I know you’re upset about high gas prices, but who do you blame?
Are you mad at the evil oil companies?
Governor Doyle thinks oil companies are worse than the devil. He wants to impose a tax on oil companies that he’s confident will get back at them for making so much doggone money. Never mind the fact that anyone who’s taken an Economics 101 course will tell you the oil companies will either reduce their supplies in Wisconsin or just pass the tax onto consumers. Doyle poses for holy pictures, grandstands by blasting BIG OIL, and hopes that ticked off motorists will see him as their knight in shining armor.
So how evil are the oil companies? How justified are consumers in wanting to see executives boil in their own oil?
Let’s analyze, shall we….
Credit for what I’m about to write goes to an old friend, Steve Baas. Baas used to work with me in the state Capitol on the state Assembly side. He now works for the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce.
"Oh, sure," you left wing liberals are bellowing. "He’s one of those business guys, looking down their noses at the little people."
Sorry to disappoint the lefties but Baas did his homework, he did the research, and unlike the liberals who Johnny Carson used to joke are to “the left of mayonnaise,” he has actual facts to back up what he found and what I’m about to tell you. The lefties, like my colleague on Channel 10’s InterCHANGE, Kathleen Dunn, like to throw up their hands and shout, “You know, those no good oil companies just make too darn much money. It isn’t fair! It isn’t fair! It isn’t…….sniff…..fair I tell you!”
If we can dispense with the crying towel and go to the substantive facts, please.
When Governor Doyle wanted to subpoena executives from five major oil companies to testify about their operations, Baas found out that according to Standard and Poor’s, the five companies’ current average profit margin (at that time, the end of 2005) was 8.15%. Today, it’s about 9%.
Now some of you might be hollering and cursing that 9% is just too damn big of a profit. Oh really. Is it?
At the time Governor Doyle started going after EVIL oil companies with their roughly 9% profit margin, guess what………….?
McDonalds’ profit margin was larger, you might even say supersized at 11.8%. Funny….I’ve not seen protests outside any Golden Arches. I still see lots of vehicles in the drive-thru (idling and burning up $3-plus fuel).
How about Milwaukee’s pride and joy, Harley Davidson. While big, bad, evil, good for nothing greedy oil companies were grabbing a 9% profit, Harley was earning…..cue Steppenwolf……a profit margin of 16.93%! How dare they! Shut ‘em down! Let’s boycott Harley!
What about another local firm that does quite well that we can and should be proud of……GE Healthcare. Oh my God! They had a profit margin of……… (lefties are going to have a heart attack)…….17%!!
THAT’S TWICE THE PROFIT OF EVIL OIL COMPANIES!!!!!!!!
Oh the pain, the pain, the pain, it’s not right, they should have given it all to homeless shelters.
And now, another…..(the lefties hate this)………FACT.
The oil companies make 22 cents on each gallon of gas sold in Wisconsin. Jim Doyle and the state of Wisconsin make……..39 cents on each gallon of gas sold in our state.
So, WHO is gouging WHOM?
Businesses are in business to…what? I’m sorry, liberals. The answer is not to provide workers $50 an hour or a minimum wage of $20 an hour.
The answer is …………………..TO MAKE A PROFIT.
The oil companies are doing exactly what they’re supposed to do. So are McDonald’s, Harley Davidson and GE Healthcare. They are to be congratulated for a job well done.
They can use their profits to invest, expand, create more jobs, put more money in the pockets of their employees who will then enjoy a higher quality of life.
So you see, you shouldn’t be mad at the oil companies. Be angry with a Governor whose ill-advised tax on oil companies would increase the state’s horrendously high gas tax by 5-7 cents, making it even more expensive to drive.
Again, my thanks to Steve Baas for supplying factual information that I could use against the oh-so clever argument….………………….” They’re just so big and greedy!”
DO YOUR CIVIC DUTY. SHOW SOME COMMUNITY PRIDE. VOTE IN OUR BEST DINING IN THE FRANKLIN-AREA SURVEY
