Letters to the editor: So-called 'greedy' oil companies; Trump's same playbook

Stop blaming oil companies

Now that gasoline has reached historic highs all you hear from our governor and president are how the “greedy” oil companies are price gouging the public.

Really? Exxon lost $22 billion during pandemic when gas prices were at historic lows. If they were greedy, why didn’t they raise their prices then? Answer, supply and demand. When demand is high and supplies are low the price goes up. Simple. According to the latest industry studies in 2019, the world daily oil production was 95 million barrels per day while consumption was 85 million compared to today’s number of 88.9 and 88 million, respectively. Add to this the pressure of the Ukrainian war and OPEC reducing production by 2 million barrels a day you can see what strains that has put on supplies, consequently the market determines the price based on their need not oil companies’ “greed.”

Getting back to our governor and president, both share a significant blame for compounding the problem. In California our gas prices are over $1.75 higher than the national average because of taxes and regulatory costs imposed by our State Legislature and Newsom.

The first thing the president did was declare war on fossil fuels the day he took office by immediately shutting down the Keystone Pipeline while imposing massive new taxes and regulations on fossil fuels causing an immediate escalation of fuel prices because those costs are passed on to you and me at the pump.

Given all these events Newsom still has the audacity to call for windfall profit taxes on the “greedy” oil companies that provide us with our gas, while at the same time bragging about keeping/greed his $46 billion budget surplus that he confiscated from hardworking taxpayers.

John R. Hanson, Oak View

Trump uses same old playbook

Re: The Associated Press’ Oct. 29 story, “ ‘Vicious, biased’: Trump assails judge in NY suit”:

The article states Donald Trump accused the judge presiding over New York state’s lawsuit against the Trump Organization for criminal tax fraud of being vicious, biased and mean as well as a rubber stamp for the Communist takeover of a great and prosperous American company he has built over many years. It’s the old playbook. Don’t defend the case on its merits, ignore the fact that the CFO of the company plead guilty to 15 felony charges including grand larceny and falsifying business records.

It’s typical that Trump would attack the judiciary and the judicial system, and should they find the company guilty, he will attack the jurors and no doubt the press. While he was ranting, why not throw in a reference to a “Communist takeover” for good measure? It’s no different than the Big Lie: if the company should lose the case, it’s not because it was truly guilty, it’s because it couldn’t get a fair trial. If the company should win, then nothing was wrong, and he was right all along.

Since this is a state trial in NYC, he is frustrated he and his company have no control over the process, so he went to the old and tired playbook. Enough already.

Maurice M. Garcia, Newbury Park

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Letters: So-called 'greedy' oil companies; Trump's playbook