I don't think they're crying, but just venting.

Yes, other countries have much higher gasoline prices, but theirs did not jump at the rate it's climbing here.

If it did you'd probably see major protests and even riots, maybe.

We all got spoiled by cheap prices of not long ago. It's a shock. Oh well.

I've done something about for my sake; I cut back about 50% of my driving.

 

If all we need is more refineries, why arent they being built?

I know, we're complaining too much, but we have the right to. I try to cut back on other things to save for gas. My last bank statement was filled with EXXONMOBIL charges, and other small items. I am REALLY thinking of getting a 4-banger....12MPG isnt cuttin it anymore.

 

Because they Want the prices to stay high

Look at the profit the companies make and what the Government collects in taxes.

 

and the government continues to add to the fuel prices by adding on more taxes. They see the oportunity to make money just like the oil companies so they get on the wagon and ride. Mean while, the voters are all but forgotten until the next round of promises promises. I think the bed of my truck will make a great garden to feed my family with!

My statement still stands "It takes money to defend money to make money!"

 

Well, when it gets so bad that I have to choose if I buy a loaf of bread, or gallon of milk, or buy some gas so I can go to the Doctor's or go to work, to be able to buy milk and bread for the wife etc.... It's getting so bad that It costs more in gas to go to work than I make!

I have asked for a raise... Was denied... It's getting very serious for me.

 

We could all just go live with the People making all the money off us

 

They don't want us; just our $$$$$.

 

MemOrex, again my thought is "they" (anyone having anything to do with oil) have no interest in building them. There is too much to be made the way things are.

Imagine this. You have a 20 room motel along a stretch of highway out in the middle of nowhere. Now you have some fellow motel owners along the route, but you know them pretty well. Matter of fact, you are in real tight with them. See, a few years ago about 3 or 4 of you bought out all the single mom and pop places and now you kinda work together, but you don't really publish the fact. The travelers have no other choices, they take a room at one of these roadside motels or do without. Say you had an average of 16 of those rooms rented out each and every night. Your fellow motel owners along that stretch were at about 80% capacity too. Now you could wait a few years for the number of travelers to increase, then add on. That might not be a bad idea. Or you could do it now and run your number of vacancies up. That's gonna cut your margins though. The other owners are against less money too.

But then you get a brilliant idea. Rather than add on or worry about adding on, you just take a front end loader and plow over 4 of the units. Now you are at capacity each and every night and you can triple your rates. Your buddies do this with there motels too. There is no surplus, there is also no shortage right now, but there might be tomorrow. You then proceed to run off any investors (by whatever means necessary) that might try to build any motels to compete with you and your business allies. You just tell your tenants that it's not your fault. You know you are profiting greatly by the situation, but there is nothing you can do...supply and demand. You had a few units get old and you had to shut them down, and regulations are too tight to build any new ones and basically blame everyone else. Every now and then when the people get restless, you can put a temporary closed sign up to scare them into submission.

 

Hey what happened to methenol and ethenol?

What happened to all those great add-on inventions from the 70's and 80's that did work and add fuel mileage to vehicles like the SUV's of the day? MONEY! My Dad read about a kit that you could add to your carb to increase fuel mileage, this was in the early 80's. So he sent away for the information to order it. Low and behold the kit, that just came out, had disappeared and was no longer available. Being from the automotive field as a technician, I have heard many stories about items like this that were proven to work and worked as promised that disappeared. So that bolsters the keep the refineries to a minimum and prices high which equates to high returns. Thus, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer and the gap between them grows. This has actually been commented on in the past few years and months.

Keith W: I understand what you are saying and completely agree with you. Until there is some kind of check and ballance put into place by some entity that has more power than the oil kings, they will only get greedier, richer and more powerful. It reminds me of kings and surfs.

In closing, the fuel bill for my truck is getting closer to the cost of my monthly loan payments. It is now not an asset but a liability.

 

So, I guess the real question is... what's everyone planning about doing about it? In my own convoluted view, oil is in the process of a huge run after crashing below $20/barrel in '02. Anyone remember that? IMO, we're headed for a seasonal drop in prices right after Memorial Day (happens every year), and should bottom out somewhere in January, if seasonal tendencies hold true. OK, that's the stock traders point of view.

Practically speaking, what do pump prices pull back to? If we don't get to $2.00 gallon or less ($55/barrel, per chart), '06 is gonna be ugly. There's an implied target of $83/barrel built into those charts, and unless something bearish drives prices down, it's gonna hit or, more than likely, overshoot.

[da][f!3!!]&pnf=y]http://stockcharts.com/def/servlet/SharpChartv05.ServletDriver?chart=$wtic,pltad[pa][da][f!3!!]&pnf=y

That's about 35% higher than prices are right now. What does that translate into- $3.50/gallon for regular?

Sooo... anyone got any good damage-control ideas?

 

I have a way out there question. If I built my own refinery (not gonna happen), lets say in my back yard, and I build a few gas stations. Would I determine the tax on the gas? Or the gas prices at my gas stations? Cause if I could I'd put the price at the pump at 2.00 a gallon and be packed with vehicles.

 

I think the government determines the tax.

 

Bio-Diesel.

Put a "pump" in your yard,tell friends who have a diesel about it,charge them 2 dollars and who said the goverment had to know about it?

Now,If could find a way to produce our own gasoline we'd have it made for fuel.

If it sounds stupid,a day with no sleep at 5:30 in the morning don't help.

 

In my opinion, our current prices are driven by pure and simple greed.

Statistics shown by the BBC indicates world consumption has not changed significantly in the last 35 years. There is no supply shortage driving prices. I have not seen a single instance of rationing at the pump since the 70’s.

Sure crude prices are up, but all the major oil companies are making record profits. Exxon Mobil Corporation reports record first half net income of $15,500 million an increase of 32% versus the first half of 2004 (example: http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=1029991 ). BP’s profit for the half year was $12,193 million and increased 33% versus the first half of 2004. Shell reports earnings per share increased 36% compared to a year ago. You can find similar statistics for all the oil companies. Current pricing is affect by, but not driven by raising crude prices.

While I would like to believe a few of the conspiracy theories I have heard over the years, oil pricing is not a government conspiracy. The government does not set futures prices for crude oil, nor does it control what the oil companies charge us at the pump.

 

I saw a TV show a while ago, can't remember which one it was, but they were saying they think the same "Energy Speculators" who ran up prices in CA during the big electricity debacle, have swapped over to speculate on Oil futures.

They are like day traders, and their trading activity is pushing up the value of a barrel of oil. Kind of like the internet stocks of a few years ago.

I found it interesting, even if I've never heard it again.

For me, back and forth 17 miles each way to work 5 days a week is costing me $60 a week. Thats $240 a month. My truck payment is $218!

I'm eyeing a VW diesel, and brewing some biodiesel. Or driving the wife's civic, which gets 38 mpg or so.

Trouble is, I hate having such a nice F-150 and not driving it!