Exxon Not to Blame for Profit

Regarding “Exxon Profit Sets Record, Stirs Anger,” Jan. 31:

I am an Exxon Mobil stockholder. Let me give my perspective on the company’s profit.

We have an economic system called capitalism. Capitalism runs on a basic premise called supply and demand, and the goal of corporations is to profit by filling demand with supply.

I understand that people resent an oil firm’s record profit because America, like the rest of the world, is a slave to petroleum. But that’s not Exxon’s fault, any more than it’s Microsoft’s fault that people use Windows.

So, as a shareholder in a publicly held corporation, when I hear threats of government surcharges on profits, I naturally feel resentful. After all, I invested in this company to make money myself.

That’s what we do in America -- it’s that capitalism thing again.

Michael Burgos

Camarillo