How Are You Dealing With The Fuel Price's!

[Lund Explorer]

Wonder how much of that 101.95 billion went into wealthy executives pockets? I'm sure those expenses include saleries? Am i wrong to think that the profit margin is what effects the stock holder?Saleries and bonus are not included in this margin right? We are all aware that we need oil and oil needs us. That isn't what is in question. Profit margin isn't the issue, it's being able to get to the lake or work without feeling guilty about it or sacrificing other things.

As Exxon is a publically traded company, its financial statements are on file for inspection for those persons who are or want to become shareholders in that company. It shouldn't take too much effort to get your hands on a copy so that you can get your questions answered.

From my perspective, I don't see that a profit margin of 9.5% as being excessive at all. If you looked at many of the other public companies, most are making much more than that while a few may be a little lower. When you consider the investor's money is at risk, the old standard rule was that a rate of return (profit margin) of 17% was reasonable.

One of the things that you will seldom see reported in the news is that an oil company's profits are not tied to the price of gasoline. It is tied to the price of crude oil, and that price is set on worldwide commodity markets. I'm not sure how many times people have to try to explain this simple fact, but it the truth. One thing you will see reported in the news is the dollar amount of their profits. They'll never report how much oil they went through to get to that amount, nor will they report that it comes out to just pennies per/gallon. Those things won't get your blood boiling, and won't fuel the need to start discussions such as this.

Also, the one group that probably catches the most grief over this type of thing that deserves it least, are the owners of the local gas station. That is because most gas stations profits from fuel sales are usually set by a certain amount of pennies per/gallon sold. I can remember when I first started out as an accountant, that many of these stations made about Five Cents per/gallon. Today that profit sits closer to Three Cents. Think about that...... You pull into the gas station and purchase 20 gallons of fuel. That purchase cost you Eighty Dollars, and the station owner just made Sixty Cents, maybe. If you used a credit card to make that purchase, the station owner got hit with a 2% handling charge from the credit card company. 2% of $80 is a cost of $1.60! So how much profit went into that owner's pocket from your visit?

The bottom line, which just happens to be the favorite saying of old accountants, is that higher gas prices hit all of us. It's just that for some, it hits harder because of the choices they make. If you want to fly down the lake in a fiberglass rocket, expect to pay a lot more than the guy in the tin boat plowing along at a third the speed you're going. If you want to drive a 4X4 pickup daily, then expect to pay more than the person driving a compact car. Do you want to work in the city while living out in the country? Then expect to pay for that privilege with higher commuting costs.

[Fishing Rhino]

It has become fashionable to point out the salaries that the CEOs of large companies make. Ooops, I think they now call it compensation.

In any case, while these salaries, and their recipients are in the news everyday, the fact is that if their salaries were eliminated, it would not make one iota of difference in your life or mine, unless you are one of those execs. I'm extremely grateful to my parents for teaching me this great life lesson.

Do not look down your nose at those who have less than you and do not *** those who have more.

All the negative press about the salaries of the heads of large corporations who manage the affairs of these companies, but nary a word about the salaries of celebrities and athletes whose pay for their services frequently dwarfs that of said execs.

About the necessity for gasoline, I suppoee it's not a necessity in the sense that all a body really needs to exist is food, water, and some method (clothing or shelter) for maintaining body temperature. Don't tell us about riding a bike if your home is heated, you have running water, a computer, and a warm bed in which to sleep.

You are a college student living 200 miles away from home. I'm guessing you live on or near campus. That makes biking practical for you. For others a bike is not a viable option. There are those who earn their living on the road. They cannot use a bike.

[CODbasser]

Thanks for the education. I think rhino is prob the only person here that has some sort of actual experience in this area to comment on it. Unless any of us are whistle blowers for a exxon or some other comapny..we can't really know exactly what goes on, even as a share holder.

[tyrius.]

Thanks for the education. I think rhino is prob the only person here that has some sort of actual experience in this area to comment on it. Unless any of us are whistle blowers for a exxon or some other comapny..we can't really know exactly what goes on, even as a share holder.

We can easily know enough to know that the oil companies do not directly control oil or gas prices. Everytime the gas prices rise people whine and moan and the good ole gov't investigates and finds nothing. We've seen this show before.

[Siebert Outdoors]

I'm still fishing but closer. I canceled trips to the "big" lakes and have just fished about 20-30 miles away. I also have tightend all spending and not buying "luxuries". I have X amount of dollars per month to spend. It just depends who gets it. Gas or luxury items.

[tyrius.]

Spoken like someone with no idea. Talk about not having a clue.

[deaknh03]

If gas is not a necessity I don't know what is. People need it to get to from their work, take their kids to the Dr. etc etc. The food you eat moves on the backs of trucks and the bike you bought didn't peddle itself to the store where you purchased it.

True some people don't need gas to fish or can get away using less, now we are talking luxury and not necessity.

Gas is not a necessity, my family has eliminated most of our fuel usage. We buy our food from local farms, as well as a garden we have. We started a business a mile away from our house, to cut out travel. A lot of what we use fuel for could be sourced from closer to home, it's just we are conditioned to think otherwise.

[J Francho]

If gas prices shoot to $4.25, I'm moving into a yurt made of hemp.

[tyrius.]

If gas prices shoot to $4.25, I'm moving into a yurt made of hemp.

Already hit that around Chicago. Dropped to 4.09 now.

[SirSnookalot]

Gas is not a necessity, my family has eliminated most of our fuel usage. We buy our food from local farms, as well as a garden we have. We started a business a mile away from our house, to cut out travel. A lot of what we use fuel for could be sourced from closer to home, it's just we are conditioned to think otherwise.

For you maybe not, but for the vast majority of people it is. Do the local farms deliver, do you store up enough food to last after harvest time, do you walk to work every single day regardless of weather, does your doctor make house calls, I could go on but if you answered NO to any questions you have a dependency to use gas.

[tyrius.]

For you maybe not, but for the vast majority of people it is. Do the local farms deliver, do you store up enough food to last after harvest time, do you walk to work every single day regardless of weather, does your doctor make house calls, I could go on but if you answered NO to any questions you have a dependency to use gas.

I'm still trying to figure out which patents were purchased and shelved by the oil companies.

[deaknh03]

For you maybe not, but for the vast majority of people it is. Do the local farms deliver, do you store up enough food to last after harvest time, do you walk to work every single day regardless of weather, does your doctor make house calls, I could go on but if you answered NO to any questions you have a dependency to use gas.

All of the questions you pose could be answered yes, but we are conditioned to comfort. Except for the last 100 years, humans have gotten by without gas and autos by learning to grow their own food, and saving the extra for the colder months, instead of buying strawberries in February imported from Chile. Now a days, many of the local farms will have a convenient drop off spot for many families to pick up their food, and if we didn't rely on getting our food from far away, we would be able to sustain more farms nearer our homes, but instead we need our convenience, at the expense of our health, and of course the enormous thirst for fuel.

[Hookemdown.]

So...if gas is a necessity, I assume that every human that lived before the 1800's all died because they didn't have gasoline to put in their Fords. Give me a break. Our current system of living is so reliant on gasoline that our society THINKS it's a necessity, which makes people think they have a right to start condemning a successful company. In reality, it's a luxury. In reality, our dependence on oil is somewhat depressing. (Hey guys, it will eventually run out. Then what are we going to do?)

Someone answer me this: Can you go build an offshore drilling rig, dig down 35,000 ft (crazy..that's how deep DH was), ship it to shore, refine it (and have the chemistry knowledge of how to do this), store it, ship it again, etc?

And if you can, you would be able to supply the market with perhaps the most valuable (sans food and water) and most demanded resource available right now. But I doubt anyone here can...so you'll continue to argue and bash Oil companies for just doing their job instead of actually doing something to fix the problem. I hate high prices just as much as the next guy. I'm taking a trip overseas tomorrow, and I'd say 90% of my expenses is the airline ticket (blame high petro prices there too). It's expensive, and it sucks. But it is what it is. Everyone should be upset. But analyze the situation. Looks at the system, the causes and effects. Not just how it affects you.

If gas prices are really bothering you that much, move to Venezuela.

[SirSnookalot]

I'm still trying to figure out which patents were purchased and shelved by the oil companies.

Have read some articles and seen documentaries like "Gashole" that have led me to believe those practices do happen. I would not give out a name based on hearsay.

[deaknh03]

I think that absolutely patents have been bought and destroyed, and thanks for the heads up on the documentary Snook, gonna have to get me that dvd.

[tyrius.]

Have read some articles and seen documentaries like "Gashole" that have led me to believe those practices do happen. I would not give out a name based on hearsay.

But you'd make the claim that the companies are doing it based on hearsay?

Seems odd that you'd make the claim against the companies based on hearsay but not provide any examples because its only hearsay evidence. That's a headscratcher.

[tyrius.]

I think that absolutely patents have been bought and destroyed, and thanks for the heads up on the documentary Snook, gonna have to get me that dvd.

Patents are searchable. They're public information. As such, in order for this claim to hold any merit whatsoever, you have to be able to provide examples, such as, Patent XYZ would allow a car to run off pure water. Without that you're just a bunch of conspiracy theorists talking about stuff that you don't really understand.

I hear this same song and dance all the time. "Those big bad oil companies are buying patents and shelving them!" A simple question of "Which ones" is met with silence or diversion. Let's try evidence for once and see where that gets us.

[deaknh03]

Patents are searchable. They're public information. As such, in order for this claim to hold any merit whatsoever, you have to be able to provide examples, such as, Patent XYZ would allow a car to run off pure water. Without that you're just a bunch of conspiracy theorists talking about stuff that you don't really understand.

I hear this same song and dance all the time. "Those big bad oil companies are buying patents and shelving them!" A simple question of "Which ones" is met with silence or diversion. Let's try evidence for once and see where that gets us.

Ok, maybe not patents, how about ideas that are bought up before they get patented. Obviously we as common folk have no "proof", but common sense tells me if I made 250 billion yearly on the sale of something, and someone invented something to circumvent the use of my product, I would buy it for a couple of million to keep my product viable. We have sent a man to the moon, 40 years ago, and with all of the other technological marvels we as humans produce, we can't run a car on anything but fossil fuels? Not logical thinking.

[Grey Wolf]

It's so mind boggling that I don't know who is telling it like it is .Do any of you know what you're talking about ?

[deaknh03]

I don't, but sometimes it sounds good.

[tyrius.]

and someone invented something to circumvent the use of my product, I would buy it for a couple of million to keep my product viable.

What kind of moron would sell that idea/invention for a couple of million? If his idea would supplant the need for oil he'd instantly be the richest man on earth. A couple of million would be a rounding error with respect to the value of his idea. The value of this patent and/or idea would be such that it would be a significant purchase for any large public company and would be disclosed in a public filing.

we can't run a car on anything but fossil fuels? Not logical thinking.

What other energy source provides the energy that oil does? Given the laws of physics you can not get more energy out of a reaction than you put into it. Fossil fuels have had millions of years of the earths heat and pressure to turn from plant carbon to an energy rich substance. The earth has done the work for us without using up valuable farmland or other fossil fuels in the creation of it. So ethanol requires a significant amount of energy to produce and distribute. Oil uses far less than ethanol. I'd rather not drive around with a compressed hydrogen tank either. Does the Hindenburg ring a bell? Solar is still too inefficient to power a car for any length of time. Wind won't power a car. Now electricity is making big strides in the Volt and the Leaf. Batteries and electricity are the only really viable option but only recent advances in battery technology have made them "cheap" (The volt's batteries cost about 10K right now!)enough and light enough to use. As that technology improves that cost will drop and more people will buy them.

Sorry to rant like this, but baseless claims (especially ones easily proven false) annoy me.

[deaknh03]

Cars got better gas mileage in 1980 than they do now, we are in big trouble if our technology is going backwards.

[tyrius.]

It's so mind boggling that I don't know who is telling it like it is .Do any of you know what you're talking about ?

Here's a question that I like to ask those who claim that oil companies are "gouging" us. If you found an ounce of gold would you sell it for $100 or would you sell it for close to the market price of $1,500? If you held out for the market price would be "gouging" the person that you sold it to? If not then how is the oil companies selling their product for the market price any different?

[tyrius.]

Cars got better gas mileage in 1980 than they do now, we are in big trouble if our technology is going backwards.

You trying to annoy me on purpose? You know this is false.

[deaknh03]

You trying to annoy me on purpose? You know this is false.

I'm giving you a +1 for that, nicely done.