Ha! Bush-loving Prudential economist Freaks Out! "Raid the SPR!"

[swag]

http://www.cm1.prusec.com/yararch.nsf/(Files)/a_081604.pdf/$file/a_081604.pdf

Ed "Y2K" Yardeni, who has gotten postively starry-eyed over Bush in past strategy alerts and who championed the invasion of Iraq, extolling a future of $28/barrel oil prices, is freaking out today, calling for Bush to raid the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to lower oil prices.

Another fraud for Bush!

[tandot]

1. That is what Kerry suggested a couple of month ago

Actually, it probably would help to just stop putting oil into the SPR for a short while. Despite the high oil prices, they are still adding oil, building up the SPR, instead of making sure that more oil gets to the market.

It will hurt the poor the most. Rich people who drive these gas guzzlers give a sh*t about gas prices. I had to significantly reduce my spending on groceries, clothing, and skipped Doctor visits, just so I am able to drive back and forth to work. We have no mass transit and I don't have any other way to get to work.

Many people have no other choice than to save money where ever they can to make up for the additional expenses for gas. And it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that this will impact the economy negatively.

[KoKo]

2. Bad Idea.....it's only stretching out...what we in US and Global economy

need to face with our huge debt (national and personal). Doing this will only give an extension for our dependence on "easy credit, mortgage re-fi's and spend it all mentality.

It also prolongs the discussion we need to have about alternative fuel supplies, reducing consumption...and alternative ways of EVERYTHING that will spur investment and new industry based on Fuel Independence goals for the US.

As an "anti-Iraq Invasion protester" I know we MUST work for independence from foreign sources for our energy...and this will only lead to more "borrowing" and end the end "bite us in our arses." :-(

[swag]

3. Right, but coming from Yardeni it's a huge fucking laugh

Read his strategy alerts from late 2002 on and you'll see that he championed the Iraq invasion specifically because oil prices would go down to $28/$27 barrel.

And now this larf, that the economy is going into the toilet because of Bushco.

[rapier]

5. notes

That he would favor war to lower oil prices says it all. If only I could be in the room if some dead or severely disabled soldiers parents confronted him on it.

That he thought the Iraq invasion would bring lower oil prices in the near term shows wishfull thinking or stupidity, take your pick.

The oil market is I think subject to a sharp pullback at any time. The relentless runup of late has in part been because of short covering. Lots of wiseguy hedgefunds have been gaming a drop and have been badly burned. I'm not sure if the short interest has been falling as so many have been burned but I don't doubt it.

While there is no question that the supply situation is tight the dymamics of the market are still strongly related not to the fundamentals but to the internal dymamics of the market itself, as determined by speculators. Sharp moves either way should continue for a long time. Again I say a sharp drop of at least short term duration is to be expected as a strong probability.

An opening of the reserve would almost without doubt cause a sharp at least short term oil price drop and I would be shocked if they don't do it soon.

[amazona]

6. i agree with Kerry

It is ridiculous to be stocking a "reserve" at these inflated prices. The SPR has always been sort of a boondoggle. Let's take oil out of the ground and...put it back in storage. Sheesh. Now, while prices are artificially inflated by the crap in Russia and Iraq, this is the very time we should be calling on our "reserve" to keep prices at a reasonable level. A "reserve" that is never used is simply welfare for the oil industry, which is already enjoying huge windfall profits at the moment.

[German-Lefty]

4. Question: How much oil do we burn in Iraq?

All those bradlies, hum-Vs, helicopters, and jets have to be burning a serious amount of fuel, especially when you consider the cost of flying half the stuff in by plane. Does this have an impact on world oil supply? Does it come anywhere close to what we get out of Iraq?

If nobody else has got some numbers I'll try to find some.