$@$#%@ $3.46/Gallon at the pump this morning.

[jim]

gas was $1.42 when george w. bush entered office.

Hey, just for giggles and grins I thought I may ask. How are the oil companies doing? Must be real bad with the record price for oil. Does the Bush family have any connections to the oil industry? If so, I sure hope he didn't invest any of his money in those companies - with them hemorrhaging money like they must with these prices...

God bless America.

[docellis]

gas was $1.42 when george w. bush entered office.

Hey, just for giggles and grins I thought I may ask. How are the oil companies doing? Must be real bad with the record price for oil. Does the Bush family have any connections to the oil industry? If so, I sure hope he didn't invest any of his money in those companies - with them hemorrhaging money like they must with these prices...

God bless America.

Sarcasm, right?

[cardsfansince82]

My dad always gets upset when he hears people whining about the price of gas. He's certainly biased since he makes his living in the oil and gas industry and I have no idea how accurate his opinions are, but here is what he says:

People would never complain (or not nearly as much) about the price of gas if it had gradually and uniformly increased from year to year. The price of gas right now is not out of line with normal inflation. The thing is that gas stayed pretty much the same price for 50+ years until the late 70's-early 80's, drastically increased, stabilized, then shot up again recently. But if it had steadily increased along with inflation the price would be what it is today but without all the hoopla. And if you look at the changes in price of other consumer goods such as milk and other staples, the price of gas is not out of line. Perhaps most importantly, the average per capita income has increased at a faster rate than the price of gas has. So gas represents a smaller portion of that money than it used to. In a sense gas is actually cheaper than it used to be. People have these knee jerk reactions to the big swings in the price from month to month but if you step back and look at it, the price isn't that bad.

Of course, people earning lower incomes still are going to struggle to pay for gas because they haven't enjoyed the increases in per capita income that others have. And like I said, take this all with a grain of salt since it comes from my dad, but I thought I would throw this out there.

[Hudler]

Just be happy you don't live in Germany,$6-$7 a gallon.

[EastonBlues22]

I think the max speed limit should be 55...... and enforce the hell out of it (though revenue from tickets should go towards renewable energy, not in the municipalities coffers)

I'm guessing that one's level of agreement with this thought is going to depend a lot on just how much (and how far) one drives on a regular basis.

Driving that slow would add almost three and a half hours to my commute when I visit my family. It would also cost me almost 30 minutes on my work commute. That's a lot of extra time sitting in a car. Frankly, it's not worth the extra money I would save on gas.

It's pretty simple, really. Would I rather have the extra $450 or so I would save on gas every year commuting to work at 60mph? Or, literally, the 5 days of my life (waking hours only) that I would waste driving in my car over that time?

I value what little free time I get a lot more than I value money...but that's just me.

Or better yet, not plan on living 20+ miles away from where they work.

I know it's not always practical, but as a society we forget that it's a priveledge, not a right to be able to drive around for 50 miles every day.

Since when did driving to work become a privilege?

I drive 90 miles round trip every work day...out of necessity, not choice...but I make no apologies for it. Having a job in my profession and paying the gas bills beats the hell out of not having a job (or having some low level one that has nothing to do with my career) and a much reduced gas bill.

Not everyone has as much control over where they live and work as some others on this forum do.

[Popeye_Card]

Or better yet, not plan on living 20+ miles away from where they work.

I know it's not always practical, but as a society we forget that it's a priveledge, not a right to be able to drive around for 50 miles every day.

Since when did driving to work become a privilege?

I drive 90 miles round trip every work day...out of necessity, not choice...but I make no apologies for it. Having a job in my profession and paying the gas bills beats the hell out of not having a job (or having some low level one that has nothing to do with my career) and a much reduced gas bill.

Not everyone has as much control over where they live and work as some others on this forum do.

So did people 100 years ago walk those 90 miles every day, or take a horse? Or did they live closer to where their job was?

How do people get by in Europe, where cars are less prevalent and gas is more expensive?

I stand by my statement that it's not a right. If you can afford it, feel free to live/work wherever you want. But when the economy drives the price up, you may have to look at other alternatives if you can't afford it anymore.

[Popeye_Card]

gas was $1.42 when george w. bush entered office.

Hey, just for giggles and grins I thought I may ask. How are the oil companies doing? Must be real bad with the record price for oil. Does the Bush family have any connections to the oil industry? If so, I sure hope he didn't invest any of his money in those companies - with them hemorrhaging money like they must with these prices...

God bless America.

Oil companies have gone both down and up during Bush's presidency. Lots of companies were laying off employees in the '02-'03 range.

[EastonBlues22]

So did people 100 years ago walk those 90 miles every day, or take a horse? Or did they live closer to where their job was?

How do people get by in Europe, where cars are less prevalent and gas is more expensive?

I stand by my statement that it's not a right. If you can afford it, feel free to live/work wherever you want. But when the economy drives the price up, you may have to look at other alternatives if you can't afford it anymore.

A privilege is something that's given to you/granted for you (typically that you couldn't otherwise attain on your own). It's also something that can be taken away from you.

Saying that you can do whatever you want as long as you can afford it is pretty much the exact opposite.

I'm also not sure that everyday advances in technology should be considered "privileges." Is brushing your teeth with a toothbrush a privilege? Wearing glasses? Fishing with a new pole?

I think the word that fits your position is that gas consumption is a luxury...and you can either afford it or you can't. But for some people, I think it's obvious that gas consumption clearly isn't a luxury...it's a necessity based on circumstances beyond their relative control. Perhaps you don't know anyone personally in that situation, but I'll bet that a great many of the people who post here do.

[Radbird]

I think the max speed limit should be 55...... and enforce the hell out of it (though revenue from tickets should go towards renewable energy, not in the municipalities coffers)

Only if they agree to eliminate Kansas - I have a long enough drive home as it is.

Reminds me of Nixon in the '70s. Boy, was that painful. And widely ignored and unenforceable.

[jim]

Or better yet, not plan on living 20+ miles away from where they work.

I know it's not always practical, but as a society we forget that it's a priveledge, not a right to be able to drive around for 50 miles every day.

Since when did driving to work become a privilege?

I drive 90 miles round trip every work day...out of necessity, not choice...but I make no apologies for it. Having a job in my profession and paying the gas bills beats the hell out of not having a job (or having some low level one that has nothing to do with my career) and a much reduced gas bill.

Not everyone has as much control over where they live and work as some others on this forum do.

So did people 100 years ago walk those 90 miles every day, or take a horse? Or did they live closer to where their job was?

How do people get by in Europe, where cars are less prevalent and gas is more expensive?

I stand by my statement that it's not a right. If you can afford it, feel free to live/work wherever you want. But when the economy drives the price up, you may have to look at other alternatives if you can't afford it anymore.

It's cultural. The mass transit system is out of this world, but of course when it comes to funding it there are not the roadblocks that you have in this country. Chicago's almost shut down recently due to funding, over there I don't think there would be political roadblocks. Geneva, Switzerland has a program with all of the hotels that you can ride the system for free if you are staying in a hotel. I relied on their system for 2 weeks getting all over the place, and didn't pay a dime. Free, reliable, and convenient.

Europe taxes the hell out of it's people, but they get plenty in return. I'd go for quite a bit higher taxes if it meant I could unload a car and save on the gas money.


Paris we had to pay, but it was pretty cheap if I remember correctly.