Boycott Exxon/Mobil

Exxon/Mobil has arguably the worst environmental record of any of the big oil companies.

Remember the Valdez disaster? To date, the company has spent more money on PR regarding the incident than it has spent on the actual cleanup itself. The effects of that one spill are clearly evident in Alaska still.

Why are we bringing up this old news?

Your green printer received this mass email from a couple of sources, and while we are no fan of junk email and usually don’t put much stock in this kind of thing, we thought this campaign had merit for more than just the reason stated.

Here is an excerpt from the email:

This makes MUCH MORE SENSE than the ‘don’t buy gas on a certain day’ campaign that was going around last April or May! It’s worth your consideration.

Here’s the idea: For the rest of this year, DON’T purchase ANY gasoline from the two biggest companies (which now are one), EXXON and MOBIL. If they are not selling any gas, they will be inclined to reduce their prices. If they reduce their prices, the other companies will have to follow suit.

The real reason gas prices are so high has nothing to do with supply of crude. The gas companies would love for you to believe that, because it justifies their obsession with drilling in Alaska and everywhere else that’s been off limits to them. Industry propaganda also blames the “Arabs” for jacking up the price of crude, using racism to deflect criticism and obfuscate this fact: the real reason we are paying so much to gas up our cars is simple greed.

The past decade has seen unchecked consolidation in the gasoline industry; Exxon/Mobil and BP/Amoco being the most visible. With every merger, the companies shut down refineries. It is this lack of refining capacity that has pushed gas prices through the roof. This was done by design, for the express purpose of driving up prices. And don’t hold your breath for this government to step in and bring consumers any relief.

These companies are making obscene profits, as CNN Money reported yesterday: Record oil prices netted Exxon Mobil a $10.89 billion profit in the first three months of the year, sharply higher than a year earlier… The profit was enough to be the second-highest U.S. corporate profit on record, falling just short of the record $11.66 billion Exxon Mobil earned in the prior quarter. The profit in that quarter came to $1,385 a second…

There are lots of great reasons to boycott Exxon/Mobil. There are plenty of other gas stations around to buy gas from – and most of them offer lower prices… Hit Exxon/Mobil in their wallet like they’ve been hitting you in yours. They deserve it.