With gas prices steadily rising, now whenever I need gas I have to stop and do the math. Will I have enough money for food if I fill my tank?
I drive a 1994 Toyota four-cylinder and it’s pretty good on gas (between 23 and 28 mpg), but since we’ve been forced to pay more than $3 a gallon for more than a year now I’ve actually spent as much as $35 to fill up.
I shudder to think what those of you with SUVs must be going through! Isn’t it time that we all “just say no” to this blatant highway robbery?
What really made me feel like I was bent over and rudely violated was reading that Lee R. Raymond, the outgoing CEO of Exxon Mobil Corp., was paid an outrageous $300 million as a retirement bonus (the largest ever), in addition to his $52 million salary!
The Washington Post reported last February that Exxon Mobil in 2006 had “posted the largest annual profit by a U.S. company – $39.5 billion,” topping it’s own previous record of $36.13 it set in 2005.
“The record earnings amounted to roughly $4.5 million an hour for the world’s largest publicly traded oil company,” the Post added.
Let’s get this straight: $300 million to retire, record setting profits to the tune of $4.5 million per hour and me, a hard working student, can’t afford to fill up my tank and eat at the same time – this is capitalism on steroids!!
If that’s not enough, try this: just look up “Exxon Mobil” on wikipedia.org then see “Criticism” on pages 4 through 7 for such categories as Environment, Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, Human Rights, Funding of Global Warming Skeptics, Brooklyn Oil Spill, the list goes on.
Incidentally, Exxon Mobil also holds the sixth spot on the Toxic Top 100 list of America’s biggest air polluters.
At least some other oil companies explore alternative energy sources, not Exxon Mobil, citing inadequate profits.
And who after years of disputing whether fossil-fuel emissions contribute to global warming (duh!) has finally (on Feb. 13 in the N.Y. Times) acknowledged that the planet was warming while carbon-dioxide levels were increasing. CEO Rex Tillerson went on to state that there is no significant alternative to oil in the coming decades, and that Exxon Mobil would continue to make petroleum, and natural gas its primary products.
“I’m no expert on biofuels. I don’t know much about farming or moonshine..There is nothing Exxon Mobil can bring to that whole biofuel issue,” said Tillerson – Reuters, Feb. 13.
This, after I calmed down, got me thinking. “What can I do about this?” and a plan began to take shape.
From that day on I have refused to purchase Mobil gasoline.
Sadly my lone boycott doesn’t do much in the big picture other than my satisfy own integrity, and mass produced emails to “Boycott Big Oil on Sept. 10, blah, blah blah,”haven’t produced results either .
However, the reality in America today is that we all need gasoline – and we will for the foreseeable future – yes, Big Oil has us all by the “you-know-whats.”
What would happen if all of us (and yes, this means you and everyone you know too), stopped buying Mobil gasoline from now on?
Notice I’m NOT asking you to stop buying gasoline – ONLY Mobil gasoline.
It’s not far from any corner with a Mobil station to another corner with a different brand.
Oh, you say “I’ve got a Mobil credit card.” Well, the average American has between five and 10 credit cards in their possession. Just grab a different card.
Stop and think it through, only as a group can we effect change and if no one buys their gas what do you think they’ll do?
How long will it take for the world’s most profitable corporation to answer to their shareholders?
No gasoline revenue domestically?
Better drop prices – what else can they do – the most money hungry corporation on the planet, needs big dollars to continue…
We can actually make a difference – but only if we do this together- I’m already there, but I’ll need your help.
How ’bout it America?
I CAN’T, BUT WE CAN!!
