The current head of OPEC, Algerian Energy Minister Chakib Khelil, seems to say the same thing once a month. The repetition does not make it more convincing, but he went back to it again this weekend.

According to the AP, his view of oil is that "the high prices do not reflect market conditions but rather other factors linked to the weakening dollar, market speculation, and the U.S. subprime mortgage market turmoil."

Recent studies indicate that there is much more at play than the dollar and traders trying to make a buck. Oil exports are falling in many countries. Last month, Indonesia said it would drop out of OPEC. It is not longer a net exporter of crude. Mexico says that some of its largest fields are aging and that their yields are down, perhaps permanently.

Even in Saudi Arabia the need for petroleum to build infrastructure and fuel cars is rising, keeping more oil inside the country.

As far as anyone can tell China, India, and the emerging markets draw as much crude now as they did when oil was below $70. Governments in many of those states are still willing to underwrite the cost of oil to help drive GDP with cheap gas and diesel.

Saying that supply and demand are not at work is a convenient way to mask greed, but it does not work.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Earlier today it looked like we were going to see a down day for oil prices, but over the past couple hours things have turned around dramatically with prices once again testing the psychological $70 barrier. Prices for the front running oil futures are now trading up $0.69 on the day to $69.34.

Yesterday we saw how the first wave of panic was hitting the market over the current strike in Nigeria which threatens to cut some two million barrels a day in exports, and those fears seem to be at the root of today's upside as well. The strike, which got under way on Wednesday, has yet to impact the country's oil exports, but concerns are weighing on traders as union leaders in Nigeria decided to extend the strike into its third day.

Oil disruptions from Nigeria, the world's eighth-largest exporter, are nothing new. The country was already running at only about 75% resulting from attacks on its infrastructure by hostile militants. The current strike by the union workers come in reaction to what they feel are unfair price increases set in place by the government on fuel prices, and so far this strike has been a non-violent protest. But the fear is that this situation could change quickly.