Oil approaching $60

Define "our" economy.

This is generally a good thing for the US as a whole (though I would argue short term swings aren't as good as long-term trends; too much disruption).

But this will be really rough for the state. Decreased exploration efforts combined with decreased state revenue = pain.

Low price should be a benefit to basically all our economy not associated with O&G.

Lower cost of transportation alone would be a boon for profits. Consumers having more spending money as gas expenses go down is a winning combination with lower transport costs for much of our economy.

Why isn't Big Oil conspiring to keep prices high????

Cheap oil is great for a lot of people, but very bad for some people.

Cheap oil makes transportation costs and electricity costs from oil-fired power plants to be reduced. It also reduces the competitiveness of Ethenol in the market place. It drives down the prices of just about everything. It can also be good for Saudi Arabia and the Arab Emerites because while they're profit margin declines with lower prices, their market share greatly increases due to their reserves being much cheaper to produce than North American oil fields or unconventional wells. It can be good for refineries as it means a cheaper raw material for refining.

However, it is bad for:
1. Domestic oil producers as most American reserves are more expensive to produce and noncompetitive when oil falls below a certain threshold. This is bad if you work for a domestic oil & gas exploration company.
2. State and local governments that depend on gasoline tax revenues for funding.
3. Federal and state governments that rely on oil and gas revenues for funding.

This is a good thing. Cost for all goods and services should decrease.

However, i did hear rumors that Barry is pushing for a gas tax raise, due to pressure from the green lobby.

The logic is, if gas is expensive, less people will drive, thus better for the planet. Make gas expensive to deter citizens from driving to appease the green lobby.

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Why isn't Big Oil conspiring to keep prices high????

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Don't worry, we'll soon get our heads together for a plan to drive up prices again. We have to make sure not to make it too obvious the way we conspire to rape the people and Mother Earth.

Remember, we want dirty air, dirty water and exploitation of the American people.

This is disconnected from natural gas prices right? So there's still opportunity in North Dakota and elsewhere right?

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There's an ongoing war in the Middle East right now and it hasn't kept the price up

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Syria is not exactly a major player on the global oil market.

Gas tax won't pass the HOR anyways