planetx

thats 9% who are loony tunes... "conservatives" vote dem all the time. note that there seems to be no "communists" or "socialists"! where is glenn beck getting his numbers!

thats a great quote from mr arrow... why doesn't he just say "if you abandon standard economic theory then don't expect it to get you out of a jam later on"! the tech bubble i can understand... essentially another scam where smart money raids dumb money (the huge financial stores of the baby boomers). but the sub-prime mortgage fiasco?! come on! these were banks that should have known better!

oh, i'm sure the money will get spent on lemon used assets! lol! remember the marching orders of the US government at the bidding of big business: "socialize the cost and risk, privatize the profits!"

just a reminder, and so eloquently explained by noam chomsky (http://www.chomsky.info/interviews/20081010.htm) that the US is really only a one party system, the business party… both candidates have in the past made it clear that nothing drastic is going to change but for a little push here or a little push there in return for votes.

hey, the internal combustion engine is here to stay! i suspect commercial applications will always require such engines. but lets keep the gas engines where they need to be and get them out of personal transportation... lets face it, the common automobile is heavily over powered for whats its actually used for! in fact, its heavily over powered from a safety perspective as well. just look at any auto chase on youtube! a frickin mini van is capable of speeds and acceleration that its suspension is incapable of keeping on the road! total overkill!

definitely there's no free lunch... but the number of alternative vehicle prototypes out there that all are shooting for the same ground is indicative of where we should be going. and the complete and utter lack of interest in this direction by government and the existing industry is a sure sign of lack of will to change. there was a post not so long ago about the zap electric vehichle... sold world wide, made in canada but canadians unable to drive one! just to respond to some of your point though.... - electricity may come from fossil sources in any case, but the automobile internal combustion engine is one of the least efficient devices around! centralized power production is from fossil fuels is far more efficient because of available technology used by big plants. - the saftey issues are important. but so far, government has been mandating in the absolute wrong direction in favor of huge vehicles. take the neighborhood electric vehicle (nev). these glorified golf carts are mandated at (conveniently) just below common road speeds (i'm sure just to ensure these cheap and efficient means of transportation are completely unattractive to local commuters). why can't we imagine a world where big heavy gas gusslers are mandated to lower speeds so that smaller, lighter vehicles do not need to pass side and rear impact tests with trucks at high speeds? either way, just one look at this and many other new hybrid and electric vehicles (the big stupid excuses for hybrids in the form of suv's aside... what a farce!) makes it apparent where the future of personal transportation lies. its too bad that government has turned a blind eye to all of it!

check this out! http://www.worldcarfans.com/2060724.006/pm...p-electric-mini 640 hourse power mini... the new in wheel electric motor. a gas engine the size of a baby basket! we need to pressure all levels of government to lighten the restrictions on alternative vehichles now! lets face it, the automobile has been nothing more than a delivery system for oil consumption up until now. i have no doubt that big auto and big oil are practically the same people and they have been feeding us bigger and bigger vehicles in order to ensure that smaller vehicles could not be built strong enough and light enough to survive impact with a frickin tank!

very interesting reading from the globe and mail! apparently, government assistance to middle class incomes help more than those that target the poor in global economies! http://www.neowin.net/forum/index.php?auto...;showentry=1223 its too bad that the conservatives agenda seems to target the richest canadians? http://www.straightgoods.com/Analyze/0017.shtml

oh, they know what they are talking about all right... they are convincing the public to be a submissive subjects. heck, i saw one on these "industry experts" on the news the other day smiling away 'higher fuel costs? get used to it! there's nothing that can be done and there's more to come!' so what does the 'free market' in oil mean for canada, the second most oil rich nation on the planet? a lower standard of living for all?

i'm sorry i used the word monopoly. the proper word is 'cartel'.

oh stuff that old fart communist stuff! lol! haven't you heard? communists are loved in the global economy! russia? great people! china? sure, a few human rights abuses but nothing serious. never had a problem with military dictatorships… they’ve always been cool! lets do business!

again, thats assuming a ‘free’ and competitive market... the number of times i see 'industry experts' on tv saying that we don't have enough refinement capacity! like i said, big oil has been buying downstream for decades now! they own everything from drill bit to pump.. they own the refineries! entrepreneurial 101 dictates that one attempts to monopolize a market then determine what the highest possible price/volume ratio a consumer will pay for it to maximize profits!

what country do you live in? inflation adjusted household income, a measure of buying power, peaked in the late 1960's and has dropped ever since. gdp per capita continues to grow but not income per capita. you know what that means! the rich are getting richer! the poor and middle class are getting trashed! you think you've done well because you have no idea how you'd be living in 1965! of course, the irvings are not concerned with such things. they need to import oil to an oil rich country just so they can mark it up and rip you off at the pumps cause they compete with nobody! everyones got a share of the pie so no reason to rock the boat. smooth sailing!

who said anything about a 'social priority'? its an economic priority. it gives people more money to spend elsewhere doesn’t it? if oil companies are the richest corporations in the world then wouldn't you say that that industry is developed and requires not further assistance? high energy prices raise the price of everything in our economic environment. it drives inflation etc etc..

way too naïve! the “global economy” is one where corporations are the new power centers and free to operate without regard for national interests… its already in its death throws given the next u.s. president has to denounce it to get elected. another thread… markets are manipulated and monopolized everyday! sometimes with complete state approval!

now thats a whole new thread... its completely obvious that there is not "competition" at the pumps. what short memories people have! ten years ago we had a rather large independent gas station franchise here in victoria, bc called ‘payless gas’. about 10 -15 stations. payless gas had price wars with the big guys all the time! it was fabulous. then one day payless sold. eventually landed in the hands of shell oil. now those day are long gone! prices change at all the pumps at the same time just like everywhere else in canada! how strange that happens without any collusion at all?!

first off, stop listening to "analysts" or "consultants" on tv... they invariably work for the industry they are "analyzing". its infuriating how much “news” we get from the “liberal” media that’s just corporate propaganda! so you feel that the fruits of our countries wealth are only available on a “pay to play” basis? the usual hegemony motto isn’t it? which leaves the bottom two thirds to pay for stuff like roads, hospitals etc etc...

further, i don't care which province gets the money... as long as it stays in canada. all this provincial 'nationalism' is actually a load of crap becuase i can live in any province i like!

HANG ON JUST A DARN MINUTE! all this crap about 'free markets' but suddenly its all out the window when we are talking about big oil companies?!! realize, ITS NOT ALBERTANS WHO ARE REAPING THE PROFITS ITS BIG OFFSHORE INTERNATIONAL CONGLOMERATES! albertans are already short changing themselves big time!

its not absolutely necessary that we nationalize to get these things... but canadians _should_ step up and realize that we are worth more than we are told! i'm sorry, we can't use taxes to pay for roads and health care? again, i was talking about using export revenues here, not domestic. domestic prices at the pumps would be highly regulated with garanteed supply (part of the cost of doing business). thus no need to 'pay back the consumer'.

i'm sorry, did i say that we would not export at world prices? i apologize, the oil is under albertan jurisdiction. so, what? are they going to go to war for the oil companies? crazy to sell to canadians at the pumps less than 'free market' (whatever that is... we'll never know in our current environment)? why is that? again... WE ARE THE SECOND RICHEST OIL NATION ON THE PLANET! why is it that big oil has us convinced that that means nothing to us?

risk? risk?! what frickin risk?! they've made all their money back plus billions... thats obvious. they now have a huge cartel where there is a complete lack of 'free market' at the pumps. kiss them goodbye and with good riddance!

wtf? any actual intellectual debate out there? i'm guessing that everybody is on board then besides the usual idiots?

complete and utter submission to plutocracy! completely spineless! disgusting... the oil comapnies love guys like you. they don't own the oil! even the oil companies know that!

sorry? we're only talking about taking oil profits from oil companies (all of which are not canadian) and giving them to canadians. alberta can keep whatever revenues it currently maitains, heck even increase the percentages for albertans! imagine albertans increasing their provincial revenues while federal money and services also increase!