Americans are being fleeced by the oil companies. Free enterprise is based on being able to sell your products for a reasonable price without gouging the consumers. A monopoly is supposed to be illegal. What we have is a combined monopoly by big oil, operating in collusion with each other to control the market. This ploy has strangled the market and has resulted in huge profits for them.

A tax on windfall profits would quickly bring the prices down, but don’t expect this to happen with the present administration. The oil companies are testing the Democrats to see if they have the guts to propose a windfall profits tax to bring the prices within reason. Now is the time to stand up for the American working man.

Congress doesn’t have the courage to fight big oil because many are tied to them. From our chief executive on down that are currently millionaires, will soon be billionaires when they get out of office. Their assets are held in a blind trust until they get out of office but it increases according to the fluctuations in the market.

Any oil man who has stock in oil businesses is making huge profits. Every oil company has reported higher profits than ever before. If gasoline is so scarce, why haven’t we seen any close down? Answer: It is a sham.

I question how each service station knows when to up their price simultaneously with each other. There is no competition, which is the backbone of free enterprise.

The oil companies use every excuse they can think of to show why the price increases. No shortage has shown itself so far; the switch to corn-based ethanol has slowed down the flow, but this is temporary as stocks are building. They have been using hurricanes, floods, uprisings, wars and lack of refining facilities as their excuses for the high prices. We have had all these problems in the past but we have paid a reasonable price before. These excuses are not valid now. It is time we called it what it is, “The Fleecing of America.”

Edward Davis

Orland