The title of this blog post is one that must be used just at the right moment...there are so many classic ironies, but this one may meet the criteria.
Exciting news:
It was announced that oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp. on Thursday posted the largest annual profit by a U.S. company -- $39.5 billion. Not only that, but the 2006 profit topped the previous record of $36.13 billion which Exxon set in 2005. Oh, and we can't forget that even as other companies post record lows, Royal Dutch Shell PLC -- Europe's largest oil company -- announced on Thursday that their Q4 earnings have grown 60 percent.
In contrast:
It was also announced today that the economy is weakening and jobs declined by 17000 in January. Foreclosures reach record high and lenders report a sharp rise in foreclosures along with the highest level ever of homeowners seriously late in payments. More people can not afford health insurance. We are depending on Asia and the Middle East to support our major investment banks monetarily. and on and on and on...
Exciting news:
It was announced that oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp. on Thursday posted the largest annual profit by a U.S. company -- $39.5 billion. Not only that, but the 2006 profit topped the previous record of $36.13 billion which Exxon set in 2005. Oh, and we can't forget that even as other companies post record lows, Royal Dutch Shell PLC -- Europe's largest oil company -- announced on Thursday that their Q4 earnings have grown 60 percent.
In contrast:
It was also announced today that the economy is weakening and jobs declined by 17000 in January. Foreclosures reach record high and lenders report a sharp rise in foreclosures along with the highest level ever of homeowners seriously late in payments. More people can not afford health insurance. We are depending on Asia and the Middle East to support our major investment banks monetarily. and on and on and on...
Irony:
I, a consumer, am facing economic uncertainty, decreasing job opportunities and declining income. I, a consumer, am spending a higher percentage of my dwindling spending power on increasing fuel prices. They, fuel providers, are bringing in record profits. Ironic.
2 comments:
So what is your point? You overlook a simple fact of economics that while these oil companies are bringing in record profits, their profit margins have been stable over the years. Remember that to get oil these days, you have to spend an awful lot of money to get it, transport it, and refine it, all while being told by your government that you are evil with threats to "take" (hillary clinton) those profits. The US government is the only government in the world that does not support its oil producers and puts huge burdens on an absolute necessity. With an extremely high corporate tax rate and constant and shifting requirements put on refiners and producers, it is obvious why costs are high. Not to mention the government messing with monetary policy and overspending causing a devalue in the dollar which raises prices on all commodities (oil worldwide is priced in USD), investment funds flooding commodity markets, an increase in worldwide demand, OPEC's decrease in late 2006 of supply which as a result of high demand has kept prices high, the US liberal government's restriction on exploration and refining capacity along with maintenance issues and other refinery downtime, and the fact that oil comes from horrible and evil countries who mismanage their country through government and state intervention when they are not killing people and fighting all raise these prices.
Firms are not hiring people because of high corporate rates and increased government through SOX and other government regulations and requirements; not to mention increases over the past year in taxes and health care costs that is caused by government mandates. Forget about the costs of pensions that some of the large companies took on as a result of union pressure and increase costs of transportation and production from a weak dollar and poor fiscal policy from government effecting growth. Also, you have to consider that the whole sub-prime mortgage mess was caused by government putting pressure on lenders to make loans more available to people who could not afford them ignoring the free-market that was working just fine and promoting a strong economy.
In regards to health care costs, we pay through the roof today and have no coverage. We pay more than every other country on earth except for Norway in public dollars on health care and way more than any other country when private funds are factored in. 6.6% of GDP in public money is spent on health care along with another 6% in private money. Canada spends less on health care than the US. On the private side, government regulates the health industry and mandates what health insurance must cover. According to the Council for Affordable Health Insurance (CAHI), "By the late 1960s, state legislatures had passed only a handful of mandated benefits; today, CAHI has identified more than 1,900 mandated benefits and providers. And more are on their way."
The inefficiency in the American health care market is the inevitable result of government tax-and-spend programs and regulatory mandates that interfere with the free market by eliminating the vital link between insurance premiums and each consumer's risk-cost profile. This is one of the tenants of the Obama and Clinton policy. Can you imagine if somebody tried to say that all drivers regardless of their history, their skill and experience, or the automobile that they drive had to pay the same premium? That would not be insurance and would take away all of the efficiencies and benefits that insurance brings in the first place. Not to mention all of the extra costs that the average person is forced to cover. I understand that health care is a unique interest and provides a public benefit to all of society, but we cannot ignore general economic principles.
The premiums for Medicare and Medicaid are not based on a rational assessment of each beneficiary's risk-cost profile. Instead, these programs require only small co-pays based on income level. Moreover, these payments do not come close to paying the full cost of the medical care provided. On the contrary, the cost of this medical care is primarily paid for by payroll taxes and income taxes on all Americans. Medicare and Medicaid are not insurance arrangements but entitlement programs.
Government regulations have transformed private health insurance policies into pseudo-entitlements by mandating that employers and insurance companies provide a panoply of benefits without taking into account each consumer's risk-cost profile.
We already have socialized medicine and we are already paying for it -- twice: once in taxes and once privately. What we are not getting is universal coverage.
If we are going to be forced to pay for something, then we ought to get it. Either provide us the coverage, or give us our money back.
Unemployment levels right now are near full employment and have been for like 4 or 5 straight years.
People making under $50,000/year basically pay no income taxes as the wealthiest in society continue to see their tax burden increase as a result of the Bush tax cuts. Look at the CBO numbers and you will see that the richest 1% and 5% of the population pay nearly 40% of taxes. However, look at thelong long long list of other taxes that are placed on producers and manufacturers and consumers.
You are implying that the government should get involved and start taking over. The liberal mindset to put all sort of faith in "your" politicians borders on irrational. Politicians are self interested panderers who gather wealth, power, and prestige through manipulation and populism while hardly ever feeling the impact of their decisions personally. No matter left, right, or center, they are all the same and no matter what they say or how they say it, the more they get involved the worse off things are going to be and the fewer freedoms you will enjoy. Is not the purpose of our lives to exercise our own freedoms to choose the right, follow the will of the Lord, and do all that we can to lift others ourselves? We should not use the government to force people to do things no matter how good or even in line with the Gospel they seem beyond obvious moral obligations. It was said well in Clockwork Orange where the point is made that it is better for people to be free and to choose bad than to force people to do good while taking away their freedoms.
I like your blog though.
Hey, I tried to leave you a message before...maybe it will randomly show up. Anyways, I am so excited to read your blog. I always love hearing your opinions! Can't wait to hear more!
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