09.29.06
Political Manipulation in Gas Prices?
According to a new Gallup poll, 42% of respondents agreed with the statement that the Bush administration “deliberately manipulated the price of gasoline so that it would decrease before this fall’s elections.” Fifty-three percent of those surveyed did not believe the conspiracy theory; 5% said they had no opinion.
There are several points in the article that the President doesn’t have the power to manipulate markets like that… and the oil companies wouldn’t drive down the price to lower their own profits. Decent points…
But what if the manipulators were those on Wall Street and in the futures markets? Well, that’s what the US Senate recently decided. The big boys on Wall Street got the idea to scare up prices for their own profits, and the spike is nicely over before the lead-up to the November elections so the Republicans can keep the legislature. The Republicans stay in power, maybe even pass another tax cut that pays back their friends on Wall Street…
Wacky conspiracy theory? Maybe…