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Are gas prices fueling your pain?

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Comments

  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    the supply and demand equation is not the road but the destination

    Here in San Diego they seem to go hand in hand. About the time they get a new section of freeway built there is a new subdivision or industrial park being built. When they built hwy 52 freeway connecting East and West SD county, there was no traffic the first year or so. Now it is a parking lot during rush hours. They are widening it to relieve the congestion. It is kind of a which came first the chicken or the egg situation.
  • explorerx4explorerx4 Member Posts: 19,308
    if i remember correctly, my town has 3 times as many cars driving through it daily, as there are residents. on the non drive thru side of the equation, businesses, other than banks, are not allowed to have them(mcdonalds, dunkin donuts, cvs, etc).
    anyways, one of the roads with a lot of traffic has several single lane sections. some of those are being expanded to 2. i personally was fine with leaving them as 1 lane, as i think it will just encourage more development outside our town, but not relieve the traffic situation, and not help any of the local businesses.
    2023 Ford Explorer ST, 91 Mustang GT vert
  • avalon02whavalon02wh Member Posts: 785
    " felt like a 3rd class"

    If you want to be first class all you need to do is move to Fortuna, ND. ;) You would be the hit of the town with your Sequoia. I am sure you can get a home for $10-15k. Number of housing units = 39. Number of people = 25.
  • avalon02whavalon02wh Member Posts: 785
    This is a little off topic, but I thought I should correct my earlier post. In answer to your question:

    "But why has the price of my ammo tripled? "

    My answer about the metal demand is part of the issue, but incomplete. I sent an email to a friend who is a bit more in the know about those things. He responded with:

    Yes, the raw materials; brass, copper, steel and lead are up. The powder has gotten expensive, too. The dramatic price increases on ammo has been to all the military caliber's, in general. Iraq and Afghanistan are drawing all domestic production of .308; 5.56, 9 mm and .40 cal. There was military surplus available several years ago (lower prices over commercial), now there is no surplus.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    My farm in Long Prairie MN is a bit remote. Nothing like Fortuna. My that is in the middle of Nowhere. Is that where the oil business is booming? How many gallons to the closest Walmart SuperCenter?
  • trispectrispec Member Posts: 305
    Funny how all the military caliber are the same one's all the shooters at the local firing ranges in Maine are demanding. The twelve year old girls and boys are shooting 9mm competition pieces.

    Everyone in Maine is loading their own by now though.
  • trispectrispec Member Posts: 305
    Came to the Boston metro region in Oct 1988. No "Big Digg" yet, but the promises of the wonders that the "Big Digg" would bring were in full swing in the press. No more rush hour traffic, city streets unclogged, and commute time cut in half. On top of these road miracles, Mass Transit was going to improve and modernize, including Acela high speed rail.

    Twenty years later, all the projects are finished, everything is deployed and running. Nothing has changed accept getting to the Logon Airport and back is easier if you make all the correct exits (four going and three returning). BTW Logan Airport is getting the worst customer satisfaction ratings ever.

    What happen, is that the economy essentially lets more regular folks by more cars. For twenty years people kept buy more cars because the promises of better traffic conditions was held there like a carrot.

    When I came to Boston twenty years ago, junker city cars were everywhere. No body was going to buy an keep a nice car in Boston city limits. That was a crazy idea. I don't even see junkers anymore. I see tens of thousands of Prius's and Minis, Camerys and BMW 3 series, not cheap stuff.

    Twenty years ago, the street I live on always had plenty of street parking spots. Today, there are no more houses, but serious arguments regularly breakout over just a few feet of street space. During snow emergency conditions, despite threats by Mayor Manino, who lives in my neighborhood, people claim their dug out car spots jealously.

    The city is simply bursting with to many cars. And it's getting much worse faster. The belt way around the Boston area, 128, can go grid lock condition both directions at any time day or night. Twenty years ago, 128 was never full accept at the the major exchanges for 90, 93, or 95.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    but serious arguments regularly breakout over just a few feet of street space.

    That should be simple. Pass an ordinance banning on street parking. Many subdivisions in CA and AZ have those right in the covenants. My sis in AZ just moved into her new home. You cannot leave a car in your driveway more than 24 hours. Has to be in the garage. If they did away with on street parking in your area. It would be much easier clearing snow in the winter. I'm with you that it seems the more roads they build the worse the traffic. I think we just have too many cars. Maybe the high priced gas will eliminate a few. It won't hurt my feelings.
  • kdhspyderkdhspyder Member Posts: 7,160
    I just read an interesting stat about my former home, NYC. It is the only locality in the US where vehicle ownership is under 50%.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    That does not surprise me. It costs more for a parking space than a monthly payment on the car. I cannot imagine living there. It was too expensive in the 1960s. I cannot imagine how horrible it is now. I doubt they have decent Mexican food stands on every corner. That would be reason to move. Life is too short to eat inferior Mexican food. :shades:
  • ny540i6ny540i6 Member Posts: 518
    That should be simple. Pass an ordinance banning on street parking. Many subdivisions in CA and AZ have those right in the covenants. My sis in AZ just moved into her new home. You cannot leave a car in your driveway more than 24 hours. Has to be in the garage. If they did away with on street parking in your area. It would be much easier clearing snow in the winter.

    You can't eliminate on street parking if you have no alternatives. In cities like Boston, or much of NYC people live in apartment bldgs, many of which don't have parking lots, or in townhouse style 2-3 family units, that are built in a rowhouse style, without driveways or garages. As a side note, in NYC when it snows, most parking rules are suspended, allowing and encouraging people NOT to move the already parked cars.
  • ny540i6ny540i6 Member Posts: 518
    Interesting.... I'm curious if that is a true "NYC" stat, or if it is more Manhattan specific.

    Staten Island and Queens are multiple vehicle households, Manhattan, more likely to be mass transit/bike owners, With the Bronx and Brooklyn somewhere in between.
  • ny540i6ny540i6 Member Posts: 518
    Yeah, we have decent Mexican.... also Indian, Thai, Russian, Cambodian, Jamaican, Polish, Trinidadian, etc, etc....

    Most of us don't think it's horrible, however.... to get on topic, we are well over $4 for all grades of gas.
  • ny540i6ny540i6 Member Posts: 518
    To all of you who are veterans, or the families of veterans, Thanks.
  • kdhspyderkdhspyder Member Posts: 7,160
    The stat said NYC as a locality so I took it to mean the 5 boroughs. As you say SI and Queens have a lot of cars but Manhattan relatively has none.
  • ny540i6ny540i6 Member Posts: 518
    Hey, just curious, how long did you live here, and where?
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    Yeah, we have decent Mexican.

    Can you and your wife get a full meal of chicken fajitas or carnitas for $7-$8 including tax and tip? We have 6 good Mexican places in our little town and only 4 gas stations. Cheapest gas is $4.15 at the Shell. A carne asada Burrito that is more than I can eat is $3.99. That includes chips, salsa and hot pickled carrots. We also have a Great Thai food restaurant that cooks everything fresh with NO MSG. Brooklyn Pizza is owned by a guy from NYC. He has real good thin crust Pizza. Still has NJ plates on his car, been here 3 years. He charges $18 for the Works, which seems high priced. But we like him so we splurge now and then.

    Have a great safe Memorial Day :)
  • ny540i6ny540i6 Member Posts: 518
    Hey, I never said we had CHEAP Mexican! ;)

    But seriously, if you know where to go, yes, you can find great, cheap eats.

    And a safe holiday to you and yours.
  • trispectrispec Member Posts: 305
    Sorry, but obviously some folks don't have a correct picture of the Boston urban scene. Everything in Boston got built over two hundred years ago. Cars didn't exist for the middle class so there has been little provision for managing cars. The urban scene, street planning (non-existant really), home lot sizes (w/o drive ways), housing types (no yard multi-family triple deckers) and local community politics of Boston's metro region, uniquely impact the standard American style car culture. Boston has a more, European style car culture, where parking spaces get included in people's wills, but not inlcuded local ordinances.

    Local politics is neighborhood based, which generally means that only hyper local issues get managed. The mass transit system which is the oldest in the country, even older than NYC subway system, has long had enough clout to take care of itself, thankfully, but car traffic management has received only piecemeal support and then only with federal money. But, the "Big Digg", a $14 billion dollar project, is probably the last such road project of it's kind. Here come the bike trail projects!

    The vast majority of housing in middle class areas have only street parking. Some homes on my street only added off street parking 50 years after the original home was built. Picture bull dozers carving away chunks of the homes foundation walls to make room for a single car width driveways two cars long running into the back yard.

    Nothing gets torn down. A 150 old twenty room mansion on my street got bought for demolition. The neighbors literally marched to the local police station and in mob fashion said "No way". The mayor of Boston literally had to step in and provide money to the developer to move a three story, 20 room mansion in tact. And even after that projected finish, the developer left cars parking on the street.

    That's the picture of modern Boston folks should have. Cars ain't gonna ever go away and the ain't gonna ever get managed. Chaos reigns!
  • avalon02whavalon02wh Member Posts: 785
    "How many gallons to the closest Walmart SuperCenter? "

    60.3 miles according to Yahoo. If the pickumup gets 20 mpg we are talking 6 gallons or about $24 round trip. Folks in the rural areas are definitely cutting back on their trips to town.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    Hey, I never said we had CHEAP Mexican!

    It use to drive me crazy when I would go out to eat with friends in Anchorage. They always wanted to take me to one of the Mexican restaurants that had the "best" Mexican food. I would choke on the prices they charged. I usually ended up paying the bill. There is just no way in the world a Mexican meal is worth $12-$15. Same reason we rarely go out for Italian. Just no way that pasta can be worth the prices charged. I guess we are spoiled and cheap. Spent too many years in poverty to squander money.

    It does bother me to see Gen Y nieces and nephews racing around in blinged out Denalis & 4X4 PU trucks, while their parents slave to keep up with all the bills. The younger generation is in for a big shock when mom and dad cannot subsidize their high flying lifestyles. Many seem to have no economic sense.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    When you add $24 to the bill, it makes the mom and pop store in the small towns seem like a good deal. That is what we are experiencing. The local markets are not chock full of every brand available. They seem expensive until you add on the price of gas going down the hill 10 miles to Walmart or 15 miles to Costco. The gas stations add just enough to make it a wash going the longer distance to gas up.
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,681
    Folks in the rural areas are definitely cutting back on their trips to town.

    I think that's already been a way of life for rural residents for a long time. We have some friends down in Holly Brook, Va, which is up in the mountains. My uncle lived down there for a few years, when he had this fascination for mountain living...guess he took "Grizzly Adams" to heart! Anyway, the nearest semi-big town was Bluefield, West VA.

    I just mapquested it, and it's "only" a 21.3 mile trip. Mapquest thinks you could make it in 33 minutes. But I doubt if you're going to, with some of those mountain roads.

    I remember people down there would tend to go into Bluefield as rarely as possible. They'd buy as many groceries as would fit in their car, hopefully lasting them a couple weeks. And then, with the more perishable stuff like milk and such, they'd just buy from a local Mom & pop store. Lotta people raised chickens too, so they'd have fresh eggs. A lot of the people down there didn't have much money, so they learned to conserve and be resourceful long before fuel prices started to shoot up.
  • avalon02whavalon02wh Member Posts: 785
    I am going to give up posting which states are over $4 a gallon of RUG - too many to count. ;)

    I did notice that the District of Columbia is over $4. This is where all the mental midgets go to pass laws. I think we are in big trouble. It doesn't matter which party passes the law, you can bet that it will be either too little too late or too much too early.

    Maybe they won't notice.
  • avalon02whavalon02wh Member Posts: 785
    " And then, with the more perishable stuff like milk and such, they'd just buy from a local Mom & pop store. Lotta people raised chickens too, so they'd have fresh eggs"

    The sad part of the story in ND is that there are few Mom & Pop stores left. When gas was cheap in the 90s everyone drove into the big towns for everything. In just the last 10 years I've seen a number of stores close in the areas I visit. People are going to regret not supporting those stores when they had the chance. They are now gone and there is little chance any will come back given the declining populations. The one exception to this is that many gas stations are turning into convenience stores. So if a town was lucky enough to keep the gas station they have some options.

    NG did an article a few months ago about ND.

    http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/01/emptied-north-dakota/bowden-text
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    $3.89 is typical in Boise today - we went up the road to the next little town for breakfast this morning and RUG there is $3.99.9. $4 in other words.

    They will give you a free trailer dump if you fill up (but there are free places in town, so unless you live there, I'm not sure why you'd bother, unless you really want to, er, lighten your load to help your mpg.)

    We give all kinds of subsidies to the rural farmers, but none to the Mom & Pop stores, or the local hardware stores. We know one guy here who had to move to town 15 years ago. All his neighbors were getting paid not to grow stuff, and his parents were going broke trying to sell nuts and bolts and the odd lawnmower. They shut down and everyone in his family scattered to find paying work.
  • simpilot1simpilot1 Member Posts: 21
    NYC is my former home as well. I have lived in almost a dozen other cities and NYC because of its subway system is the only one where for most trips you can walk to a station within a few hundred yards, the trip is frequently faster than driving, and you don't have to be outside in bad weather for an extended period of time.
    http://www.mta.info/nyct/maps/submap.htm
  • simpilot1simpilot1 Member Posts: 21
    I drove 5 miles to a shopping center today. On 3 occasions I had to wait for several cycles of a traffic light because someone allowed 10 car lengths to open before crawling forward at less than 5 miles an hour. 3 cars went through when 10 could have gone. And THEN there were the people at a stop SIGN who wouldn't move if there was another car in sight. A big rig could have EASILY proceeded. I wish the police would start giving out tickets for obstructing traffic to these individuals In my opinion smarter driving would result in a significant increase in city MPG.
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,681
    got my '79 New Yorker running, jumper cables attached to my '67 Catalina convertible, trying to charge up its dead battery. Guess it would be cheaper to just yank the battery and walk it up to the house to charge it, but I'm too lazy right now. :shades:

    **edit: gave up after about 10 mins...battery's on the charger now. :sick:
  • kdhspyderkdhspyder Member Posts: 7,160
    Went to Manhattan College in the Bronx from '67 - '71, the year after Rudy Giuliani graduated. Then lived in Seagate Brooklyn ( end of Coney Island ) for 2 yrs, then lived in Greenwich Village for 7 yrs, then lived in Jamaica Estates ( end of E&F trains ) for 5 yrs before moving to North Jersey when I got married. Worked in Manhattan from '72 to 97...
  • trispectrispec Member Posts: 305
    Ok, let's get really serious. By the next election, gas prices are being forecast to be $5/gallon.

    Will states start suspending gas taxes? Will the Feds start suspending gas taxes? Clearly the voters will be in a really bad mood so which political party is going to get whacked hardest?

    If the gas taxes get axed, will the highway projects just end? Would road building end? Would normal road maintenance end?

    How bad would the roads need to be before people stop driving?
  • iluvmysephia1iluvmysephia1 Member Posts: 7,704
    the roads are hideous in the little SE Arizona cowtown I live in, and all of us just keep driving along on them. We just steer around the worst potholes.

    I can't imagine letting nasty roads stop me from driving.

    Now, I agree, it is going to be interesting what candidate does what with this exorbitant fuel price issue. Reduced fuel taxes are hard to be an imaginable choice, though, with the money needed for Project A or Project B or Project C, as naseum. Big government is a big job and monies are always needed.

    2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick

  • trispectrispec Member Posts: 305
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    Australia $5.60 $1.48 A$1.54/L 2008-05-27 2008-05-27 [1]/XE.com
    Bahrain (Manama) $1.02 $0.27 BHD 0.100/L (95 Octane) BHD 0.080/L (90 Octane) 2008-04-29 2008-04-29 [2]
    Belgium (Brussels) $8.44 $2.23 €1.45/L[3] 2008-05-12 2008-05-12 [4][5][6]
    Brazil (São Paulo) $6.01 $1.56 R$2,59/L 2008-04-29 2008-04-29 [citation needed]
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    Canada $5.18 $1.37 C$1.35/L 2008-05-05 2008-05-24 GasBuddy/XE.com
    China $2.80 $0.74 2008-05-27 2008-05-27 CNN Money/[3]
    Croatia $7.38 $1.95 HRK 8.99/L 2008-05-23 2008-05-23 INA Unleaded 95 [4]
    Cyprus $6.18 $1.63 €1.04/L 2008-03-20 2008-04-22 for Unleaded 95[[5]
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    Denmark (Copenhagen) $8.14 $2.15[5] DKK10.76/L[6] 2008-04-21 2008-04-21
    Egypt (Cairo) $1.23 $0.32[7][5] 2008-05-05 2008-05-05 [8]
    Eritrea $9.58[9] 2008-05-06 2008-05-06
    Finland $8.91 $2.36 €1.50/L 2008-05-22 2008-05-22 [6]
    France $8.07[9] 2008-05-06 2008-05-06
    Germany $8.91 $2.36 €1.50/L 2008-05-22 2008-05-22 [7]
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    Greece $4.93 $1.30 €1.24/L 2008-05-12 2008-05-12
    Honduras $4.26 $1.07 Lps. 81.00/G 2008-05-26 2008-05-26
    Hong Kong $7.56 $1.997 HK$15.54/L 2008-03-05 2008-04-12 Shell Hong Kong/[8]
    Hungary $7.51 $1.985 HUF 315/L 2008-05-15 2008-05-15
    Iceland $8.06 $2.13 ISK 159.20/L 2008-05-27 2008-05-27 Olís/[9]
    India (Bangalore) $4.61 $1.22 INR 55.15/L 2006-10-13 2006-10-13
    Indonesia $2.46 $0.65 IDR 6,000/L 2008-05-24 2008-05-24 Pertamina/[10]
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    Iran $0.41 $0.11 2007-06-01 2007-05-05 CNN Money/[11]
    Israel $7.20 $1.91 NIS 6.58/L 2008-05-01 2008-05-01 Israel Min. of National Infrastructures (Hebrew)[12]
    Italy $8.79 $2.32[5] €1.49/L[6] 2007-11-08 2008-05-18
    Japan $5.83 $1.54 ¥160.1/L 2008-05-12 2008-05-12 The Oil Information Center Japan[13]
    Kuwait (Kuwait City) $0.78 $0.21 KWD 0.060/L (91 Octane) 0.065/L (95 Octane) 2006-04-13 2006-04-13 [14]/Kuwait Oil Company
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) $2.01 $0.53 RM1.92/L 2006-02-13 2006-02-13 [15]/Google exchange calculator on 15 May 2006
    Mexico (Mexico City) $2.36 $0.62 MX$6.80/L 2007-05-05 2007-05-05 Banco de Información Económica/[16]
    Monaco $8.31[9] 2008-05-06 2008-05-06
    Netherlands $8.95 $2.36 €1.52/L 2008-04-28 2008-04-28 Shell/[17]
    New Zealand $7.79 $1.62 NZ$2.059/L 2008-05-27 2008-05-27 Pricewatch/fx.com on 2006-09-29
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    Nigeria (Lagos) $0.38 $0.10 2005-03-13 2005-03-13 CNN Money/[18]
    North Korea $2.69 $0.71 101.139 KPW/L 2006-11 2006-11 2007 GTZ[19]
    Norway (Oslo) $9.71 $2.56 NOK 12.99/L 2008-04-14 2008-04-14 Shell/[20]
    Pakistan $4.01 $1.06 Rs 68.81/L 2008-05-04 2008-05-04 PSO/[21]
    Philippines (Manila) $3.54 $0.94 P 40.57/L 2007-09-17 2007-09-17 Shell Philippines/[22]
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    Portugal $8.90 [9] $2.35 €1.494/L (95 Octane) €1.634/L (98 Octane) 2008-05-26 2008-05-26 Mais Gasolina/[23]
    Qatar (Doha) $0.83 $0.22 QAR 0.75/L (97 Octane) QAR 0.67/L (90 Octane) 2007-09-17 2007-09-17 [24] / The General Secretariat for Development Planning - State of Qatar
    Romania (Bucharest) $6.46 $1.71 RON 3.8/L 2008-05-17 2008-04-15 [25]
    Russia (Moscow) $3.79 $1.00 RUR 23.82/L 2008-05-07 2008-05-07 [10]
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    Saudi Arabia (Riyadh) $0.45[8] $0.12 SAR 0.82/L (91 Octane) and SAR 1.02/L (95 Octane) 2007-05-16 2007-05-16 [11]
    Sierra Leone $18.42 $4.87 14400 Leones/L 2008-05-01 2008-05-01 [26]
    Singapore $5.19 $1.37 S$1.97/L 2008-01-02 2008-01-02 PetrolWatch/XE.com
    South Korea $6.25 $1.65 1,723.89 KRW/L 2006-11 2006-11 2007 GTZ[27]
    Sweden $8.72 $2.30 SEK 13.64/L 2008-05-22 2008-05-22 JET/
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    Switzerland (Zurich) $6.24 $1.65 CHF 1.79/L 2007-12-19 2007-12-19
    Thailand $4.47 $1.18 38.39 Baht/L 2008-05-15 2008-05-15 Ministry of Energy, Thailand/[28]
    Trinidad and Tobago $0.48 $3TTD/L 2008-05-26 2008-05-26
    Turkey $10.13 $2.68 YTL 3.44/L 2008-04-22 2008-04-22 NTV/[29]
    Turkmenistan $0.29 $0.08 TMM 400/L 2006-11-25 2006-11-25 Turkmenistan.ru/[30]
    Country/Territory ↓ US$/gal ↓ US$/L ↓ Local units ↓ As of ↓ Sources ↓
    UAE $1.70 $0.45 AED 6.25/gal (95 Octane) AED 6.75/gal (98 Octane) 2008-05-04 2008-05-04 [31]/Bahrain Tribune
    Ukraine $4.43 $1.17 UAH 5.9/L 2008-04-18 2008-04-18
    United Kingdom $8.53 $2.26 £1.14/L 2008-05-22 2008-05-22 petrolprices.com/XE.comUnleaded price graph
    United States $3.93 $1.04 $3.93/gal 2008-05-18 2008-05-25 [12]
    Uruguay (Montevideo) $6 $1.6 U$ 32/L 2008-01-12 2008-01-12
    Venezuela (Caracas) $0.17[8] $0.05 Bs. 97; BsF. 0.097 2008-01-12 2008-01-12
  • jac0bsdadjac0bsdad Member Posts: 34
    New member here... I paid $3.76/gal for regular unleaded in Chatt, TN... $60.00 to fill up 2001 Honda Accord, 4 cylinder... never thought I would see that happen... had a 2000 chevy trailblazer before trading it in back then for the honda.. I already thought gas was too much back in 2001.. Anyway, a friend of mine at work told me that gas is expected to get to $6.00/gal by Labor Day.. Gas prices are impacting people going out on weekends... Also, a friend of mine in Dalton, GA said that only 25 houses have been sold during the first 5 months of this year, in a county with 200 real estate agents... It all just continues to compound on a daily basis... Just have to be smart and get through it... God Bless the USA...
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    I bet the I-24/I-75 junction area is still horrible with traffic. :P

    I have family down there and I remember when some of the kinfolk would drive to Georgia to save on gas since the taxes were cheaper. Now you can't afford to waste the gas heading to the state line.
  • jac0bsdadjac0bsdad Member Posts: 34
    Yes sir.. It is still bad.. I used to live in Cleveland, TN about 38 miles north of downtown Chatt.. Had to move closer because my RT drive was about 80 miles each day.. When U get to Ooltewah, TN they have made it into 4 or 5 lanes for awhile then it goes back to 2 lanes heading into downtown and 2 veering off into GA.. Actually, the prices in Georgia are now more expensive or the same as compared to southeast TN.. I emailed a frat brother of mine in Dallas,TX about a different topic and he asked how much gas was here because he used to love in Atlanta, anyway, when I told him he was surprised because we were about .13 cents more a gal then in Dallas.. It has gone up .08 cents since last week.. One day it went up .17 cents a gallon from the time of the morning commute until the afternoon... Just a heads up to you, if you are planning to come down to see your kinfolk, if you come through Knoxville,TN, be prepared to take I-640 around K-town.. The state is working on I-40 in downtown Knoxville and will be doing so for 14 months.. It will be a true pain come football season to go see the Vols, if I can afford the gas prices by then, plus the tickets.. ha-ha..
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    I usually do that drive in October when I visit my sister in Virginia and we drive down in her car. Malfunction junction just keeps shifting around Knoxville, lol.

    I know all about the Ooltewah Owls too. :-)
  • jac0bsdadjac0bsdad Member Posts: 34
    I obviously meant that my frat brother "used to live", not love in Atlanta... He might have done that as well, but I don't know... lol... Yep, I know a lot about East Tennessee... I graduated from ETSU in Johnson City, TN... NE Tennessee is my favorite part of the state... Driving up there is less crowded than in Chatt town... I went to Bradley High School in Cleveland... I think we will break the $4.00/gall barrier for RUG by the end of June 08, if not sooner... I think by July 4th, the national average for RUG will be $4.00/gall... I hope I am wrong...
  • jac0bsdadjac0bsdad Member Posts: 34
    This was the title of a news article on MSN last week... I went back and read a few posts about the fact that diesel is now over $5.00/gall in California and NY... Diesel is over $4.50/gall in Chattanooga, TN. Anyway, my father is now semi retired and sold his small trucking company back in the mid-90's... having grown up with a middle class truck driving owner, I can tell you that there are some independent trucking contractor's that are losing their shirt and either thinking about doing something different or most likely trying to get a job as a company driver... the article stated that if gas got to $10.00/gall, that trucking companies would close up and goods would be transported by rail and river barges... Turnaround times to retail outlets would be much slower than we are used to now, via truck. Also, people would start growing small roof top gardens in the urban areas, as they become more populated due to the high cost of gas.. Also, we would naturally have a big time recession/depression. I have to get ready for work, so everyone make it a great day..
  • imidazol97imidazol97 Member Posts: 27,147
    One of our legislators representing Ohio was talking about how the California group in congress is in control. Expect more legislation mimicing California's value and taxation systems to be attempted if there isn't a change in congress in November. Pelosi et al view the world through different colored glasses--not a good thing. Their solutions are taxation and higher prices.

    2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,

  • trispectrispec Member Posts: 305
    Why has no one said anythings about the absoluting obscene record billion dollar profit wind falls that the oil industry giants are reaping?

    I mean come on folks, how long is the oil industry's apologizing, "We are so very very sorry to be making these mountains of profits. We can't control the market forces that are just handing our companies billions of dollars in profit. It's against the law for the oil industry to not make as much money as possible during these extremely hard times, because that's how business works. We don't control the price of gas or oil, the market drives everything!"

    If the public doesn't get a clue and force the oil companies by law to "Cut the S@#$", we are going to start seeing a move to nationalize the oil companies. Wouldn't that be a cool trick. If Venezuela can do do it, so can we. Look at Venezuela's gas price!
  • texasestexases Member Posts: 10,707
    "Why has no one said anythings about the absoluting obscene record billion dollar profit wind falls that the oil industry giants are reaping?"

    Because, by rational standards, they're not "obscene". Large? Of course. In 2007 Exxon had revenues of $400B, profits of $40B, 10%. That's the profit margin of a successful company. Look at Microsoft - 25% to 30%. Not a good example? Look at Proctor and Gamble, the soap maker, around 15%. So your arguement is false. If we eliminate the profit motive, we can count on oil and gas shortages, as investors take their money elsewhere.

    p.s. My biggest disappointment with the recent showboating in Congress was that the oil execs didn't pull out a simple pie chart: If gas costs $4/gallon, and crude costs $3/gallon, how much is left for taxes, shipping, refining, and selling? Not much!
  • ezeldaezelda Member Posts: 1
    Hi, I would like to hear from anyone who has actually used or is using one of the water to gas conversion kits on their car. Wanting to know if it really works.......
  • ny540i6ny540i6 Member Posts: 518
    Hi, I would like to hear from anyone who has actually used or is using one of the water to gas conversion kits on their car. Wanting to know if it really works.......

    HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

    Oops.... sorry
  • jimbresjimbres Member Posts: 2,025
    Don't forget that hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of middle-class investors own shares in these companies - either directly or through mutual funds.

    If Congress, in its infinite stupidity, passes a law that taxes "windfall profits", thereby reducing the value of my 401(k) & jeopardizing my retirement, who will reimburse me?
  • texasestexases Member Posts: 10,707
    There are other threads discussing this, but to summarize, it's a scam, ignores basics physics and chemistry.
  • trispectrispec Member Posts: 305
    Here's a chart to compare. Years ago the cost of crude in Jan-00 was 47.1% of the retail price of gas. Now (bottom of chart), cost of crude is Apr-08 72.7%. Now where does the profit of the oil companies come from? Not from Taxes, not from less marketing, and certainly not from refining. Profits come out of the huge run up in the cost of crude. The cost of crude is the easiest place to hide the oil company profits, the key word being "hide".

    WHAT WE PAY FOR IN A GALLON OF REGULAR GASOLINE
    Mo/Year Retail Price (Cents per gallon) Refining(percentage) Distribution & Marketing (percentage) Taxes(percentage) Crude Oil (percentage)
    Jan-00 128.9 7.8 13.0 32.1 47.1
    Feb-00 137.7 17.9 7.5 30.1 44.6
    Mar-00 151.7 15.4 12.8 27.3 44.6
    Apr-00 146.5 10.1 20.2 28.3 41.4
    May-00 148.5 20.2 9.2 27.9 42.7
    Jun-00 163.3 22.2 8.8 25.8 43.1
    Jul-00 155.1 13.2 15.8 27.2 43.8
    Aug-00 146.5 15.8 7.5 28.8 47.8
    Sep-00 155.0 15.4 9.0 27.2 48.3
    Oct-00 153.2 13.7 10.1 27.5 48.6
    Nov-00 151.7 10.4 11.8 27.8 50.0
    Dec-00 144.3 8.0 17.9 29.2 44.8
    Jan-01 144.7 17.8 10.4 29.2 42.7
    Feb-01 145.0 17.3 11.0 29.1 42.6
    Mar-01 140.9 18.8 9.7 30.0 41.5
    Apr-01 155.2 31.6 4.6 27.1 36.7
    May-01 170.2 26.4 14.0 24.7 35.0
    Jun-01 161.6 13.2 24.1 26.0 36.7
    Jul-01 142.1 10.0 20.0 30.0 40.0
    Aug-01 142.1 20.0 9.0 30.0 41.0
    Sep-01 152.2 18.0 17.0 28.0 37.0
    Oct-01 131.5 10.0 20.8 31.9 37.2
    Nov-01 117.1 10.0 18.0 36.0 36.0
    Dec-01 108.6 11.7 12.7 38.7 36.9
    Jan-02 110.7 13.0 11.8 37.9 37.2
    Feb-02 111.4 12.1 11.2 37.7 39.1
    Mar-02 124.9 19.4 6.1 33.6 40.9
    Apr-02 139.7 15.5 13.0 30.1 41.4
    May-02 139.2 11.9 14.2 30.2 43.7
    Jun-02 138.2 15.0 13.0 30.4 41.6
    Jul-02 139.7 15.0 12.6 30.1 42.3
    Aug-02 139.6 11.4 13.4 30.0 45.0
    Sep-02 140.0 10.8 12.6 30.0 46.7
    Oct-02 144.5 13.9 11.7 29.1 45.3
    Nov-02 141.9 11.1 18.0 29.6 41.3
    Dec-02 138.6 11.7 12.3 30.3 45.7
    Jan-03 145.8 11.5 10.3 28.8 49.4
    Feb-03 161.3 15.0 9.5 26.0 49.5
    Mar-03 169.3 14.8 14.8 24.8 45.5
    Apr-03 158.9 13.2 19.8 26.4 40.5
    May-03 149.7 15.3 16.3 28.1 40.4
    Jun-03 149.3 15.1 12.3 28.1 44.5
    Jul-03 151.3 15.3 11.9 27.8 44.9
    Aug-03 162.0 22.5 8.2 25.9 43.3
    Sept-03 167.9 13.9 22.7 25.0 38.3
    Oct-03 156.4 14.9 16.1 26.9 42.2
    Nov-03 151.2 11.7 15.3 27.8 45.2
    Dec-03 147.9 11.5 12.6 28.4 47.5
    Jan-04 157.2 15.9 9.9 26.7 47.5
    Feb-04 164.8 19.1 9.2 25.5 46.2
    Mar-04 173.6 19.0 11.3 24.2 45.5
    Apr-04 179.8 22.0 9.9 23.4 44.6
    May-04 198.3 30.6 7.8 21.2 40.4
    Jun-04 196.9 21.3 16.7 21.3 40.7
    Jul-04 191.1 20.9 11.3 21.9 45.8
    Aug-04 187.8 13.9 12.2 22.4 51.5
    Sep-04 187.0 14.8 9.1 22.5 53.6
    Oct-04 200.0 13.0 9.3 21.0 56.7
    Nov-04 197.9 10.7 14.6 21.2 53.6
    Dec-04 184.1 8.9 18.1 23.9 49.1
    Jan-05 183.1 17.7 7.3 24.0 50.9
    Feb-05 191.0 16.1 9.3 23.0 51.6
    Mar-05 207.9 19.3 6.2 21.2 53.4
    Apr-05 224.3 20.9 9.6 19.6 49.8
    May-05 216.1 17.9 12.8 20.4 49.0
    Jun-05 215.6 18.5 6.9 20.4 54.2
    Jul-05 229.0 17.9 8.0 19.2 54.9
    Aug-05 248.6 24.3 2.1 17.7 55.9
    Sep-05 290.3 27.3 7.5 15.2 50.0
    Oct-05 271.7 15.1 17.8 16.2 50.9
    Nov-05 225.7 8.3 13.1 19.5 57.1
    Dec-05 218.5 13.5 7.9 20.1 58.4
    Jan-06 231.6 13.4 6.6 19.8 60.1
    Feb-06 228.0 9.8 11.4 20.1 58.6
    Mar-06 242.5 21.7 4.5 18.9 54.8
    Apr-06 274.2 25.8 3.1 16.7 54.2
    May-06 290.7 21.9 8.8 15.8 53.4
    Jun-06 288.5 22.0 7.9 15.9 54.1
    Jul-06 298.1 26.3 6.3 15.4 52.0
    Aug-06 295.2 15.2 13.5 15.9 55.4
    Sep-06 255.5 6.3 18.8 18.3 56.7
    Oct-06 224.5 10.9 10.6 20.8 57.7
    Nov-06 222.9 14.6 7.5 20.4 57.5
    Dec-06 231.3 12.9 9.4 19.7 58.0
    Jan-07 224.0 10.6 15.2 20.3 53.9
    Feb-07 227.8 18.0 5.8 20.0 56.3
    Mar-07 256.3 23.6 8.5 15.5 52.3
    Apr-07 284.5 28.1 7.6 14.0 50.3
    May-07 314.6 27.9 13.3 12.7 46.1
    June-07 305.6 22.7 13.7 13.0 50.5
    Jul-07 296.5 18.4 11.4 13.4 56.8
    Aug-07 278.6 13.5 11.8 14.3 60.4
    Sep-07 280.3 12.8 8.6 14.2 64.3
    Oct-07 280.3 10.1 8.1 14.2 67.6
    Nov-07 308.0 10.0 8.7 13.0 68.3
    Dec-07 301.8 8.1 10.5 13.2 68.1
    Jan-08 304.3 7.8 11.1 13.1 67.9
    Feb-08 302.8 9.9 7.2 13.2 69.7
    Mar-08 324.4 8.0 7.9 12.3 71.8
    Apr-08 345.8 10.0 5.8 11.5 72.7
  • texasestexases Member Posts: 10,707
    Do you think the oil companies set the world oil price? Sorry, you're dreaming.
  • tpetpe Member Posts: 2,342
    we are going to start seeing a move to nationalize the oil companies. Wouldn't that be a cool trick. If Venezuela can do do it, so can we. Look at Venezuela's gas price!

    And also look at Venezuela's standard of living.

    Nationalizing the oil industry only makes sense if you are an oil exporter. I'm not entirely sure how it would benefit the US consumer in any way. Are Canada, Mexico, Venezueala and Saudi Arabia going to start selling us oil at a discount because we have a nationalized oil industry? Now we could take China's route and impose price controls. That's an unsustainable policy and anyone with a basic grasp of economics would never advocate it.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    we are going to start seeing a move to nationalize the oil companies. Wouldn't that be a cool trick. If Venezuela can do do it, so can we. Look at Venezuela's gas price!

    I know you were just joking, Right? Now if I was in charge we would be using our military strength to colonize those countries that have vast oil reserves. Why just go into Iraq? Conquer Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Venezuela, Norway, etc etc.... Nationalizing the piddly amount of oil reserves we have would do nothing. We are already taxing our own oil to the max. Just make sure you have lots of oil stocks in your 401K and go along for the ride. At least until the bubble pops.
This discussion has been closed.

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