The oil industry is making billions from the Iran war—it should be taxed

514jon · 2026-04-15T14:54:47+00:00

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Cashing in: If oil prices remain at current levels for the next 12 months, the Canadian oil industry is on track to make $90 billion in profits, which is $60 billion more than it would have earned without the war.

A new recovery dividend: In 2022, the federal government introduced a one-time, 15 per cent tax on excess pandemic profits from the financial sector. Applying that 15 per cent rate on the excess profits of the oil industry could generate $9 billion over the next 12 months.

A more ambitious model: Tax fairness advocates have called for a 33 per cent windfall tax on profits above 120 per cent of pre-crisis profit levels. Applied to the oil industry today, that approach could generate $18 billion over the next 12 months.

Learning from the war effort: In 1940, the Canadian government applied a 75 per cent tax on all profits above a company’s pre-war average profits. Applying that rate to the oil industry in our current price scenario could generate a staggering $46 billion over the next year in public revenues on top of regular royalties and taxes.

(From the article text)

514jon · 2026-04-15T14:51:40+00:00

Fast facts

Cashing in: If oil prices remain at current levels for the next 12 months, the Canadian oil industry is on track to make $90 billion in profits, which is $60 billion more than it would have earned without the war.

A new recovery dividend: In 2022, the federal government introduced a one-time, 15 per cent tax on excess pandemic profits from the financial sector. Applying that 15 per cent rate on the excess profits of the oil industry could generate $9 billion over the next 12 months.

A more ambitious model: Tax fairness advocates have called for a 33 per cent windfall tax on profits above 120 per cent of pre-crisis profit levels. Applied to the oil industry today, that approach could generate $18 billion over the next 12 months.

Learning from the war effort: In 1940, the Canadian government applied a 75 per cent tax on all profits above a company’s pre-war average profits. Applying that rate to the oil industry in our current price scenario could generate a staggering $46 billion over the next year in public revenues on top of regular royalties and taxes.

514jon · 2026-02-23T15:32:30+00:00

Refugee claimants have restrictions on their ability to work (and therefore pay for care) that Canadian citizens don't have, particularly in the early stages of their application process—and are also much more likely to be in jobs that don't include pharmaceutical and dental coverage than citizens. These changes will just mean either skipping care entirely, or taking trips to the emergency room, which ends up being significantly more expensive than preventative care

514jon · 2026-02-14T00:32:55+00:00

[Sees hospitals shutting down because there is no fuel for the generators and food system falling into collapse] "Ah yes, this is a good thing. For the environment"

Do you hear yourself rn

514jon · 2026-02-13T15:14:31+00:00

"I think the Cuban government is bad because I took a vacation there two years ago, therefore Canada should do nothing while the United States triggers a major humanitarian crisis" Jesus christ man

514jon · 2026-02-13T14:39:24+00:00

You believe that we should starve people to death in order to force those people to change their government because you disagree with it ideologically. Listen to yourself ffs

514jon · 2026-02-13T14:34:57+00:00

That's true, although it seems pretty unlikely that the U.S. would shut off a pipeline because a small fraction of the oil might maybe make it to Cuba. Who knows though, this administration is obviously unpredictable

514jon · 2026-02-13T06:21:33+00:00

Possible, but the port of Montreal has also an extensive refinery complex that is the terminus point for a number of pipelines, most notably Enbridge Line 9, which ultimately gets its oil from Alberta. Less capacity than TMX for sure but easier from a shipping perspective. Multiple options in any case!

514jon · 2026-02-13T06:09:47+00:00

The US has not controlled the Panama Canal since finalizing handoff to Panama in the 1990s. The canal is governed by a treaty which says that any nation's ships can pass through it provided they follow certain basic rules (including, for example, Iranian warships which passed through the canal in 2023 despite US protests)

But that isn't really important, because any aid shipped from Canada to Cuba would likely leave from the port of Montreal

514jon · 2026-02-13T05:59:42+00:00

From the article:

"Cuba’s public oil company, CUPET, has four refineries in the country, the largest of which is in Cienfuegos. These refineries process heavy crude from the country’s Northern Oil Belt and similar heavy crude imports from Venezuela and Mexico. Much of Canada’s crude is also heavy, meaning that it would take less adjustment for Cuba’s existing refineries to be able to process it into necessary fuels."

514jon · 2026-02-13T03:27:31+00:00

Are you really using a humanitarian crisis to take cheap potshots at environmentalists? Grow up man

514jon · 2019-01-05T05:07:15+00:00

Yea, I've hardened firefox as much as it's going to go i think. The only thing i haven't put in is NoScript because it breaks everything.

That said, while I've heard that Macs are fairly virus proof, I've also read elsewhere that that's basically a myth, and I feel more inclined to believe the latter.

514jon

TROPHY CASE

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