O’Reilly and Dobbs on the commons

The counter-intuitive can confound or captivate — or both.

Case in point: Bill O’Reilly and Lou Dobbs advocate for the commons and for a principal mechanism of common asset management, the shareholder trust.

I think these guys are onto something.

O’Reilly: It is my contention that we the people own the gas and oil discovered in America. It’s our land, and the government administers it in our name.

That’s why oil companies have to get permits. They can’t just run around drilling anywhere. That’s why there are environmental laws — to protect the land and the water, which, again, are the domain of we the people. …

Dobbs: You hit on it. The oil we’re talking about, the petroleum we’re talking about, the coal, all of the vast energy reserves in this country, belong to us, as you say.

In Alaska there’s a perfect model for what we should do as a nation. We should have what they call there a Permanent Trust. Let’s call it the American Trust. And oil companies, who put about $10 billion dollars into fees and royalties every year [should] have that money go into this trust fund, not to be touched by the Treasury Department or any federal agency, but simply for investment on behalf of the American people — citizens.

A couple of things happen. One is that it reminds everybody whose oil this is, whose coal this is, and what the rights of an American citizen are. …

O’Reilly: You would do that on a national level? And people would get a little largess from the oil companies?

Dobbs: Absolutely. A little largess and a little respect.

Source: video (24 February 2012)

Leave a Comment