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- Hawker400, on 10/12/2007, -2/+22It's funny that the Department of Energy is predicting that this summer's gas prices will be lower than last summer. It seems to me like everything is setting up for prices to be HIGHER than last summer, not lower.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+22Why do they even bother contriving excuses for this *****?
Don't bother analysing them, either. There is no valid excuse. This is the same old *****, over and over. Remember when they said MTBE was the reason for California's 50-cent-higher gas prices, and then stated that MTBE added 5 cents to the price? Nobody called them on it - Salgat, on 10/12/2007, -3/+22Americans typically have to drive further than Europeans. I have to unfortunately drive 60 miles a day to go to college, ugh it sickens me.
- Plasmatica, on 10/12/2007, -8/+27Well, there isn't any important election coming up...so it doesn't surprise me.
- animalmuther76, on 07/30/2008, -4/+19you think thats bad in england we pay $7.54 per gallon and thats cheaper than it has been.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -5/+20Meanwhile, Exxon continues to post record-breaking profits in the multi-billions each quarter since that little Katrina thing.
Coincidence? Suuuuuuuuuure it. - zlintux, on 10/12/2007, -1/+14Yeah, just did the math.
85.9p for a litre of unleaded fuel in London right now (cheapest available, as per http://www.petrolprices.com/ )
That is in USD, $6.28 per gallon.
Of that, $4.22 is tax.
Approx 67% of the total is tax. $2.06 for the actual fuel cost.
$3.09 Here.
$0.18 to the feds to never be heard from again
$0.18 to the state gov
$0.01 to pay towards state debt
And, 8.25% of actual fuel cost (my local sales tax).
That total that is tax: $0.58. (18.7%)
Yes, $2.51 is for the actual fuel cost.
Oh, what a surprise, we pay MORE for fuel than Britons! You just pay more TAX.
[Yes, I was WAY off in my estimation of how much of the total for my local fuel was tax] - illiteratebeef, on 10/12/2007, -3/+15if all the stupid ***** here didn't drive their expeditions to run errands, we'd be so much better off. i ***** hate people that have huge cars/trucks and use them to essentially run about town. douchebags, all of them.
- tom6a, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11If you still want to drive that gas-guzzler here's a good article about improving your gas mileage.
Improve MPG: The Factors Affecting Fuel Efficiency
http://www.omninerd.com/2006/07/16/articles/57
Matt Vea used a OBDII interface tool and a laptop to analyze fuel performance on his 2006 Jeep Wrangler. Some very good insights. - ParanoiaAgent, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10It's funny, every year, as it gets warm out and gets toward Memorial Day the price of gas goes up. And it's like it never happened before, everyone gets all frothy about it, and there's news reports, etc. And then it'll go up even more as it goes into summer, generating more media coverage on people stealing gas and how it's an outrage. Then fall comes, gas prices drop, and everyone sort of forgets about it. You might have stronger feelings than me if you live in California, but your gas prices suck in the best of times, here in IL it's a little more reasonable.
- ericdano, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10Thankfully Daylight savings time is here. I can now ride my bike to work 3 days a week or more. That will stick it to the man.
- zlintux, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12Nah, he's right.. gas prices in the San Francisco Bay Area hit 18 months lows in the days leading up to last November's election. They were up 25 cents by the beginning of December. $3.09 is the cheap stuff here in the south bay now. Local paper -- Mercury News tells us to expect record highs. That means around $3.75 a gallon.
On an unrelated note, you can get some great deals on used Hummer H2s.... - VeganG, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10"The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline rose 13 percent, from $2.21 to $2.54"
Can I have some of that? $3.20-something here. - kitwaites, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8*****. If you're in neutral, your car is burning fuel as if you're idling. Any car with a modern ECU will detect if the wheels are driving the engine (e.g. when you go downhill or ease off the accelerator) and will almost totally cut off the fuel, giving a significant saving on taking the car out of gear.
You also keep the engine at a consistent RPM and benefit from engine braking, which reduces wear and tear on your brakes and eliminates brake fade. People who coast around in neutral are crap drivers as you don't have full control of your car - for instance, you won't be able to stop as quickly in an emergency. - acdcfanbill, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9There's one surefire way to make sure the price goes up. Keep talking about how it's going to go up. Any little reason for the oil speculators to raise/lower the price at their whims.
- KMye, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8Remember how the economy was tanked and travel - especially air travel - was less than in many years prior?
- LordSkywalker, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9No.
- nesibus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Complete BS
"There is a supply-and-demand issue at work, too. Supplies tighten as oil refineries adjust from making winter fuels to producing summer fuels, and demand rises as people hit the highways during warmer weather, Townsend said."
Ok...I work in plants around Texas City, we make majority of everything for America. Never once in all my years have I ever seen a unit shut down to make a certain type of gasoline, its a straight forward non-stop process. The plants cannot afford to stop a unit once its running, it will cause the process to mess up and they have to get it lined out again.
Plants do not just shut down for maintenance either around here, they have mini-shut downs on different units....bout it.
The media/government picks an excuse most people will believe and they throw it at them. I wonder why all plant employees don't cause an uproar over the lies. - thexfile, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8We can complain all day about gas prices but, there's almost nothing that can be done.
Electric cars cost $30.000+ for a few gallons saved??? I'm not ready to send that kind of money for a good feeling. - PATSCRU, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8yeah, the price ratio of granola to gasoline is exactly inversely proportional....SF is seeing $5 gallons right now...insane
- SirRudy, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7Oil was a lot higher after Katrina knocked out 20% of the nation's refining capacity. That affected prices well into 2006.
Personally, I think oil will probably hit new highs around labor day and rise steadily until the fall, when perhaps demand will decrease as the economy slows down. That's being optimistic. Any of a number of possibilities in the Middle East related to wars civil and international, terrorism, deterioration of infrastructure, etc. could result in a supply shortage gap that can never be bridged. in short, Peak Oil, increasing demand can no longer mean decreasing supply, and prices climb exponentially. - zlintux, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Britons may pay that much, but how much of that is tax?
$3.09 here right now for a gallon of 87 octane. Of that, approx. $1.85 is tax. Why do I think your price is over $5 (probably about $6) in tax?
If I paid all this extra money to the government, at least I'd feel better knowing I'd see it come back to me in the form of better roads or the like. Instead, I see an oil company make annual record profit. - ericdano, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5*Ring* Last summer I bicycled 5 days a week to work. I ran my car so seldom that at one point I had to jump start it to move it.
Looking forward to repeating it this year, starting Wednesday :-P - strangerzero, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7$3.50 in Northern California. Are these prices political?
- GrayOne, on 10/12/2007, -10/+15Don't you hate it when we complain about gas prices and then the Europussies chime in:
"We pay $X.XX per gallon and we don't complain!"
Aren't they directly responsible for that unreasonable price by electing psychotic politicians?
I also hate the:
"Why don't people use public transportation?"
"Maybe you should ride your bike?" - ontain, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4"as a result of higher crude oil prices"
funny how a barrel is now just under $60 so i don't see how they are higher. - Afreyt, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Meh, ring me when its so expensive people start bicycling.
- Blueshrike, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Demand?? Stop calling it Demand that's raising the prices! Gas consumption doesn't suddenly swell except for on major holidays. It's such a charade.
- GRTWHT, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4But see, that's how the game is played: they raise the gas prices to extreme levels throughout the summer, then drop them slightly for the winter and everyone forgets. The end result is that gas prices go up a large amount every year and the american public is too stupid or too distracted to notice.
It's really pretty pathetic. - MODAT, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I dont get it. Why are prices getting higher when then USA is trying to be more conservative with our use of oil. Solar power, hybrid cars, ect.... The "there is greater demand" excuse is *****.
- animalmuther76, on 07/30/2008, -0/+4@zlintux
Your right about 70% is tax, but the government doesn't spend it on roads or making cars greener, it goes into a a big pot and is wasted somewhere else.
I think the idea is to make us use public transport, but I still need to get to the train station.
Also the cost of the train ticket goes up every year too, so I can only assume they dont want us to use that ether - nazadus, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5I seem to remember gouging happening then.. and many 'o company getting spanked for it.
- dupswapdrop, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Here's the song that all girls I know sing when they see a great big hummer or pickup truck!
"Oh he's got a great big truck and a little tiny dick.
He drives like an idiot and plays with his stick.
He can't get a girl so he's off to buy some beer.
The way he drives you can tell that he's queer." - Nedlog23, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Gas prices higher? Thank god, I was wondering what to do with that raise I just got. I'm so glad I can fill the pockets of over paid CEO's and high up executives that don't do any real ***** work, walking around nodding and shaking hands all the while getting paid a hundred times more than the average "working man". What's wrong with this picture? God bless America but ***** the oil companies.
- allaboutdatiki, on 10/12/2007, -5/+8Remember right after 9/11, when gas prices dropped below a dollar a gallon?
- floorman56, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4 Maybe if prices in the US rose to a comparable level you would drive more efficient vehicles
With the average distance that food travels in the US at 1500 miles you would see serous shortages of food supplies in the major city's - apeweek, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Do like I did a couple of years ago. I bought a used electric car from eBay for $2000, invested another couple thousand in it (new batteries, brakes, and some cosmetic stuff), and now I drive around for about a penny per mile in electricity.
Yes, it does freeway speeds. Sure, the range is short, but I can charge it at work, too (makes my cost per mile even cheaper.)
It's 25 years old, but still has all the original electric parts - electric motors are very reliable - only one moving part. - Imagine3, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6sirrudy ~ There is no increased demand. People drive the same amount no matter how high prices are. "Demand" is what the oil industry use to artificially inflate the price of oil.
O, by the way just so I don't sound like a huge tree hugger that hates everything, I am conservative/Republican on everything except technology related legislation, and I actually like big business. Just not the oil industry. lol - mos6507, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3When gas came down, there were plenty of drivers who deluded themselves into thinking it wouldn't spike back up again. The car-buying public is going to have to get off its SUV kick one way or another. You'd think they'd be borderline bankrupt from their adjustable rate mortgages as it is. Why they'd want so desperately to hold onto their Hummers is beyond me. Eventually if the price keeps spiking people will get the picture that the era of cheap oil is over for good. Unfortunately by that time the auto manufacturers will be so far behind the curve that there will be nothing truly suitable to step in. The Chevy Volt is still at least 3 years away, for instance.
- nazadus, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6@d3c0yn4m3l355:
That's not entirely true. Perhaps in your country, it is, but in ours it's not always possible.
Some people live outside if the city because living int he city is very expensive and the sheer chaotic atmosphere can drive ya nuts.
I live close enough to work where I can ride a bike there, problem is their is a major intersection which I'm not crazy enough to drive a bike through -- thus I drive.
We don't have bike lanes like y'all do, or at least I've never seen bike lanes.
You also need to be aware about the differences between your country and ours. Please, tell me, have you ever been to America longer than a few days? I've been to Holland / Netherlands (and a wee little bit of Germany) when I was a kid. I seem to remember it being /vastly/ different than ours.
Since I know, for a fact, that not all Europeans have the attitude you have, I won't hold it against them but you need to look in to your anger problems... you have issues man. - spdorsey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I have a 1996 Toyota 4Runner. I can get 8 days of gas out of it if I only use it to commute. It costs $50 to fill the tank.
I'll be riding my bike to work starting next week. 14 miles. (This is a good thing, even though I'm doing it because of the disgusting gas prices).
What is the world coming to. - Imagine3, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Does anyone really fear a shortage or gas? NO. The reason is subconsciously, we all know that the oil industry will not allow a shortage to occur. They will flood the market with their reserves if they have to. The reason being...if there is a shortage, public outcry for alternative fuel sources will skyrocket and the auto industry will be forced to start implementing real hybrid cars or electric cars.
Go watch the movie "Who Killed the Electric Car?" TAGLINE FROM IMDB.COM "In 1996, electric cars began to appear on roads all over California. They were quiet and fast, produced no exhaust and ran without gasoline...........Ten years later, these cars were destroyed."
If the American auto industry does not react, a foreign auto producer will and create real efficient cars which will in turn put more pressure on the American auto industry and could force many more layoffs and cutbacks. Oh! I'm sorry, "downsizing" is the PC term. - allenb, on 10/12/2007, -4/+7@salgat:
"Americans typically have to drive further than Europeans. I have to unfortunately drive 60 miles a day to go to college, ugh it sickens me."
I've heard that a lot from Americans, but I'm not overly convinced it's true... I mean, undoubtedly your country is bigger, but do people really live further away from their jobs? I know you have more rural communities, but I'd guess you have more large population centres per capita.
I live in England, and in my last job, I travelled 50 miles there and 50 miles back every day. Those 500 miles cost me £50 (~$100) per week in fuel alone. Now I do about 30, which is on the low side, but if I was driving to the local university I'd probably be doing more than your 60.
Even though the EU may be made up of much smaller nations than the US, there's so much interstate haulage here now (Polish trucks are everywhere in England, in particular) that I'm guessing even our truckers drive about as far as their US counterparts...
I think the car is just further ingrained as a personal right, a liberty not to be interfered with, in the US than it is here. I always imagine that Americans would defend their right to burn gasoline like many Americans defend their right to bear arms. Here, on the other hand, I guess we're just used to politicians hiking tax on things we need! - spdorsey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I just started. It is officially so expensive that I'm riding my bike to work.
>RING RING - byronm, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3@datastorageguy
Apparently you never shop at walmart or target or grocery stores. Rise in demand allows one to sell more and make more. You see the problem with oil isn't the rise in demand - we already know the demand. Its the artificiall market that limits the capacity to fill that demand on speculation.
Walmart, Target and Grocery stores handle the rise in demand and give lower costs because they optimize the supply chain, thin out margins but make more by selling more. There is no reason gas stations couldn't "compete" on the same. You don't compete on RAISING PRICES.
The only time demand drives prices is when there is a finite limit. Exxon would never admit to a finite limit of fuels so what is it?
Public schools aren't the problem, people like you thinking society = marxist are the problem. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Corporations, including the united states of america, own you pathetic humans. Big oil posted the biggest profits ever in history, and all you can do is repeat the propaganda "supply and demand". Give me a break, lemmings. Just be honest and tell the world you enjoy, at best, being corporate slaves and, at worst, being corporate sacrifices (halliburton, carlyle, etc). No one actually believes your crap anymore.
- spdorsey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2US gas is subsidized.
- LloydDobbler, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2@schemons: "Every year, the United States switches over to a summer blend of gasoline to 'help fight air pollution' which is the cause of the rise in cost.
California typically switches over to this blend 3-6 weeks before the rest of America which is the reason the prices are so high right now.
Not to mention the fact that California has some of the toughest air quality regulation, they use a different blend of gasoline from the rest of America that is cleaner burning which is why the prices in CA will always be higher then the rest of America."
EXACTLY. How short a memory we all seem to have - every year it's treated like a national crisis when gas prices go up in the spring...and yet EVERY YEAR IT HAPPENS. The "Summer Blend" adds overhead to the cost of gas. Sucks, but that's the way it is.
The problem here is that there hasn't been a new refinery built in the US since the early 1970's, thanks to the environmental lobby and the NIMBY crowd. So every year at this time, there's basically a bottleneck at the refineries, creating a limited supply, which means prices go up.
Now, I'm a big fan of the environment, but people, please. If you want it to be one way (i.e. less refineries), you can't complain about the obvious results of that decision.
Last point: Why don't we just make the Summer Blend all year? Because it adds a bit of cost to the fuel. And believe it or not, gas companies want to sell gas to you for as little as they can, given their costs. That's why they switch it back and forth - the other blend is that much cheaper to make, and can be sold for cheaper. One gas company knows that if they don't use the cheaper blend, their competitors will, and will get more customers. Basic economics, folks. The government doesn't control much of anything here, besides how many refineries we have and whether or not we allow companies to drill for oil offshore in Florida. - Sneakernets, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4It was $2.05 here a while ago... then... woot, $2.80!
my wallet screams for mercy. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3i'm american and i drive an suv ...
digg me down now -
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