erynthered Posted July 10, 2008 Share Posted July 10, 2008 Hello Mr. Erynthered Our country is facing a possible sharp economic downturn because of skyrocketing oil and fuel prices, but by pulling together, we can all do something to help now. For airlines, ultra-expensive fuel means thousands of lost jobs and severe reductions in air service to both large and small communities. To the broader economy, oil prices mean slower activity and widespread economic pain. This pain can be alleviated, and that is why we are taking the extraordinary step of writing this joint letter to our customers. Since high oil prices are partly a response to normal market forces, the nation needs to focus on increased energy supplies and conservation. However, there is another side to this story because normal market forces are being dangerously amplified by poorly regulated market speculation. Twenty years ago, 21 percent of oil contracts were purchased by speculators who trade oil on paper with no intention of ever taking delivery. Today, oil speculators purchase 66 percent of all oil futures contracts, and that reflects just the transactions that are known. Speculators buy up large amounts of oil and then sell it to each other again and again. A barrel of oil may trade 20-plus times before it is delivered and used; the price goes up with each trade and consumers pick up the final tab. Some market experts estimate that current prices reflect as much as $30 to $60 per barrel in unnecessary speculative costs. Over seventy years ago, Congress established regulations to control excessive, largely unchecked market speculation and manipulation. However, over the past two decades, these regulatory limits have been weakened or removed. We believe that restoring and enforcing these limits, along with several other modest measures, will provide more disclosure, transparency and sound market oversight. Together, these reforms will help cool the over-heated oil market and permit the economy to prosper. The nation needs to pull together to reform the oil markets and solve this growing problem. We need your help. Get more information and contact Congress by visiting http://capwiz.com/sosnow/issues/alert/?alertid=11571321 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted July 10, 2008 Share Posted July 10, 2008 Huh...I got one too but they must have sent me an earlier draft by mistake: Hello Mr. KDinCT We are incompetent morons who have allowed labor unions to create an unsustainable cost structure while simultaneously failing to conduct any intelligent profit analysis while we rush to worship at the holy alter of "Growth". We need your help. We need you to continue to ignore the fact that instead of operating a sound business under the rules of free enterprise, we can just get our buddies in Congress to give us more of your money if we wave our arms and scream "crisis". Thanks p.s. we're about to jack the sh-- out of airfares. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erynthered Posted July 10, 2008 Author Share Posted July 10, 2008 Huh...I got one too but they must have sent me an earlier draft by mistake: Nice one!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckincincy Posted July 10, 2008 Share Posted July 10, 2008 Huh...I got one too but they must have sent me an earlier draft by mistake: These people are marketing idiots. Witness the "No more free peanuts and biscuits" garbage. What does that cost them? 5, 20, 30, 50 bucks a flight depending on passenger count? Their customers are already hopping mad - why get rid of a low-cost thing that can at least assuage some of that ill will? They remind me of the US Postal Service - reducing the number of letterboxes through the years because they somehow think its' an inefficiency. While any private business claws as much as they can, for the opportunity to make themselves available to the buying public... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMadCap Posted July 10, 2008 Share Posted July 10, 2008 Huh...I got one too but they must have sent me an earlier draft by mistake: Frickin. AWESOME! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dwight Drane Posted July 11, 2008 Share Posted July 11, 2008 Awesome KD.....I was going to drop a wiseass line, but I'll save it for the automakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RLflutie7 Posted July 20, 2008 Share Posted July 20, 2008 Hello Mr. Erynthered Our country is facing a possible sharp economic downturn because of skyrocketing oil and fuel prices, but by pulling together, we can all do something to help now. For airlines, ultra-expensive fuel means thousands of lost jobs and severe reductions in air service to both large and small communities. To the broader economy, oil prices mean slower activity and widespread economic pain. This pain can be alleviated, and that is why we are taking the extraordinary step of writing this joint letter to our customers. Since high oil prices are partly a response to normal market forces, the nation needs to focus on increased energy supplies and conservation. However, there is another side to this story because normal market forces are being dangerously amplified by poorly regulated market speculation. Twenty years ago, 21 percent of oil contracts were purchased by speculators who trade oil on paper with no intention of ever taking delivery. Today, oil speculators purchase 66 percent of all oil futures contracts, and that reflects just the transactions that are known. Speculators buy up large amounts of oil and then sell it to each other again and again. A barrel of oil may trade 20-plus times before it is delivered and used; the price goes up with each trade and consumers pick up the final tab. Some market experts estimate that current prices reflect as much as $30 to $60 per barrel in unnecessary speculative costs. Over seventy years ago, Congress established regulations to control excessive, largely unchecked market speculation and manipulation. However, over the past two decades, these regulatory limits have been weakened or removed. We believe that restoring and enforcing these limits, along with several other modest measures, will provide more disclosure, transparency and sound market oversight. Together, these reforms will help cool the over-heated oil market and permit the economy to prosper. The nation needs to pull together to reform the oil markets and solve this growing problem. We need your help. Get more information and contact Congress by visiting http://capwiz.com/sosnow/issues/alert/?alertid=11571321 They are right. Anytime you have unchecked speculation in a market place, you create a market bubble that will crash. That's what happened in the internet stock boom and the housing boom. That's the good thing about this latest stock market ponzi scheme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted July 20, 2008 Share Posted July 20, 2008 These people are marketing idiots. Witness the "No more free peanuts and biscuits" garbage. What does that cost them? 5, 20, 30, 50 bucks a flight depending on passenger count? Their customers are already hopping mad - why get rid of a low-cost thing that can at least assuage some of that ill will? Peanuts and biscuits made me feel much better about the fact that they overcharge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts