Is Big Grocery Next Target for Ron Wyden?

June 14, 2007

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*Thank a liberal for high gas prices and high grocery prices.*
Good intentions are generally the only thing “liberals” are judged by and it was humorous this week to see Ron Wyden issue a statement calling for an investigation into American refinery capacity. Oregon’s Senator thinks oil companies are purposely keeping capacity low. I don’t know what’s funnier, that after years of conducting show hearings and “investigations” on high gas prices ad nauseum, he now acknowledges supply and demand might have something to do with gas prices; or ignoring that he and the enviros in his party have for decades purposely prevented the building of any new refineries. Wyden’s epiphany is here:

“The consequences of the oil industry’s anti-consumer behavior are clear. When there is less refining capacity, there is less ability to turn oil into gas. When there is less gas, prices go up. When gas prices go up, oil companies make more money,” said Wyden. “It’s a ‘heads the oil companies win, tails the American consumer loses’ proposition.”

Wyden and enviros don’t want more refineries, they don’t want drilling, they don’t want refineries to shut down for maintenance, they don’t want to allow them to phase them out due to onerous environmental regulations…

I guess what they want is to pull a Hugo Chavez and seize them all?

And now let’s fold into this black gold morass the issue of ethanol which is now part of the federal ‘Texas T let’s look like we’re doing something’ mandate of 2005.

I suppose if you want to sweeten the deal and make it attractive for oil refiners to build more capacity–a big if considering the enviros–why would they do it if ethanol is this year’s new little black dress? If you’re mandating less need for refinery capacity by amping up ethanol use then why would the oil companies invest in oil refining capacity when government is phasing it out? Have Ron and his buddies ever seen a business plan that would include purposely losing money with no ‘up’ side? Oh, wait…

Add to this the high prices at the pump and grocery stores because of the ethanol mandate and you wonder why they didn’t just drill in ANWR in the first place! See this piece about the ethanol mandates and prices at the stores. Here’s a nugget:

Of course, a precipitous increase in demand will have an effect on price; accordingly, a bushel of corn that cost $2.00 two years ago, costs close to $4.00 today.
…of course, corn goes into lots of baked goods. Of particular significance, corn is the primary feed for livestock; there are no substitutes with a comparable nutritional value. Consequently, as the price of corn increases, it costs more to feed cows, pigs and chickens. These costs are then passed along to the consumer, who pays more for dairy, meat, eggs, and all the derivatives thereof.
…With corn hovering at record prices, farmers have found it more profitable to grow corn, thus leaving less land available for the production of other grains, reducing their supply. The prices of grains and grain byproducts, like bread or pasta, increase accordingly.

I can’t wait until Ron Wyden and his ilk call for an investigation into “big grocery” because prices of corn on the cob, steak, AND pasta have gone up. Stay tuned, this ought to be good.

Tell ’em where you saw it. Http://www.victoriataft.com