[UnderseaLcpl]

Well, the speculators do technically provide a market. An investment market. Companies compete to generate extra revenue via incoporation.

I will concede that there is a problem with the stock market. It is called corporatism.
The boards of many of today's most infamous companies are corporatists. They all own a significant portion of the company's stock. As we all know, stock price goes up when a company beats quarterly predictions, or announces something that causes people to want to buy their stock. These people live off of the dividends and sales of their own company's stock. Unfortunately, this creates a "bad" incentive to do things like maximize profits at the expense of long term success. This is why so many companies are resorting to layoffs, downsizing, or selling off assets. Of course, the whole story is much more complex but generally this is true.

However, the government does this as well. The difference is that speculators do, at some point, invest money in the growth of the company they buy stock or futures from. The Gov just takes it. Over and over and over again.
I admit I have not done the research on energy industry taxes to prove this but I will bet you anything that petroleum is taxed when companies; explore, develop, refine, transport, distribute, and promote it.
Obviously these companies, like any others, aren'y just going to eat these losses, they just raise the price to cover them and maintain what they consider to be an acceptable profit margin. And, as I said before, this cannot be effectively regulated without state intervention. You remember what happened last time they tried that?
Anyone here who was of driving age in the 70s?

Of course, there is even less probability that the Gov will drop petroleum taxes than there is that any regulation will be successful. The best solution IMO, is to just let the market do its work. If gas is too expensive people will just quit buying it or significantly reduce their use of it. Naturally, this will damage the economy overall, at least until gas has a (cheaper) replacement. The first stages of this process have already begun. This, in turn will send a stronger message to the petroleum companies than any legislation or strongly worded letter.

Also, remember that besides "normal" taxation" we are dealing with the "hidden taxes" of ethanol and low-sulfur diesel. The laws that brought these products into existence artificially inflate the price of gas (and food) even more. Yet, there is no proof that these measures will reduce global warming or affect the Earth at all, esp. when you consider that rapidly industrializing nations with more people than us do not adopt them.

Now to tie it all together. Corporations like Exxon-Mobil take advantage of government regulation to make their markets nigh-exclusive. There is no competition because it costs so damn much to get into the business in the first place. Go ahead and query your local chamber of commerce as to how much you might need to spend to open, say, a bicycle shop. Next, multiply the complexity of that by 1000 to account for federal statutes and regs over drilling areas, EPA impact statements and taxation, to name a few. Finally, consider that your market-dominating competitors get subsidized for their overseas buisness and exploration. It is not hard to see why you cannot compete. It may surprise you to know how many industries actually support gov't restricion or taxation/licensing of their trade to prevent competition.

I really have no solution for this problem. The closest I can come to is "trust-busting". Gov't should break up companies that get too big. Is it perfect? No. Is it fair? Hell, no! In fact it runs completely contrary to my views on Gov't involement in buisness. But, it does do one thing. It creates competition. And when buisness competes, whether it be for customers or labor or markets, the rest of us win.
Except for entrepeneurs (sp?), but then if they do well, they make a lot more than any of us regular folk.