Directive 10-289 Watch
(I sincerely hope this does not become a regular feature here.)
One of the first industries the looters went after in Atlas Shrugged was, of course, oil.
And who is better at looting than politicians?
U.S. Rep. Paul Kanjorski said it’s time for America to stand up to the big oil companies and shout out, “We’ve had enough.”Kanjorski, D-Nanticoke, was in town Monday to announce his introduction of House Resolution 5800, the Consumer Reasonable Energy Price Protection Act of 2008. The bill, introduced on the House floor April 15, would allow the federal government to tax windfall oil and gas profits resulting from historically high oil and gas prices that average Americans struggle to afford, he said.
Kanjorski said industries yield windfall profits when earnings exceed what a Reasonable Profits Board determines is rational, as laid out in the legislation.
Rational profits? As determined by a Reasonable Profits Board? Would Hugo Chavez or Robert Mugabe be eligible to serve on it? (If not, then perhaps Ms. Maureen Felix of West Orange, New Jersey, is available.)
The futility of pointing out, “reasonable to whom, by what standard” is not lost on me. The impermeability of the blood-brain barrier between politicians and reasonableness is common knowledge.
Also not lost on me is the futility of pointing out, yet again, that “big” oil companies actually consist of numerous small shareholders, either directly as individuals and households (such as those that the “reasonable” Representative Kanjorski putatively serves), or indirectly — as employees (whose pension funds own oil company stock), small business owners (who retirement accounts include index funds that include such stock), students (whose college endowment funds own such stock) or anyone else who indirectly benefits from “obscene” oil company profits.
Equally futile would, I suppose, be asking where one goes to apply for a seat on the Reasonable Taxation Board:
(Click to enlarge.)
Via Tax Policy Blog.
(For the uninitiated, Directive 10-289 here.)
Filed under: Uncategorized
That's a bit dodgy of you, Kip. Since as everyone knows, every oil company is owned by a white male between the age of 55 and 70, who smokes. (Also he hates puppies)
Honestly, it's a widely believed fact.
And this new tax would protect consumers how?
It sounds like Kanjorski's saying Big Oil is ripping off customers and it's not fair because the government isn't getting a piece of it…
I take it that "income before taxes" on your table is before "income taxes", but after "sales" and "other" taxes?
Confusing.
[Kip replies: Not my table -- follow the link.
"Before Tax" means "Before income taxes but after other taxes" (that's actually standard accounting presentation).
I realize the rows are a bit out of order. Again, not my table.]