Talk politics.

Concerns about instability is part the speculative trades. "Concerns" has nothing to do with supply or demand, it has to do with speculation. If he wanted to talk about supply, he would have said "supply being reduced by instability in the Mideast."

And we still have no worthwhile energy policy. Good luck selling those gimped $40k Chevy Volts, Government Motors!

The speculative market is good for the economy. Without it, the market could not take into account the expected supply shifts of important commodities.

Driving up the price today ensures that we consume less and have an incentive to find alternative energy solutions. Without it, we don't have any time to acclimate to period of severe supply shortages.

I understand why this might suck for the person who might not live to see tomorrow, but I fail to see how this is a bad thing.

How much do those trades add to the cost of the oil? I know that US taxes add, on average, about 75¢ to every gallon of gas.

If you want to complain about how commodity futures are done, maybe you should be more specific and give reasons why you don't like them other than "they're speculative", since that's the fundamental point of that system.

So what can be done to curtail if not stop speculation?

just because it caused a previous spike in oil prices and absolutely nothing has changed to prevent it doesn't mean its the cause of the current sharp increase in oil prices.

What surprises me is how the people who demand that we increase domestic production don't realize that the generals are screaming "NO, YOU FUCKING IDIOTS!" at the top of their lungs. I don't think the Domestic Drillers realize how that would impact our national security.

Could it be that no on realizes that our national security plans rely on us being the last ones with any oil and making everyone else run out first?

There are a few ways to work this out for achieving the supply of oil from nations that are sometimes hostile, politically turbulent, undependable and generally unreliable.

The one way is to wage war. Install and/or foster western friendly stable regimes at whatever cost. Forget human rights. Just ensure an uninterrupted steady flow of oil to arrive in NewOrleans and we're all happy.

The way since the cold war ended has been more directly through the markets. Sellers sell for best price they can get, buyers buy for best deal they can manage. Politics are generally left out. At least left to the side of the oil trade. No need to secure Libyan supply before Soviets do.

Speculators don't stabilize gas/oil prices, but they don't really destabilize them. True prices can jump enormously in short time. They can make mountains out of political molehills. And gas pump prices can and do follow. But this went on with OPEC setting the price.

That's the real question here. Who do you want setting the price? Speculators and traders? Oil company execs? Or Emirs, shieks, generals and Presidents?