http://apnews.myway.com/article/20050810/D8BT56DO0.html [font=Verdana,Sans-serif][/font] [font=Verdana,Sans-serif][/font] This kind of "analysis" cracks me up. It's like these people think that normal Americans can just "decide" to not drive as much! The bulk of our miles are spent commuting, and let's face it, WE STILL HAVE TO GO TO WORK. What the hell are the options, if you don't have mass transit or a carpool? I think consumers WILL change behavior due to the increased prices (like moving closer to work, driving higher MPG car), but that kind of fundamental shift in the economy will obviously take a couple of years to be apparent. I don't know anybody that can just flip the switch and say, "Well, prices are too high, I'm gonna sell my truck and just walk the 22 miles to work."
Do you not remember the giant gas drought in the 80's? People did what you are saying... People got rid of their big cars; people carpooled.
if you go on to read that article in its entirety, you will see that oil would have to reach above $90/barrell to equal what happened in the early 1980s. We are a far cry away from that. people drive everday to and from work...gas will go up. compare how much gas prices have risen compared to a loaf of bread and a gallon of milk since the early 1980s and you will see we are still getting a very good deal. with that said...I blame Bush and his aggressive foreign policy (especially Iraq)for gas prices rising. hope Exxon continues to enjoy those record profits while we suffer at the pump.
Of course you do. Because it's fashionable to blame George Bush for everything these days. I had a broken washer in my upstairs shower, and water leaked thru the ceiling of my living room last night. I blame George Bush. I have an ingrown toenail right now...yep, you guessed it: Bush's fault.
It's called supply and demand. The world is producing about 9% more oil today than it did 5 years ago. 25% of US oil imports are from middle eastern countries. 50% of our oil comes from Mexico, Canada and Venezuela. We are not as dependent on the middle east for oil as we once were. Our foreign policy has little to do with the price of oil. Sure, it will go up and down when things happen in the middle east. But it also goes up and down when there is a hurricane in the gulf. Anything that disrupts oil supply will cause the price to go up. If demand went down, the price of oil would go down ... regardless of our foreign policy.
Let's not forget how over taxed we are when it comes to gasoline tax. If that isn't bad enough, In Oregan they are now charging people by the miles because their revenue is down, because people are driving more economical cars. Has it ever occured to anyone that the government very seldom if ever lowers taxes once they are raised, it would seem they could lower the gasoline tax. Also why is it that every state doesn't use the same type of gasoline, the mixtures from state to state are different because of the environmental controls which leads to more difficult time getting gas to the stations and higher prices. The Feds need to make one standard recipe of gasoline so that it can be distributed to all states equally. How about that for an energy policy? Higher prices is also what happens because no one wants us getting our own oil from the good ole USA. :usaflagwa
My whole point was that it's assinine for people to draw conclusions about consumers' price points on gas ("well, they haven't cried uncle" mentality) when the entire country is built around and predicated on travel by car. These things take time. Bush and damned near every other politician in Washington SHOULD bear some responsibility for this, given their 19th century energy policies. I'm completely non-partisan in my disdain for our elected officials in this regard. And screw the environmentalists too for putting up big enough roadblocks to prevent construction of any new refineries in the last 30 years. Nice work. And SDMan is right...they love to tax gas. And everything else, all while calculating the best way to line pockets with the revenue. Jerks. The whole lot of 'em.
the U.S. isnt the problem with energy use... the U.S. uses energy more effeciently than any country in the world. Its the india and china that are driving up prices because they are using cheaper, less efficient methods for producing energy. If there is any complaint about gas prices, it should be about the taxes that are on gas... in louisiana its 38 cents per gallon (20 state, 18 federal). http://www.gaspricewatch.com/usgastaxes.asp A gas tax is a tax on the working class and effects the people in the south and the west more than the blue bloods up in the northeast. People down here drive to work. We dont have the option of taking mass transit (sure, there are buses, but many people work outside the city where the buses dont run).
I kind of like having roads, and interstates, and librairies which is what alot of those gas taxes pay for. States should decide what grade of gas is sold. I don't need more governemnt beuracracy. A low grade gas will do just fine in some places but not in others. Higher prices is not a result of foreign oil. The oil companies set these prices arbitrarily.
