anti-oil media, they quote gross profits. And unless Chevron has a Exploration and Production headquartered out of the US, they are likely paying a hefty tax on their profits, received from foreign revenue and services. That’s a perk for the US feds.

According to a 2007 financial statement they paid approx 42% in tax rate on their income before taxes *just for that quarter*. ($32,167,000 income after expenses, $13,479,000 in taxes).

The US has some of the highest corporate taxes in the world. 42% is not chump change. All Chevron would have to do to save a boatload of cash is move their headquarters, and leave the US in the cold for that tax revenue. Afterall, they are making their profit on foreign business activities, and losing the most cash in US refined gas products.

Oil is not the highest profit structure industry. They are behind pharmaceuticals and banking. Yet the public demonization by the DNC, who enjoy the lobby money and special interests of the two higher revenue industries, is distinctly less for their prime supporters.

Most of this conversation for you is about how much they make. I am not bothered by profit. Most especially in that industry, as it takes big bucks to generate not only add’l oil resources, but also alternative energies. And the energy companies are engaging in that endeavor. Power is their business.

And true to this energy goal is Chevron Energy Solutions. In fact, in a 2006 BBC article, Chevron was spending $300mil annually to support development of new alternative energy technology.

The below excerpts are from an Oct 2007 article appearing in Alternative Energy News. Evidently they “get” something that the American public doesn’t…. because the media and DNC Congress have a hair up their butt to demonize oil companies.

Chevron Energy Solutions is a subsidiary of the Chevron Corporation, and is entirely owned by the company. The mission of Chevron Energy Solutions is to “to help clients use less energy and pay less for energy, and ensure reliable, high-quality power for critical operations.” So in pursuit of this mission, the Chevron subsidiary promotes alternative energy as a means for improving energy use in facility infrastructure. In other words, they seek to promote energy efficient technologies in public institutions and businesses. They accomplish this through the employment of projects and research in areas other than fossil fuels. Solar electric and stationary fuel cell technologies are among these projects.

As a group of engineers, project managers, energy managers and analysts, Chevron Energy Solutions harnesses the power and professionalism of the eco-friendly industries – all in its quest to promote alternative energy and technology. This Chevron subsidiary seeks to not only conserve natural resources in energy production, but to reduce greenhouse gases as well. This is accomplished through the reduction in demand for electricity that would otherwise be produced by fossil-fuel power plants.

Chevron Energy Solutions has also developed and commercialized advanced energy technologies. These technologies include fuel cells, as mentioned earlier. They also include photovoltaics and advanced batteries. The company has also claimed it is active in hydrogen fuel research and development efforts as well. In fact, Chevron is investing $300 million dollars each year into alternative fuel sources.

~~~

Chevron is often suspected of resisting alternative and renewable energy technologies. However the reality is that even Chevron is embracing the development of alternative energy. Remember that as the environmental revolution rolls on our energy resources will continue to evolve. So we must not overlook all of those who seek to develop alternatives to petroleum-based energy resources: even the petroleum-based companies themselves.

Now maybe you want the government to seize their profits just to fund what they are already doing… spending profits on R&D for alternative energies. It is a rich free market endeavor, afterall.

I prefer the private companies risk their own cash to do that R&D. That way if their efforts don’t pan out, it’s their money down the drain, and not the US taxpayers’.

Do you know the difference between “voluntary” and “enforced by law”?

The early Christians were indeed communists – but they made that as a personal choice. They could walk away anytime they chose.

Communism (note the captical C) also requires the sharing of all property. You can_not_ walk away. You do _not_ have a choice – unless it’s to live or die.

You can join a commune if you wish. If the Socialist/Communists get into power, you will have to leave the country – if you find one that will allow you to keep your personal wealth.

And by the way – legally requiring a morally good action serves to remove the morality from the action. Morality (in a spiritual sense) requires freedom of will. Impose a decision by law, and freedom of will is removed, hence so is morality.

Acts of the Apostles

(New Revised Standard version)

4:32 Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common.

4:34 There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold.

4:35 They laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.

I suggest you step back and look at the larger tableau of a $6 billion profit at Chevron” next to a jobless rate hitting a 4 year high.

Oil company profits, cost of gas are now the centerpiece of this year’s politics. Recent polls show that most Americans think that our dependence on oil is the driving force in the collapse of the economy. Whether accurate or not, there couldn’t be a sharper contrast in the way the McBush and Obama are responding.

McCain now reminds me of an emperor called Cato the Elder, who always finished all his speeches with “Carthage must be destroyed!”; McBush now, regardless of what he’s talking about, is following his lead, but with a more modern corporate-political plot: ‘Coasts must be drilled’!

But that’s not the end of it. Obama reminds me now of an energy pimp, selling to the public energy wares that only encourage their ravenous consumer mindset.

Yet the two are very different. If Obama can’t de-pimp himself and build public support for a significantly alternative energy plan, then we may slip back deep into the pocket of oil for the next decade.

Obama needs to go longterm and quit pandering, while McCain ends his speeches on drilling (all he really needs now to finish his act is ‘a bastard from a basket’.
http://harkwhogoesthere.wordpress.com/2008/05/27/bastard-in-a-basket/