Exxon again posts record profits

[BigRob]

Does the USD follow oil prices or do oil prices follow the USD?

A weak dollar can bump up the price of oil, and a strong dollar can blunt it somewhat, but the dollar and the price of oil have numerous other factors at work that determine their respective values.

 

[UShadItComing]

A weak dollar can bump up the price of oil, and a strong dollar can blunt it somewhat, but the dollar and the price of oil have numerous other factors at work that determine their respective values.

Not a bad answer from my POV but it does show you aren't a supply sider and you probably don't understand SS economics. Of course you already demonstrated that you didn't know what the Laffer curve was all about. Definitely a trending towar the USD influencing the price of oil though! Tell me more about these other factors you are imagining exist.

Lets see what the other cons have tosay about it if they can bring themselves to answer.

 

[BigRob]

Not a bad answer from my POV but it does show you aren't a supply sider and you probably don't understand SS economics. Of course you already demonstrated that you didn't know what the Laffer curve was all about. Definitely a trending towar the USD influencing the price of oil though! Tell me more about these other factors you are imagining exist.

Lets see what the other cons have tosay about it if they can bring themselves to answer.

I told you that the Laffer curve would vary depending on which group you were talking about. You never responded, so of course that is my lack of understanding

If you want to get into Supply Side economics with me, be my guest, I do in fact understand it.

 

[Andy]

Does the USD follow oil prices or do oil prices follow the USD?

Not sure if I even understand the question. Are you asking if the value of the US dollar is effected by the price of oil, or inversely? Then it's neither.

 

[BigRob]

Not sure if I even understand the question. Are you asking if the value of the US dollar is effected by the price of oil, or inversely? Then it's neither.

I think it is effected to a small degree, but as I said earlier there are numerous other factors involved.

 

[UShadItComing]

Not sure if I even understand the question. Are you asking if the value of the US dollar is effected by the price of oil, or inversely? Then it's neither.

What's so difficult about my question and the way I asked it? Read it again because it can't get any simpler than that.

 

[UShadItComing]

I told you that the Laffer curve would vary depending on which group you were talking about. You never responded, so of course that is my lack of understanding

If you want to get into Supply Side economics with me, be my guest, I do in fact understand it.

I've never heard of the Laffer curve being translated into various tax groups in order to place point B but if you have let's hear it. You may think you understand SS economics but you sure the hell don't support it. What kind of a con are you anyway?

 

[BigRob]

I've never heard of the Laffer curve being translated into various tax groups in order to place point B but if you have let's hear it. You may think you understand SS economics but you sure the hell don't support it. What kind of a con are you anyway?

I think that depending on who you are talking about you will come up with different variations of where point B would be.

For example, I think it depends on what form of government you are talking about. For example, even in Communist societies tax rates were basically 100% and people did still work to some extent.

Here is America, I would argue that the lower income brackets could handle a tax rate depending on what social services where then provided. The rich I think would have a different point "B" because for that group, getting taxed at a higher rate makes them worse off because they will not receive many of the social programs that the poor do.

I think the Laffer Curve has its share of problems, and will vary from economy to economy and in fact person to person. Every person will have a different level of tolerance for how much the government takes.

For example, I think it is ridiculous that I am taxed at 35%, whereas my brother, would argue that he is happy to live in a country that affords him the opportunity to earn as much as we do. Therefore, we would have a different point "B".

Supply Side Economics focuses on giving people more incentive to produce things. This will come in the from of tax cuts, which will grow the economy and cause this economic growth to offset the loss of tax revenue. It is a basic theory, but it is still debated as to effectiveness. I am sure you can google it if you want a better definition than what I just gave.

 

[UShadItComing]

I think that depending on who you are talking about you will come up with different variations of where point B would be.

For example, I think it depends on what form of government you are talking about. For example, even in Communist societies tax rates were basically 100% and people did still work to some extent.

Here is America, I would argue that the lower income brackets could handle a tax rate depending on what social services where then provided. The rich I think would have a different point "B" because for that group, getting taxed at a higher rate makes them worse off because they will not receive many of the social programs that the poor do.

I think the Laffer Curve has its share of problems, and will vary from economy to economy and in fact person to person. Every person will have a different level of tolerance for how much the government takes.

For example, I think it is ridiculous that I am taxed at 35%, whereas my brother, would argue that he is happy to live in a country that affords him the opportunity to earn as much as we do. Therefore, we would have a different point "B".

Supply Side Economics focuses on giving people more incentive to produce things. This will come in the from of tax cuts, which will grow the economy and cause this economic growth to offset the loss of tax revenue. It is a basic theory, but it is still debated as to effectiveness. I am sure you can google it if you want a better definition than what I just gave.

what the hell are you on about. I originally asked you to prove that point B wasn't 80% and you came up with something to do with different wage earning groups or something just as ridiculous.

Individual tolerances have nothing in the least to do with point B on the Laffer curve. You clearly don't understand what it even is.

Google it yourself and come back with a proper answer when you know what you're talking about.

 

[BigRob]

what the hell are you on about. I originally asked you to prove that point B wasn't 80% and you came up with something to do with different wage earning groups or something just as ridiculous.

Individual tolerances have nothing in the least to do with point B on the Laffer curve. You clearly don't understand what it even is.

Google it yourself and come back with a proper answer when you know what you're talking about.

Ok, Point B is not 80% because if I was taxed at 80% I would refuse to work, therefore the government would make $0 off of me for taxes.

But the Laffer curve does vary from person to person, so what am I supposed to prove to you? That my point B is the same as every other person when its not. You cannot quantify personal preference.

 

[Sihouette]

I think BigOil is really nice and people are just being mean to them. They should stop whining and thank goodness that prices aren't jacked higher here than in Germany!

We should all be thankful that BigOil has taken the effort to close down other options so it's easy to choose what energy source we want for ourselves. I don't know about you, but I just hate having to choose!

BigOil cares about us. They go out of their way to make things easier for everyone and I think God is rewarding them with big profits for their nice efforts with humanity. Look at how hard they're working to clear people out of the way in Iraq so they can bring us more oil! Shame on you complainers! BigOil just gives and gives out of their big hearts and all you can do is put them down...

 

[UShadItComing]

Ok, Point B is not 80% because if I was taxed at 80% I would refuse to work, therefore the government would make $0 off of me for taxes.

But the Laffer curve does vary from person to person, so what am I supposed to prove to you? That my point B is the same as every other person when its not. You cannot quantify personal preference.

No Rob, the point of the exercize which you are missing is that I choose a point B and you prove that it couldn't be my figure. I want you to prove where point B is. For example, if I say that point B is at 50% then I'm asking you to prove it is lower. The whole question hinges around a taxrate at which people will not continue to go to work or do work and that is the whole point of the Laffer curve. When does taxation meet a point where people become discouraged and stop producing or investing?

When I asked the queston I thought you had an understanding of the Laffer curve but now I see that you don't. This is what Reaganomics and Supplyside thinking is all about Rob. Jude Wanniski is responsible for it during the Reagan administration and it was introduced to him by Laffer on a paper napkin. Learn more about what the concept of the Laffer curve means and we can discuss it further if you like.

 

[BigRob]

No Rob, the point of the exercize which you are missing is that I choose a point B and you prove that it couldn't be my figure. I want you to prove where point B is. For example, if I say that point B is at 50% then I'm asking you to prove it is lower. The whole question hinges around a taxrate at which people will not continue to go to work or do work and that is the whole point of the Laffer curve. When does taxation meet a point where people become discouraged and stop producing or investing?

When I asked the queston I thought you had an understanding of the Laffer curve but now I see that you don't. This is what Reaganomics and Supplyside thinking is all about Rob. Jude Wanniski is responsible for it during the Reagan administration and it was introduced to him by Laffer on a paper napkin. Learn more about what the concept of the Laffer curve means and we can discuss it further if you like.

And yet again I say the curve will vary from person to person. What you deem as an acceptable rate, I might not.

I also pointed out in Communist nations (where the tax rate is 100% basically) some form of work still does get done.

As for your 80% figure, I just told you I would not work if I was taxed at 80%. Therefore my point "B" is not 80%. You might work at 80% tax rate, so your point B will be higher.

None of this means that either of us is wrong, point "B" varies by individual because of our own tolerances. The Laffer Curve is economics 101 anywhere you take, but economics always assumes a "perfect world" which is never the case. A real world scenario of the Laffer Curve is what I am talking about, not a textbook one.

 

[Libsmasher]

I think BigOil is really nice and people are just being mean to them. They should stop whining and thank goodness that prices aren't jacked higher here than in Germany!

We should all be thankful that BigOil has taken the effort to close down other options so it's easy to choose what energy source we want for ourselves. I don't know about you, but I just hate having to choose!

BigOil cares about us. They go out of their way to make things easier for everyone and I think God is rewarding them with big profits for their nice efforts with humanity. Look at how hard they're working to clear people out of the way in Iraq so they can bring us more oil! Shame on you complainers! BigOil just gives and gives out of their big hearts and all you can do is put them down...

When are people ever going to understand the market? It was made crystal clear centuries ago by Adam Smith:

"It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own self-interest. We address ourselves, not to their humanity but to their self-love, and never talk to them of our own neccessities but of their advantages."

 

[Sihouette]

And I'm so thankful these particular butchers (appropos metaphor) have whittled down the competition so effectively that they can set the price of prime at nearly unreachable rates.

Thank God for pure capitalism and the monopolies it inadvertently fertilizes the political climate for. Monopolies are fascist organizations almost always.

So pure capitalism breeds fascism. Lets inject a little more socialism as an antidote shall we? Or soon there won't even be any more blood for the vampires to suck from the populace.