Gas prices spiking
As Wayan so smugly noted below this post, gas prices are up, and they’re up big. When I filled my tank on Friday on the way to work, I paid just slightly over $2.40 a gallon at the Shell in Shirlington.
On Friday night, I went to poker, passing the cheap station on route 7 by St. Anthony’s Catholic Church, where gas was $2.48/gallon.
On Saturday morning, on my way home from poker, it was $2.56/gallon.
Last night, coming back from Crosby, Stills and Nash, it was over $2.65.
People, what the fuck is going on here? This is ridiculous. Close to thirty cents a gallon in a weekend?! Time to whip out the gas dashboard widget.
What’s going on? Oh that’s just the confluence of misguided energy policies that value oil exploration and consumption over conservation and diversification, misguided foreign polices that cost billions and actually reduce world oil production capacity levels, and America’s unchecked thirst and perceived right to cheap oil.
And as 45% of US oil consumption is used as gasoline, you’ll notice price shocks at the pump long before you’ll see it in your Pepco, plane ticket, shipping, or grocery bill. Don’t be fooled by a plateau in the price of tickets or tomatoes though, as this WashPost article says, prices of all things will be going up again due to energy costs:
But not to worry. See how the same article tells us the economy is on a “strong footing” and that “real average weekly earnings for most U.S. workers rose 0.2 percent last month from their level in May.” Yeah, 0.2%. You felt that too, didn’t you, that 0.2%? Did you feel it in a paycheck or at the gas pump? I hope the pump, beacuse I don’t drive and I didn’t feel it in my paycheck, that 0.2%.
I only wish it was that simple, Wayan :)
You forgot that Indian and Chinese demand for oil supplies is at record height too.
All the more reason that we should be looking at macro-economic polices that encourage energy conservation and diversification, foreign polices that create new allies and sources, and come to the realization that even at $2.65 a gallon, gas is massively subsidized.
We’re already buddy buddy with the Saudis, what more do you want?
Let’s see…
Conservation
1. Stringent & enforced CARFE standards that include SUV’s
2. More carpooling & mass transit options
3. Land use polices that encourage high-density walkable development over car-dependent sprawl
Diversification
1. More natural gas, coal oil, hydrogen, hybrid, ethanol development & usage
2. New sources of domestic oil supplies, like Alaska, Gulf of Mexico, California, Texas, and Rocky Mountains
New Allies & Sources
1. Closer ties with Russia (2nd largest reserves) Nigeria, Venezuela, and Indonesia.
2. Developing an exit strategy from Iraq that rebuilds its oil capacity.
3. Move away from our super close ties with the Saudis – they’re kids fly planes into our buildings
Subsidy Realization
1. Factor in the total cost of toll-free roads, traffic police, oil & gas spill enviro clean up, etc into each gallon of gas & tax it as such.
2. Recoup the cost of the Iraq invasion, about 204.6 Billion through a special oil-import tax
…that would be a start.
I’m going to move this to email, since I’m not about to break my own rules to continue a heady, national politics battle in the comments of our nominally politics-free blog…