Folks, come on, we're being enronned. The only "reason" for these price
increases is the greed of speculators and the unregulated nature of the
commodities markets. If you want to look into some serious manipulation of
prices, check out natural (heating) gas prices, which have risen something
like 700% since 1990 and for which there are no "shortages" to speak of. In
fact, according to the DOE website itself, overall US demand for natural gas
was LOWER in 2005 than 34 years earlier, in 1973. (Check out:
http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/aer/txt/ptb0605.html.) This is in spite of all
the natural gas-fired elctric plants built in the 1990s, etc., etc. Supply
is on a similar level. Nothing whatsoever to explain 700%. Except perhaps
the Bush family friends at the head of the F.E.R.C.

Please don't delude yourselves about supply and demand, folks, this is
robbery. One president to the next, they've sold us on deregulation,
union-busting, and job exportation, all with the American public's assent.
The SEC will jail a few traders to make it look as if there's some
oversight, then on to the next round of economy-breaking price increases.
The next commodity to explode: water. Wait and see, especially in the West.
Bechtel learned a few lessons in Bolivia, but they'll be back.

Let me ask a question. How come NO ONE really believes what the oil
companies are telling us, and we live in a democracy, and nothing is being done?

Ok, end of rant. This stuff just gets me going.