Yes, it's OPEC's fault the major global economies decided to base their economic existence on the supply of a constrained resource from an unstable place. Barely a third of the world's oil production is coming from OPEC, there is no reality-based foundation to this argument.
Dear nazzdack, 1) I clearly agree with you. That's where personnal integrity is very important. Did you think to write : "intentionnaly raise local tension to help the price of crude" ? 2) Please... GS is conspiracy... and no more cartel what ever their form. 3) I don't praise, I just see the Fed respects the law of the United States Congress... and that's means everything to me. Furthermore if the Fed officials can find a better way for the economy I am sure that they will be really interrested. I don't fully agree Kassz007, just that it could have been worse with a different one With pleasure, which part in particular ? I hope that's it's the collapse that's always instructive the 2 part, I don't understand it ? Could you be more accurate ? Dear Logic, I don't agree with you. There is no reason to have an interruption in the oil flow. First it's impossible to compare to Irak with the rest of the Cartel. It went the Irak war 1 and lived under 10 years of total embargo. Futhermore, it isn't a secret that the Iran regime didn't help in Irak... the last month physical intrusion was a last proof... Furthermore I strongly think that the Cartel will collapse on itself, who is stupid enough to go further? I mean who can be crazy enough to stand in the way of the Us and China... if they can agree on this subject... Some part of the Cartel will even not feel anything, the only danger is Iran... You know offer something to the first to accept theirs errors and then... Everybody in the cartel has now more to lose from a confrontation than before... All this place have enjoy the ride... take - give or buy - sell Compare to the 1929 one... I think that they did a "good" job with their tools... Dear Random.Capital, As logic said it, it's 43%... ( a 1/3 is 33%... I know the screen.... ) Secondly the major economy first based themselves on Oil... it's well after that that OPEC was born... you should read their founding creation story... Really interresting. You are reversing reality... I don't know if you trade but with 43 percent of the output, and the capacity to control it, you gain an incredible power. That's why in the civilizated world it's illegal to have more than 10% of all the open contracts on the CME on one product... But I strongly agree with you that was a bad mistake, to based the economic growth on oil... however at the time, with the fog of war it was the best decision... and it's not for nothing that it's still widely use...
Bernanke is the reason I made so much money in 2009. And the reason why people still have what little confidence is left in the financial system. I suppose you are one of those people who would have liked the Fed to do nothing and watch the financial system and the economy implode and cause Great Depression 2, correct?
1) Excellent. Congrats. 2) Instead of calling the fire department to put out a big fire, it may be better to let the fire burn itself out and start over from scratch and not waste time with smoke/fire/mold remediation and unnecessary demolition of a decrepit structure. You may be more of an optimist than I am if you believe that the economy hasn't imploded and there isn't a "managed" depression taking place.
OPEC is only 33% of the worlds oil production and they try to manipulate the market as much as we and the rest of the world do only they do it pretty much out in the open. The truth is that we can produce oil so much faster than we care to say, but if we did, the price of oil would drop to 5 bucks a barrel. There is a good book about the life of Rockefeller called "Titan" (careful, its a long read at over 800 pages) but you will get a very good feel for how he did business and how you can see what he did is still being done today in the oil industry. Basically it used to be that people that had oil wells and refineries could never make a profit because of the excess competition.
I did OK in '09. But unlike you, I know that Bernanke and the Fed will ultimately destroy what dollar based wealth I have. Making a lot in something that will ultimately be worthless is not really making a lot, is it? No point in arguing.... time will tell.