Posted: 2/3/2012 6:05:40 PM EDT
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http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/house/205085-dems-propose-reasonable-profits-board-to-regulate-oil-company-profits
So here we have 6 people in our government starting a competition for the worst elected official I guess. In all of their brilliance, and I'm sure it comes from years in holding "real" jobs outside of politics, they have decided to issue a Soviet'esque " Reasonable Profits Board". The article will explain: Six House Democrats, led by Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), want to set up a "Reasonable Profits Board" to control gas profits.
The Democrats, worried about higher gas prices, want to set up a board that would apply a "windfall profit tax" as high as 100 percent on the sale of oil and gas, according to their legislation. The bill provides no specific guidance for how the board would determine what constitutes a reasonable profit. The Gas Price Spike Act, H.R. 3784, would apply a windfall tax on the sale of oil and gas that ranges from 50 percent to 100 percent on all surplus earnings exceeding "a reasonable profit." It would set up a Reasonable Profits Board made up of three presidential nominees that will serve three-year terms. Unlike other bills setting up advisory boards, the Reasonable Profits Board would not be made up of any nominees from Congress. The bill would also seem to exclude industry representatives from the board, as it says members "shall have no financial interests in any of the businesses for which reasonable profits are determined by the Board." According to the bill, a windfall tax of 50 percent would be applied when the sale of oil or gas leads to a profit of between 100 percent and 102 percent of a reasonable profit. The windfall tax would jump to 75 percent when the profit is between 102 and 105 percent of a reasonable profit, and above that, the windfall tax would be 100 percent. The bill also specifies that the oil-and-gas companies, as the seller, would have to pay this tax. Kucinich said these tax revenues would be used to fund alternative transportation programs when oil-and-gas prices spike. "Gas prices continue to rise, creating a hardship for the American people," he said. "At the same time, oil companies are making record profits gouging their customers. This bill would tax only the excess profits and create forward-thinking transportation alternatives." Specifically, he said the money would be used to fund a tax credit on the purchase of fuel-efficient cars and set up a grant program for mass transit programs when oil-and-gas prices are high. The bill does not estimate the size of these grants or the amount of money that might be collected through the tax. Co-sponsoring the bill are five other Democrats: Reps. John Conyers Jr. (Mich.), Bob Filner (Calif.), Marcia Fudge (Ohio), Jim Langevin (R.I.), and Lynn Woolsey (Calif.). Now can anyone tell me, do you think these fine elected officials understand the difference between a profit and profit margin? Let's go ahead and put this out there, the profit margin of oil companies is, get ready, %6.2. That's almost 1/3 the margin of cigarette companies, 2/5's of lumber companies, and 1/3 of book companies. This is of course being put into action due to " a fear of rising gas costs". Rising gas costs are hardly due to greed as much as it has been from government getting in the way of how oil companies need to operate. Let's also not forget the XL pipeline would have reduced cost as well, that coupled with the relocation of rigs from the Gulf to South America, among several new regulations for companies to adhere by, and you have higher prices. So my question is, if by some miracle this becomes law, when and where does it stop? |
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Quoted: http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/house/205085-dems-propose-reasonable-profits-board-to-regulate-oil-company-profits So here we have 6 people in our government starting a competition for the worst elected official I guess. In all of their brilliance, and I'm sure it comes from years in holding "real" jobs outside of politics, they have decided to issue a Soviet'esque " Reasonable Profits Board". The article will explain: Six House Democrats, led by Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), want to set up a "Reasonable Profits Board" to control gas profits. The Democrats, worried about higher gas prices, want to set up a board that would apply a "windfall profit tax" as high as 100 percent on the sale of oil and gas, according to their legislation. The bill provides no specific guidance for how the board would determine what constitutes a reasonable profit. The Gas Price Spike Act, H.R. 3784, would apply a windfall tax on the sale of oil and gas that ranges from 50 percent to 100 percent on all surplus earnings exceeding "a reasonable profit." It would set up a Reasonable Profits Board made up of three presidential nominees that will serve three-year terms. Unlike other bills setting up advisory boards, the Reasonable Profits Board would not be made up of any nominees from Congress. The bill would also seem to exclude industry representatives from the board, as it says members "shall have no financial interests in any of the businesses for which reasonable profits are determined by the Board." According to the bill, a windfall tax of 50 percent would be applied when the sale of oil or gas leads to a profit of between 100 percent and 102 percent of a reasonable profit. The windfall tax would jump to 75 percent when the profit is between 102 and 105 percent of a reasonable profit, and above that, the windfall tax would be 100 percent. The bill also specifies that the oil-and-gas companies, as the seller, would have to pay this tax. Kucinich said these tax revenues would be used to fund alternative transportation programs when oil-and-gas prices spike. "Gas prices continue to rise, creating a hardship for the American people," he said. "At the same time, oil companies are making record profits gouging their customers. This bill would tax only the excess profits and create forward-thinking transportation alternatives." Specifically, he said the money would be used to fund a tax credit on the purchase of fuel-efficient cars and set up a grant program for mass transit programs when oil-and-gas prices are high. The bill does not estimate the size of these grants or the amount of money that might be collected through the tax. Co-sponsoring the bill are five other Democrats: Reps. John Conyers Jr. (Mich.), Bob Filner (Calif.), Marcia Fudge (Ohio), Jim Langevin (R.I.), and Lynn Woolsey (Calif.). Now can anyone tell me, do you think these fine elected officials understand the difference between a profit and profit margin? Let's go ahead and put this out there, the profit margin of oil companies is, get ready, %6.2. That's almost 1/3 the margin of cigarette companies, 2/5's of lumber companies, and 1/3 of book companies. This is of course being put into action due to " a fear of rising gas costs". Rising gas costs are hardly due to greed as much as it has been from government getting in the way of how oil companies need to operate. Let's also not forget the XL pipeline would have reduced cost as well, that coupled with the relocation of rigs from the Gulf to South America, among several new regulations for companies to adhere by, and you have higher prices. So my question is, if by some miracle this becomes law, when and where does it stop? Yes, I understand sarcasm. I still  |
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Could they at least come up with names that don't sound like they are straight out of 1984? Ok I've reserved myself to the fact that they are going to destroy this country but could they at least not make it a crude parody.
"If, from the more wretched parts of the old world, we look at those which are in an advanced stage of improvement, we still find the greedy hand of government thrusting itself into every corner and crevice of industry, and grasping the spoil of the multitude. Invention is continually exercised, to furnish new pretenses for revenues and taxation. It watches prosperity as its prey and permits none to escape without tribute." Thomas Paine |
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Quoted:
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Facebook's profit margin is... wait for it... 30% Nationalize Facebook! Facebookers of the world unite! I am literally talking to someone about this right now. She says FB makes too much money and can be run without ads because by some magic elves, they'll get the money to pay for servers. |
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The average guy is too stupid to understand how awful an idea this is.
He's just going to mutter something about those greedy corporations, and wonder why he can't find a job, or why his standard of living keeps eroding. I fully expect something along the lines of this Reasonable Profits Board to come into existence in the next 4-5 years. Make arrangements to protect your capital now. Defy the home bias and diversify internationally. Because some form of capital controls are likely to be next. |