Oil price climbs above $100 a barrel

If you want to fix the country the first thing you have to do is vote the incumbents out of office. This means this November you vote a split ticket to get the job done. And we are on our way. The things that are dragging us down are the price of fuel, our monthly utility bill, our insurance premiums, the price of food, and last but not least those ridiculous car and house notes. You can not take this much disposable income out of middle income Americans pockets with these prices and expect a turnaround in the economy, its not going to happen.. Interest rates????? A ten thousand dollar CD could get you $70 dollars a month for a year. Now you get $7 dollars a month. Are you FRIGGEN kidding me?????? And you are STUPID enough to think these rates are going to turn the economy around???? The interest rates are at these levels to bail the BANKS out and not the country. If you want to turn our country around get your #$%$ to the polls in November and vote a split ticket if that's what it takes to get your incumbents out of office. We have the best politicians money can buy, lets put and end to it... Some demands to turn the country around. 1. Immediately stop the production of ethanol from corn. And you wonder why food prices are high?? Farmers lobbyist love Congress. 2. Ban the trading of oil/commodities and go to a simple supply and demand pricing. But no,, you want hedge funds telling you what you are going to pay for a gallon of gas don't you... Let me explain something to you about the price of gas and how it effects middle income and low income Americans disposable income. These are the people who's spending drives the economy. The average American drives ten thousand miles a year... At an average of twenty two miles per gallon that is four hundred and fifty four gallons a year you will purchase. The difference between $1.50 a gallon and $3.50 a gallon comes to $75 a month. That is a lot of money they would of had to put back into the economy. Now add the price of food that has gone up because of these ridiculous pump prices and you take another $100 dollars a month increase out of an average Americans pocket and we have not got to the municipalities who are going broke because of the fuel prices to run the school buses,, police and Fire equipment and so on. If you think Oil companies or the Banks give a #$%$ about the economy you sir are an IDIOT. Yes, we have the best politicians Money can buy, and don't you ever forget it. 3. Term limits, vote all incumbents out. The days of party loyalty are over, as well as career politicians. Serve your term and you are out. But no,, you are so brain washed you actually believe your party will fix everything don't you... Pull your head out of your........ 4. One flat tax for all, including corporations. If you are at poverty level income or below, you pay no tax. 5. Immediately stop the wars and bring all troops home. But no,, war is big business to many people will get laid off. Screw who gets killed we need our job....

Here's my honest question about the Keystone XL (extra large?) oil pipeline. I'm not being smart. I just want to know. Why does it have to go all the way to the Gulf when it's supposed to benefit the United States and lower our dependence on Middle East oil? There are refineries in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and in a total of 30+ states. Why can't it just go to the refineries in New Jersey and/or Pennsylvania? Shorter distance and online faster. To go all the way to the Gulf refineries makes me think it'll be exported.

High oil prices are killing everyone in this country.

Foreclosures - record High. Weekly Unemployment claims rise again with the rate still 8.6%. America's consumpton for oil is way down...in fact, we export more fossil fuels than we import. The World Economy is in shambles, but the lifeblood of society keeps rising. At a time when people need more money in their pockets, we kee getting gouged at the pump and no one seems to care.

Why is it the govt. has raised the margins on metals and grains, but not on oil?

Associated Press – Wed, Jan 25, 2012 10:43 AM EST

Crude supplies grew by 3.6 million barrels, or 1.1 percent, to 334.8 million barrels, which is 1.7 percent below year-ago levels, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report.

Analysts expected an increase of 700,000 barrels for the week ended Jan. 20, according to Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos.

Demand for gasoline over the four weeks ended Jan. 20 was 6.4 percent lower than a year earlier, averaging 8.2 million barrels a day.

SPECULATION!!! SPECULATION!!! SPECULATION!!!

We need government price caps NOW!!!! My dad's airlines is about to go bankrupt because of high fuel prices. How can struggling consumers be asked to shell out 1/3 of their incomes on gasoline this summer?

The FED isn't raising interest rates in 2015, they won't do it in 2020. Nobody wants to stop a great party when all their friends are getting rich beyond belief... We're all doomed!

How can you contradict yourself by saying "the jobs market appears to be improving, even after a modest increase in unemployment claims" and make sense. I am not foolish. This is all a story to lead you and me away from the truth. If it weren't for these high fuel prices the economy would have been on the road to recovery. It takes more consumer confidence (consumer spending) to enable the economy to do well. Everyone in the world and especially in America is spending more on fuel than they did fifteen years ago and most at considerably higher rates. I travel the same distance I did in 1997 to work and I now spend $7,000 more per year. My wages put me around $85,000 per year. Which year was I better off if I made around $75,000 in 1997 and where was the extra $7000 going? It went into the economy, not the oil industry.

Every article of the day describes negative economic news from downward corrections to employment, lowest housing starts in history,... But when it is time to fashion a new reason for oil price increases and the news in Iran is not bad we get this trash.

Of course, when The Wall Street Oil Speculators have no restrains or limits, they always pricefix up to line their greedy swine, glutton pockets!!

Greed, greed, greed. The oil companies continue to report "record" profits and the speculators continue to pick the pockets of consumers. There are no shortages and there will be none. Even if Iran tries to stop the flow through the Straits the Saudi's have already stated that they would increase their flow to make up any difference. If we really want to make a difference then we must make a statement and reduce our own consumption. Just imagine what would happen if we could cut back just 10% of our oil consumption what would happen to the oil companies. They would start to compete for our business once again. They would reduce their prices and compete. Have you noticed that they no longer advertise for our business anymore? They don't need to, they already get more than enough.

Yahoo seems to censoring comments. I've posted a couple comments that they refuse to post. Interesting.

Call your Congressman and demand that they stop Ben Bernanke from printing another Trillion dollars starting next month. Gas prices will be $6 a gallon this summer if he goes through with it!!!

OK so let me get this straight I think every report I have seen for the last couple of years has said that supply has risen, and demand has fallen and that is quarter after quarter with the same reports it is just whether or not it is as much as they think or not. It is the warmest winter I remember in at least 5 years. The strait Iran was threatening to close has pretty much been realized to be a bluff. All the conflicts in the middle east except the one in Iran has gotten better. The dollar has strengthened overall against the Euro and at least held steady against most others. Now the best reason they can come up with is that demand MIGHT go up because the economy has improved slightly!!!!

Eventually all bubbles pop, and when it does it not going to be pretty. World is a flood in oil, speculators driving up oil prices, no other investments to make a quick buck so we all get flocked. Supply and demand rules no longer valid.

very insightful article. I was surprised Chris Chase didn't write it

I thought weak economic reports caused the price to go up.
Oh, now I remember it goes up either way, in the meantime, not one of the crooks running for president, including the crook in chief, have said one word about what this price gouging is doing to the American Midddle Class, by causing the price of EVERYTHING to go up.
I bought a rawhide dog bone the other day and it costs double what I paid for the last one, how the hell does the cost of gas cause a 100% increase in a piece of rawhide?
Easy answer, everyone is jumping on the gouging bandwagon and passing all the increases down to me.
The dog is eating better than me, because I can no longer afford six bucks for a fresh pineapple, or four bucks for a loaf of bread.
Rawhide is not bad if you braise it in a little dog stock.

Drill baby drill is a joke baby joke!The refineries are cutting back to record low levels just to keep the price up.Check it out for yourself....http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&
s=WPULEUS3&f=W
You see that US refineries have not operated at or above 94.5 % in years when they used to run in the high 90%.Demand is down so the only way to keep prices up is to cut back on production.Bid up the contracts of less production and you get our current FIXED markets.