Strengthening U.S. Dollar and Decreasing Oil Demand Lowers Prices

September delivery for light, sweet crude dropped by $2.54 today, to close at its lowest level since June 10, settling at $122.19 on the Nymex. It dropped as low as $120.75 during the trading hours; something it hasn't done since May.

The higher cost of fuel has caused consumers to drive less, which has lowered the demand for oil; one of the major factors in its decline.

A stronger U.S. dollar has also been a factor, as investors abandoned commodities today to put their capital in equities, which drove up the DJIA by 266 points.

President Bush Lifts White House Offshore Drilling Ban - Puts Pressure on Democrats

President Bush sent a message to the Democrat-controlled Congress today, putting the pressure on them to respond by opening up offshore drilling that could bring billions of barrels of oil to Americans in the not-too-distant future.

It wouldn't do much in the short-term, but it beats what is being done now: nothing!

You can't call the misguided attempt at pushing ethanol forward something, as it has done more harm than good, as food prices skyrocket. The subsidy to farmers needs to be repealed.

Democrats are already whining about this, but their inept answer is to drill in areas the oil companies own where there aren't any proven reserves. Oh yeah, Obama's solution is to tax the oil companies. That'll bring more oil to the market.

The Democrat-controlled Congress needs to now get some guts and also lift the ban on drilling; not just offshore, but across Alaska and in the continental U.S.

Billions of proven oil reserves are there for us to use.