Wow.

He just kinda dropped the bomb on them mid video. They were totally expecting some strategical/stock market tips on how to pool their money and he basically came down with a green hammer and said "You're fucked".

Note that he said not just individually, but collectively as well, that we should move toward a more sustainable way of life, so promote your lifestyle in your neighbors and friends!

Have any of the hosts/staff at Fast Money ever had a unique thought or idea? Have they totally become television automatons? I mean, we've been hearing the same quote for years, that "commodities is (sic) cyclical", "June highs always bring July lows." Is this guy for real? THIS is his exclusive and professional insight for the viewing audience? Pathetic, truly awful, he should be sacked immediately. He obviously has no interest in taking a risk and sharing any type of truly useful market insight. This is the same drivel that has been printed in financial market research 101 texts for decades. Thankfully, Mr. Simmons has the force of character to speak the truth by daring to say what the others are too afraid to even ponder in their beds at night.

I have the utmost respect for those that stake their reputations on their personal and professional opinions. Of course you'd be taking a risk, especially on a television show, but if you believe you are right...dammit, speak your mind and start a constructive debate!

Kudos to you, Mr. Simmons! Finally, a voice of reason in a sea of insanity!

Fantastic! Gave those puffed-up plastic talking heads something real to chew on. Their facial expressions said it all! Mr. Simmons, I'm a new fan!

brilliant

What's bad is that we just saw a big pull back. I predict an even further pullback to $90 or so. Of course, it will be very short lived. But it will be a huge speed bump towards that "wake-up" he was talking about. Too many dipshits will crow about telling us so. Maybe we can start the dipshit database so when the shit really hits the fan, they are sent packing when begging for food?

Wow, that was great. I am going to e-mail that out to all of my family.

How do I learn more about Mr. Simmons?

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Author's comment:
His website is here, and includes some speeches and papers. http://www.simmonsco-intl.com/ He has also written a book called Twilight in the Desert.

Wow the cyclical I'm hoping for is the one that brings back the modern versions of the stuff Simmons was talking about- small scale agriculture and energy microgeneration, rationalization of consumption, return to the urban centers and sustainable (i.e. public and non motorized) mobility in general.

Although markets do expand and contract they are never tied down to a specific commodity, in fact, they react badly (as is hapenning) when a single product dominates several sectors at once.
It ties the market down and it tends to pull away from restrictions to other activities (food, transportation, etc).

Whale oil was a pillar of American economy and changed overnight and the sky didn't fall.
The market isn't at risk but oil is and I sincerely don't think it's realistic at all that it goes as low as 90 again. Not a chance.

I'm not a gambler but I'm putting 5 on a 180 barrel in December. I only wish it was more...

Matt Simmons baby!!! Graduate of University of Utah. Thanks for putting it out on the line.

Are you people kidding me? I don't have a problem with someone promoting the ideas he was such as shorter commutes, villages, local farming, etc. but you have to take the source of the information into account. The guy is the head of an OIL INVESTMENT BANK! That means he benefits from these high oil prices. Additionally, R&D into alternative fuel sources would only benefit him more as it would give him more viable energy sources to invest in to diversify his portfolio. Sure what he says supports what the majority of us want, but what is his motivation and does that point towards something else?

@Travis

What he said is correct, I couldn't give a shit about his motivations for doing so. People make money out of change, and people go poor. This is not a factor in whether we should or should not.

The How and When matter in this instance. I could care less if someone thinks Xenu will drop H bombs from 747s if they don't do it, the Why of this matter is irrelevant in the case he's making IMHO.

Cybercat= right

Analyze the content of the message objectively.

I understand that you don't fully trust an oil lobbyist though. It would be an enormous prank on his part!

I like this response.

"By lowering the demand, stupid" would have been an excellent start to the response too. The other guys in the room have been clearly using the power of prayer to "do something about high gas prices". And when the god of gas prices sayeth unto them "I can't do anything about that" they basically wet their pants. They have no plan B, even after it's been handed to them on stone tablets.

I agree with Travis.

While I agree that the reaction to what Simmons said was priceless, there's a lot of cherry picking or selective listening to what Simmons said. For example, he said he wanted to catalog potential reserves on the continental shelf and pay for that with tax dollars 10 years ago. Imagine, treehuggers, if someone were to say that today. I for one would be saying no, and if it were to happen, at the very least the people who will profit from it ought to pay for it.

I don't think there's any question that people are getting way rich speculating on the price of gasoline right now. I don't think there's any question that a lot of money has been pulled out of real estate, and because it's got no where else to go, has wound up in commodity markets and is driving up the price of oil.

If it were up to me, I would be talking about massive reforms on commodity market speculation. I'm not going to let the fact that I wish people didn't use gas, that I have a hybrid and ride my bike, and that I generally think high gas prices are better than low gas prices get in the way of my distaste for what the speculation is doing to people who can't afford gas.

One thing Simmons said is most interesting: he was talking about installing a floor. While that's a great idea from an environmentalist's perspective, you have to wonder why someone in his line of work is asking for it. And the answer to that question, I believe, will tell you a lot.

About freakin' time.

A price floor, while being also embraced by the hippies, would make our economy much more robust. Removing volatility in fuel prices in return for generally higher fuel prices means price spikes are few and far between, economy can adjust to fuel prices, and average Joe can adjust his lifestyle accordingly.

The big question is: what is done with the excess in times when the floor is higher than the market price? My vote: goes into renewable energy research and implementation.

Travis: no... what you say is pretty much nonsense. If humanity breaks from its oil addiction like he's saying we should, the price of oil will go down (elementary school economics). That will mean he will lose money on his investment. I don't see how you could suspect someone of having that kind of motive when he's saying we should all do something that will cost him money!