Letters to the Editor
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Indeed
And since people are not traveling as much, they are not spending as much. And since they are not spending as much, the economy will suffer.
Hence the LOGICAL solution would be for the US to drill for more oil here at home, build new refineries to produce more, and to lower, if not eliminate entirely, the federal and state taxes on gasoline.
The economy would then bounce back dramatically.
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Nothing will change until gas is 8 or 9 dollars a gallon
Because nothing in America changes until it's a crisis, a panic. And when the government needs to recall 50 or 100 troops to quell the rebellions at home then we will leave Iraq. You can ballpark that collapse at no more than 5 years from now.
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re:Nothing will change until gas is 8 or 9 dollars a gallon
Electro Robot,
"Because nothing in America changes until it's a crisis, a panic. And when the government needs to recall 50 or 100 troops to quell the rebellions at home then we will leave Iraq. You can ballpark that collapse at no more than 5 years from now."
Oh I disagree. When it hits people in the pocketbook, a LOT changes. People WILL drive less and spend less and that will take a serious toll on the economy.
Now, when the politicians find they are getting less money to spend due to this, THEN they will do something about it...OR when the PEOPLE start burning their fellow politicans and removing them from office...that would get their attention too, as they LIKE their jobs. The problem with the last suggestion is, people don't hold their politicans accountable for STUPID decisions.
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Point is...
People are not driving less because they want to. They are driving less because they have to - they can't afford the fuel, on top of everything else.
It's really not that deep, and I don't think Andrew (you okay with addressing you by your first name?) is saying it is. Drop the price of a gallon and dollars to donuts, we'll see the Yukon Explorer Mk. II. A certain amount of demand destruction can happen along the way, but barring some extreme shortages that we haven't seen (yet?), we can easily bounce back to a ridiculous consumption if prices drop.
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Its a Good Thing for Most of Us to Drive Less But
the price of diesel in farming communities around the country is a real crisis. Diesel is the lifeblood of farming and right now, it is $4.00/gallon! This increasing cost, along with eye-popping increases for everything from steel, to fertilizer to seeds, is going to make for a very interesting year for all of us--on top of everything else.
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Gas has effectively doubled in price since 2001
And no one is screaming about it hitting them in the pocketbook. But if it triples again and people can't eat then it will suddenly dawn on them. Government doesn't listen to the bottom half of society anyhow so they don't and won't care, not until that bottom half rises up and there's mass rioting.
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No job = less driving?
Unemployed former commuters no longer on the road cuts down on overall driving levels. See, Bush does have a program to reduce greenhouse gases!
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re: No job = less driving?
CParis1,
"Unemployed former commuters no longer on the road cuts down on overall driving levels. See, Bush does have a program to reduce greenhouse gases!"
Sorry but this time it's difficult to blame the President. We have not been able to build a new refinery in this country since 1974. Why? Because every time it goes to court, a group of ecologists fight it and the judge bends backward for them. Further, the oil wells we DO have have all been capped and try getting permission to open them!
Granted, the President does have some responsibility here...but not ALL of it!
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In the past 6 months
More than half of all vehicles sold nationally were trucks or SUV's. More than half. That means more than half are getting around 17-20 mpg. And those are the new vehicles. Regionally though like in the SE that ratio 75/25 in favor of trucks SUVs so Americans it seems are cutting their own throats. They're too dull to recognize it. I was flipping through Motor Trend the other day and Hummer plans on selling an even larger Hx vehicle, so large in fact it's larger than the military truck it's based on. So large it's exempt from CAFE standards. An 8500 lb family vehicle that gets as little as 10 mpg. And because of a wrinkle in the tax law, owners can get as much as $24,000 tax exemption for 'farm' vehicles. Even at $4/gal that's 60,000 miles of free driving.
No, America is screwed. And it can't happen fast enough.
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@ chiefpayne
> We have not been able to build a new refinery in this country since 1974. Why?
Good question.
I think you are crediting environmentalists with too much power. If they had that kind of clout, our air and water would be cleaner, there would be better fuel effeciency standards, etc. Even if you were right, what would prevent an oil company from setting up shop just across the border in Mexico? Put it on the Gulf Coast, close to crude production, and in a good position to reship their refined product.
I have my own theory about why refineries aren't being built. I understand it to take 20 years or so before they break even. The only people who really know how much oil there is are the oil companies, and they guard that information as a trade secret. My guess is they know raw materials are in short enough supply that they won't make a profit in the refinery business. If oil production tapers off, our current refineries will be able to keep up just fine.
If you'd like some corroborating evidence, witness how our ex-oilman president has plopped our military down on some of the largest remaining global reserves.
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RE Gas has effectively doubled in price since 2001
Yeah, but look how much price per barrel of oil has jumped. The price at the pump doesn't reflect that, although the jump in executive compensation does. And yet, gas is still relatively cheap compared to much of the rest of the world.
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The price of gas and affect on travel.
From my seat, the price of gas is affecting driving habits.
Where I live (a tourist/college town near LA) I see more folks driving here, but then riding bikes around town once here. (The town is bike "friendly".)
I also see many more students and locals commuting on bikes. The price of gas is definitely motivating some to change their ways.
Cheers.