[mikester]

For every explanation as to why oil prices are high - there is another explanation as to why they shouldn't be so high.

I would love an unbiased study done that would explain all this without emotion.

The clear reasons I see are these:

Demand - more of the world is mobilized to consume oil than ever before, in the last few decades more 3rd world countries have developed industries that require oil to operate than ever before. Demand is probably at its highest ever.

The weak dollar - no doubt about it, inflation and the weakness of the dollar - can't deny it.

Risk - lots of this oil comes from parts of the world that are simply unstable. Be it the middle east, Africa or even Russia and Venezuela which are re nationalizing their industry and seizing it from private industry.

What we don't see though is how similar this situation appears to the energy crisis in California during the late 90s and early 00s. It does APPEAR similar and I would be willing to make a small wager than we do discover that there has been some unfaithfulness and manipulation of the market in the name of greed.

For a long time during the energy crisis it was explained away for a lot of the reasons we are hearing now about oil today.

California got screwed by the energy crisis and we still have not come close to what I would call recovery but it seems that everyone has already forgotten.