Gasoline prices have been steadily rising. I hear prices in the $3.00 area in California now. Prices in my neck of the woods for unleaded run around $2.50-$2.53 right now.

I just can't understand the pricing anymore. I was a stanch defender of the oil companies. Things just don't seem right anymore. There is always some excuse for higher prices, and an excuse for not lowering a price. A while back when the price of oil was dropping rapidly, we saw price declines, but nothing near the $0.04/gallon of refined gas per dollar of a barrel of crude. Prices should have been significantly below $2.00/gallon, but it didn't happen where I live and I don't live in CA.

Prices are rising and everyone says... oh, it's Iran. Oh it's Venzuela? Well, there is nothing happening in Iran except the ravings of the president there. The wind changed to coming from the north, time to jack the price of gas up. The refineries are producing more heating oil; time for a price increase. The refineries are doing the "spring cleaning"; time to raise the price. Does it ever stop? Crude oil keeps being pumped and we keep paying higher prices. Maybe it's time for a another war, so at least it will seem like there is a reason for the crude prices.

What is your take on the oil companies and pricing? I know the future's market drives the price. Is the world getting snookered? I think so....

It's only $1.19 here..

I bet we will see at least $4.00 before summer is overwith.

Gas in my neck of the woods is $2.48. I can tell you one thing, it is terribly expensive to drill a well. Have interst in some gas wells in Oklahoma. Today-a services co ran up an $8,600 bill for one days work just retrieving the tools downhole that another company lost. People gripe about gas prices, but at 2.5 million a well, it is quite a risk-even for a small percentage player!!!

i think that the speculators on wall street are the ones that are really making the killing off of oil. sure the oil companies are making plenty of money, but they have very little control over the price of oil. that being said, i sure would like for it to go down in price, but i think the american people have become "accustomed" to paying over two dollars a gallon for gas. i don't see it going back down anytime soon. diesel is just plain outrageous. right now, it is around 2.75 a gallon.

Is that per quart?

Liberals reminded us it was the fault of the party in power. Using that logic the democrats are now the party in power so it MUST be the fault of Pelosi and gang.

Are democrats in bed with the satanic oil companies?

Do democrats care more about corporate profits than working families?

Is Pelosi having secret meetings with the Saudi's?

Terrible, democrats should be ashamed!

However they sell it in Madagascar

It's between 2.69 and 2.92 here in my neck of the concrete jungle... of course there's zone pricing to deal with here too... Got to be the democruds fault - it was 2.19 before they came into control...

rpowell is correct. Look no further than the traders on Wall Street. Crude Oil is around $66/bbl so obviously prices are going to be steep. It is a speculative market to say the least. I wonder how many hunters are going to bitch and moan at the corn farmers when we pay $6-$7 for a bag of corn this fall. It's the same logic......corn is a traded commodity also, dictated by the traders on Wall Street.

It's at $2.69 here currently....and I also think it will continue to climb especially approaching summer.

I think it will drop once the windmill powered Kia's hit the street.....

Regular is $3.09 here in Liberal Western Washington and climbing.
How much is it in Bagdad? Several dead soldiers per day?

Bullwnkl.

Funny, I was just wondering about it myself. Morning news said the national average is about $2.70/gal. I'm seeing prices of at least $3.20/gal here in San Jose (California). So, if gas is $3.20/gal here, who's paying $2.20/gal elsewhere?

$2.76 here in Gainesville today. We have the highest taxes on gas in Florida though. It is cheaper in Jax or Orlando.

$2.57 here in Ouachita Parish, LA. Up $0.18 in the last week.

When supply is only a tad over demand, any slight disruption, whether real or imagined, causes the price of crude to go up.
And yes, Iran is part of the problem. And yes, refineries have to shut down for periodic maintenance.

Just get used to it guys. It's not lickely to change.

Hey pix....how much of your gasoline price is California State taxes? Every state is different, the federal tax (20 cts/gal)is the same nationwide.

I think the oil companies like it this way. When they can produce at 90% of capacity or there abouts any excuse for higher prices will do and the consumer has to accept it.

Build more refineries? Sure. But with all the environmental regs, permitting costs, and so forth, why build one until you just have to. Why build one so you then produce at 70% or capacity? Why? Because it takes years to get a refinery into production and they wear out.

Drilling costs? Yeah, it's expensive. But we a buying oil like crazy from the Middle East where they essentially just need to turn on the faucet; shallow wells and big reserves.

I believe nothing will be done without a huge depression. Who really is affected? The little guy who gets up and drives to work every day for his $10/hr. I prefer to keep the government out of it for solutions; the government taxes the heck out of fuel all over the world. Al Gore probably loves to see the price spikes (global warming bs), but he does not live in the real world where $0.50/gallon makes a difference.... do as I say, not as I do....

If the war is for oil, then where is this oil?

Iraq is an OPEC member, the US turned over control of their oil in 2002.

Do you get it now?

At least the diesel held steady at $3.25,
Reg $3.29
89 $3.45
Supreme $3.55

This has got to be George Bush's fault!!!!!!!!!!!!

An Imperial gallon (4.54 litres) costs $4.54 CDN which is about $3.70 USD for an Imperial gallon X 0.8 for the US gallon = $2.96 USD for a US gallon. (Just for the sake of comparing apples to apples. )

You all have mentioned many things that affect oil prices but no one mentiond the Federal Reserve amd it's excessive money supply over the last few years....Oil is priced in $USD and the dollar has dropped dramatically against gold and other currencies...in 2004, teh rolling ten year average gold price was less than $350/oz and today is just South of $700 for an 80% increase....if we had all bought gold in 2004 and were paying for our gas with gold now, we would be buying cheap gasoline....

Todd,

I paid $6/bag last weekend.

Jim

Vern is right. In 1980 gold was $38.�� per oz.
Gas is cheap compared with the Reichsbuck.
The printing press bleeds us all at the pump while the politicos point to the rich oil, insurance, doctors or any other "them, not me".

No doubt that the buck can't buy much. Gas in Helena is around $0.19 a gallon. The price of a gallon adjusted for the purchasing power of the dollar. In today's dollars that's about $2.75 a gallon.

As to the speculators; they provide a market between the producers and the manufacturers and the consumer. Their purpose is to make sure there is a buyer for the producers and a seller for the manufacturer/consumer. The bid/ask price is based on a number of factors; number of wells, refiners, how much inventory there is, the government buying oil for the strategic reserve (right now the government is buying 350,000 to 700,000 barrels a day), the hurricane season (the hurricane center just today said it expects a terrible hurricane season with a zillion hurricanes), nuking Iran etc. Because it looks like the world is going to hell in a hand basket the speculator's bid/ask price is way up. 80 dollars a barrel looks to be the price in the near future with 100 dollars a barrel by mid-summer and maybe even a 150 dollars a barrel after Labor Day. Translated at the gas pump about $5.00 a gallon by midsummer and maybe $8.00 by Labor Day.

Happy driving from the wacky environmentalist!!!!

Would you all please be QUIET?

If you keep talking about oil prices, the Democrats are liable to try to do something, like impose price caps or remove subsidies. The first will lead to gas lines, the second will raise prices.

Please, just be glad that they HAVEN'T done anything yet....

"Please, just be glad that they HAVEN'T done anything yet...."

Huh?

You all sound like a bunch of clucking chickens...let me explain to you why gas and diesel are so high, and don't go down as fast as they go up:
T-H-I-E-V-I-N-G B-A-S-T-A-R-D-S
End of lesson.

Our US gas prices are about the same as they were 40 years ago. What's the problem? I am surprised they aren't higher as demand is getting close to our total production capacity and soon may exceed it. Japan, China and India are placing significant pressures on crude resources which impacts pricing. US companies have been denied permits to build new refineries and congress disallows development of ANWAR. MidEastern oil is essential, yet, we have a vocal group that decries our military presence there.

It is amazing that someone will spend $40,000+ for a 3/4 ton truck and whine about fuel prices when far more economical vehicles are available. If one can afford the new truck, one should be able to afford the fuel. Incidentally, the majority of those trucks, in our area, are used as daily commuters.

Options to high fuel consumption are plentiful. My commuter VW Beetle gets 34mpg, my motorcycle 45mpg, my 4WD truck 27mpg and my bicycle (ridden to work often) is free. My 3/4 ton gets 16mpg. We have choices.

I'd rather pay $4 per gallon and get it than have prices at $2 per gallon and not be able to buy any.

The oil companies are thieving bastards! That said, higher pricing does tend to keep the riff raff of the roads somewhat.

I wont' argue fuel is were it should be at. What is criminal is that they waited till now to catch up. And then caught up all at once.

Same with a local electric company. Raised rates 118% recently. All at the same time.

Thats what pisses me off. We don't get 118% raises, its really hurting the common families. Ones that dont' make absurd salaries....

Jeff

I've got no arguement with what you have said, Jeff!

This isn't meant as a criticism .....

I'm not surprised we're having problems in the "domestic market place" regarding domestic energy use because we're run by a bunch of non-realistic "voodoo-environmentalists" who have turned "environmentalism" into a religion, but also the Algore-type spinmiesters who keep screaming "the sky is falling!, the sky is falling!, ..... " Some might say they're one-in-the-same.

Two [general] things come to my mind beside the dimwits who work hard at scaring Joe-Sixpack (of beer, not abs! )

1). When was the last time a NEW refinery was built in this country? Or nuclear powerplant? When were new oil wells brought into production? Including off-shore drilling and oil extraction? Hell, the damn Chinks and Cubans are in the Gulf of Mexico. Why is the United States immersed in rectal defalade in this area? Of policy and practice?

2). Five to ten years ago there was a real glut of petrolium and related products in the world. But two "will-be" world-powers are in the midst of indurstial revolutions and playing catch-up with us!

I'm talking about China and India!

Besides petrolium products becoming more and more scarce, those two countries are competing with us for what's available on world markets. Plus China is deliberately trying to and succeeding in challenging /affecting us! China needs more and more gasoline and petro-products, but there is ample evidence they have tried to make things deifficult for us. But ya' know, if I was a Chicom and gunning for the biggest kid on the block, I'd try mucking us up too. Think about it.

I don't think there's a scarcity of oil in the ground, as the Middle-East as well as us and other world-regions have plenty of reserves (over 100-years worth!), but there are "bottlenecks" in getting enough supply [quickly] out of the ground, but also the bottlenecks of distilling and refining oil once it gets to the refining process.

I have a degree in Economics ("enough to be dangerous!" ), but I believe in and trust "the market mechanism," if it was allowed to function without gubmnt or artificial-manipulations! I believe in fundamental-economic priciples and if it was allowed and not hamperred by poliwhores and enviro-NUTS, more oil wells / reserves / production would open up and new refineries would be built.

The result is that supplies would increase (because competitors would want to compete for profits as well as market-share) and a direct result is that gas prices would eventually go down.

And if those folks who monitor and study energy prices have noticed, scrap-metal and many minerals and strategic materials are also in short-supply (no surpluses) because China and India are trying to gobble-up their shares of those things too. And eventually these things also affect prices in food, transportation, etc.

Until U.S. regulation and policy relax "those bottlenecks" restricting fuel output in the United States, I believe gasoline prices will be artificially high. Some "times" the oil companies might reap high and abnormal profits, but not chronically or unabaited for long, long times.

Just some ideas.

Also keep in mind that gubmnt reulation often creates artificial monopolies - when creating or allowing refineries and utility companies/providers to be created.

Because the gubmnt "limits" on the number of such companies - automatically creates the opportunity for possibly-abnormally-high-profits, because these gubmnt "limits" will "limit" supplies available for the market-place.

Gubmnt regulation "creates" M-O-N-O-P-O-L-I-E-S!!! And monopolies are synonymous with artificially-high profits.

My solution would be to remove "artificial" gubmntal restraints on the market-place and supply [i]and demand would "regulate" the market.[\i] Of course the Algore's and enviro-nazis would have cows.

There's a lot of factors that figure into price of gas/diesel. To name a few: Spring's here, demand goes up. Oil refineries are at maximum use and the Greenies refuse to let more be built. Once a year (IIRC) a refinery goes offline for annual maintenance, thereby shorting the supply. World upheavals makes the oil futures jump which translates into higher product cost before the refining process. Cost of transportation to the end-users.

Etc., etc..

$2.57 at the Exxon I buy from. Oil is dropping again so I expect a slow fall in gas price, always slower to fall than to rise. Until somrthing else happens in Iran and everybody gets nervous again.

In Febuary, crude was down to the low $50's, yesterday, the price of crude closed at over $64 a barrel (down a dollar or so).
In January, wholesale gas prices were in the low $1.30's, yesterday wholesale gas closed a tad over $2.00. In Colorado, fed and state gas taxes at the pump are ~40 cents. The percentage of profit stays the same in each step of the chain regardless of prices (of course higher prices means more profit for everybody--well, except for the transporters, they charge a set price).

The wholesale cost means there will still be costs and profit for the distributers to pick it up at the refinery, store it, and transport it to the retail stores and the costs and profit at the retail level. Here in Colorado, the price is running $2.55-$2.75. Some refineries may charge less, some more, but that leaves roughly 15-35 cents to work with between refinery and the pump.

The price of crude oil drives the cost at the pump for the most part.

What really ticks me off is natural gas and even coal prices follow crude prices--and there ain't no conection between them........From late 2004 till summer of 2006, natural gas prices went from ~$6/1000CuFt to over $14, and by this winter was down to ~$6 again. Now it's at $7.5 and rising.

Casey

T-H-I-E-V-I-N-G B-A-S-T-A-R-D-S has nothing to do with it. It's called economics!! If you have inventory (and every gas station has inventory) and the price goes up over night than you must raise your prices immediately to have the money to purchase the next load of inventory. However, if the price goes down over night the price doesn't go down immediately because the old inventory must sold off at the higher price before the price can come down with the next purchase of new inventory. This is so hard for people to understand.

Well I don't know about your area but in Montana we have the socialist regulatory agency known as the "Public Service Commission" which regulates prices on many of our commodities such electric power. They artificially keep prices low until the last minute at which time they okay the price increases and the prices sky rocket. In most states it's the regulatory agencies that are the criminals.

And last the gas inventories are down 5 million barrels according the latest figures just released. Don't expect gas prices to go down anytime soon.

But aren't the regulatory agencies owned and operated by government, which is made of of rich guys who own oil companies or are receiving their monies to stay in office from them?

One thng which cannot be hidden. Large, monopolistic companies
cannot hide obscene profit margins which were directly caused by the government agencies they also own!

I agree with your reasoning, DD, but carry your logic a little further back to see who is pulling the puppet strings?

Well I can't speak for other states regulatory agencies but here in Montana the regulatory agencies are not run by the rich because if they were the decisions would be different. The regulatory agencies are run by the stupid. You know the ones: they know nothing about economics, business, or customers/consumers.

Everyone: go back and read what stubbleduck and derby_dude said. Carefully.

They both have it spot on correct.

I don't think you need to go further than the quarterly reports of the oil companies to figure out all of this.

Your bank account is their bank account; pure and simple.

That's a bit of an exaggeration, Brent. The oil companies make about eight cents a gallon. The Feds and State make twenty cents and twenty-plus cents on that same gallon. The oil companies do ALL the work to find it, pump it, ship it, pump it again, refine it, pump it again, market it and deliver it. The various governments? They just collect your money -- almost SIX TIMES as much of it as the oil companies do.

NOW tell me who is getting the big bank account from all this.

Yeah I get it, the Bushies and his boss Cheney are just looking for excuses to line the pockets of you rich guys. We should be drilling in ANWAR and let the rag heads fend for them selves. Not fighting an unwinable war just to line the pockets of Bactell, Halaburton and other war profiteers. If we are gonna fight this war lets get it on and eleminate all the rag headed bastards other wise get the fu$k out and take care of things here at home.

Bullwnkl

DD

I work for a municipality. We are allowed to raise prices, but within a certain set of limits. Much like you talk. The problem is that they did not take the little bits they were allowed to keep up with the times. Very poor management.

Just like our local rural electric increase. Sure they tell us all its been XY years since we did anythign. But everyone I've talked to has called and told them what dumbasses they are. You don't fool the folks with a false security. You go with the flow and keep things level.

Of course common sense has never prevailed.

Like I said, its not the price, its the sudden and unplanned for rise. I'm getting used to it, but it almost killed us financially when we were not prepared for it. Thats corporate irresponsibilty to the max to my way of thinking.

Jeff

Mexico has a lot of crude oil. Huge deposits have been recently located there.

Let's encourage Mexico (Pemex) to build refineries along the US border, paying decent wages to their employees. It could provide increased gasoline and products while decreasing the flow of illegals across the border, at least those looking for higher paying jobs.

Now, a question for those that know the subject of crude oil. Some sources claim that crude is not a finite resource, that, in fact, it is renewable. Afterall, how many dinosaurs and rotting plants would it take to create the crude, past and future, to fuel th world? According to those sources, heat and pressure on various rock formations generate new pools of crude. Fact or myth?

Filled a rental car in Salt Lake this afternoon at $2.49. Flew home to Portland and filled up on the drive home at $2.99. Really makes me want to drive the old suburban down and suck up 40 gallons!!!! The part that really suck is the pumps will only go to $50 without shutting off and wanting you plastic card again.

Derby Dude; Of course it's "economics"...we're not talking taxidermy here...and between those oil wells and my gas tank there are some thieving bastards setting prices and making record profits...read the paper. It's at my expense, because I'm at the bottom of the "economic" ladder.

Now, somebody mentioned no new nuclear power plants. Am I wrong about the reason for this being that there's too much graft, corruption and just plain substandard work that gets done in such a potentially dangerous environment, for them to be built? Everybody's scared to build them, because they might create a problem, and they don't trust their own work? Is the Sierra Club responsible for them not being built? Who? Pardon my ignorance, if it is that; but nuclear power seems a great way to conserve natural resourses and the environment.
Woops, this is about gas and the thieving bastards getting rich off of us with it.

BB, if you have a problem with making profits, then go buy yourself some oil company stock. Look closely at the P/E ratio. There's a lot of investment made to scrounge those profits.
And the Sierra Club is not totally responsible, but in the aggregate, environmental groups ARE responsible for a lot of volatility in the market.
I honestly know of no new refineries built in the U.S. in the last ten years, or permitted for new construction, and I monitor these things as much as any concerned citizen rationally could. I would have seen something.
Nukes? Same deal, nuke generation is two generations, of CAD and data power, more advanced than a lot of extant plants. The big hang is nuke WASTE. It could be vitrified in glass and plunked two miles down on the abyssal plain, but federal funding for such research was prohibited in a bill written by Frank Pallone of New Jersey about ten years ago. Furthermore, we are wasting zillions on the Yucca Mountain project, et cetera, et cetera. Makes you wonder who is dumber, the bureaucrats and regulators mentioned above, or the politicians who give them guidance, OR the people who vote for them. Whatever the case, we have too many of all of the above.
In the meantime, plan your trips, shop around, and suck it up.

Re the first part; you sound like someone who makes money off of absurdly high gas prices...good for you. I don't, so I'm upset by the thieving bastards who gouge me. Different strokes for different folks.

Re your second part; amen.
It is upsetting to me to see a dependencey on oil and coal, etc, when nuclear power seems TO ME to be a practical solution to the downside of using fossil fuels. The upsetting part is that the problems sound like they are not caused by nuclear power or its waste, but by men and politics.
I mean, what the heck good does it do for us to know how to build and operate and maintain nuclear power plants? Nada. What a waste.

Its very apparent that some folks would rather bitch and complain - than educate themselves on the truth of how capitalism and free enterprise works.

I filled up the Tahoe yesterday and 93 octain was $2.95. We are very likely to see $4.00 a gallon before "07" is in the books!

I understand P and E. Unfortunately what I did as self employed years ago, if I'd increased my pricing similarly, I'd have been out of work, not rich. I did increase a small margin each year so I could be getting the same relative pay.... and not loosing more each year. (wish I could convince my current bosses that a measly 4% raise is not covering cost of living and that I, in essence, make less each year....but the benefits are good...)

Anyway I also am fortunate enough to have a very good friend that invested in a drilling company as one of 3 owners a few years back. Investment cost was not mild of course. But the company was paid off quickly, and has been making mucho $ since then. I don't really care what anyone says or thinks, currently the oil companies and related are making mega bucks at the moment.

Jeff

Oil companies are not to blame. Actually, we have them to thank. Just think what we would be paying if, when prices were below the cost of production a few yrs ago, they had stopped drilling and shut in their production. The OPEC cartel could really be gouging us now! Of course, the O&G companies didn't keep producing at a loss out of the goodness of their hearts. They were anticipating that commodities(oil, gas, gasoline)would go above the price of production at some point in the future(like now)

We like to complain about their profits now(unless you are a shareholder)but no one was writing them a cheque when we were buying gasoline at or below the cost of production.

As far as people complaining that the speculators on Wall Street are running the prices up, well, that's a partial truth. Firstly, much of the commodity trading is not done on Wall street-much more in Chicago.

Secondly, commodity prices are based on supply and demand and , to a lesser extend, on speculation.

Thirdly, commodity traders perform an important function in the finacial world-by taking on the risk(huge amounts) they take that risk from producers and end users.

Finally, it is a 'sum zero' game; these traders, as a group, don't make money. Its impossible-for every dollar one makes, another has to lose a dollar, ie, for eveybody that bought, there has to be a seller. Not an easy way to make a living unless you are better than the next guy(and the next guy will be very good) or very lucky.

For those of you that are tired of paying higher prices at the pump, here's a simple way to ensure that you never pay the higher prices again:

All you have to do is 'hedge' your price. Its very simple to do in this case, no buying futures contracts, etc!

Just go and buy a few shares in a few different O&G companies or, better yet, buy some units of an 'Energy Mutual Fund'. It very easy to do; your local bank or investment advisor can get you started.

Here's how simple it is: once you own these shares or units(mutual funds), whenever you are forced to pay more at the pump, you can feel good about it as your shares will be increasing in value thus offsetting the 'loss' at the pump. It will work the other way too-if prices at the pump fall, your shares will likely cease gaining and may even go backwards. However, you will not lose as your shares may lose you money but you will 'make' it back in saving money at the pump.

At the same time, you can feel good because you've made an 'investment in America'!

Here's what we're paying...

In Eastern Canada, prices are about $1.14 per Litre!!

Yup, according to the oil engineers and scientists oil is a renewable resource. I'm not an engineer or scientist so I don't fully understand it but they claim that they have gone back to depleted oil fields and the fields are full again. This has lead the engineers and scientists to believe the oil is renewable. Now they are looking for the reasons why.

For all those complaining about high gas prices STOP BUYING THE DAMN GAS and the prices will go down. No company wants inventory it can't sell. Buy a bike, horse, walk or have your wife carry you on her back.

StubbleDuck; I've been trying to figure how to respond to your snide remark about me, but I can't think of anything that would be constructive, except this; you're right. I'm bitching. Too bad you can't see further than that in what I posted.

DD; That's exactly what I've done...I drive lots less, and I bought a vehicle that gets almost twice the mpg of my diesel truck...I would sell the diesel, but I need it for some things. If everyone would DO something, things would improve. At least I'd like to think so.
Yes, I could buy alot of diesel for the cost of a new economy rig, but I'd rather decide that my money goes where I want it to, not where I don't want it to go.

....about the time we all cut back, sacrifice, and ride bikes the Chinese are buying cars at a record rate, using more fuel, demand worldwide goes up, commodity traders bid the price up, and fuel stays high. It's a global problem. I don't like it any more than the next guy, but I do understand how it works. Blaming Bush is just pure ignorance....the libs won't let us drill in ANWAR, or most of the Gulf of Mexico, and they make it too difficult to build refineries. It's the world we live in.

Oil companies are not to blame. Actually, we have them to thank. Just think what we would be paying if, when prices were below the cost of production a few yrs ago, they had stopped drilling and shut in their production. The OPEC cartel could really be gouging us now! Of course, the O&G companies didn't keep producing at a loss out of the goodness of their hearts. They were anticipating that commodities(oil, gas, gasoline)would go above the price of production at some point in the future(like now)

We like to complain about their profits now(unless you are a shareholder)but no one was writing them a cheque when we were buying gasoline at or below the cost of production.

As far as people complaining that the speculators on Wall Street are running the prices up, well, that's a partial truth. Firstly, much of the commodity trading is not done on Wall street-much more in Chicago.

Secondly, commodity prices are based on supply and demand and , to a lesser extend, on speculation.

Thirdly, commodity traders perform an important function in the finacial world-by taking on the risk(huge amounts) they take that risk from producers and end users.

Finally, it is a 'sum zero' game; these traders, as a group, don't make money. Its impossible-for every dollar one makes, another has to lose a dollar, ie, for eveybody that bought, there has to be a seller. Not an easy way to make a living unless you are better than the next guy(and the next guy will be very good) or very lucky.

For those of you that are tired of paying higher prices at the pump, here's a simple way to ensure that you never pay the higher prices again:

All you have to do is 'hedge' your price. Its very simple to do in this case, no buying futures contracts, etc!

Just go and buy a few shares in a few different O&G companies or, better yet, buy some units of an 'Energy Mutual Fund'. It very easy to do; your local bank or investment advisor can get you started.

Here's how simple it is: once you own these shares or units(mutual funds), whenever you are forced to pay more at the pump, you can feel good about it as your shares will be increasing in value thus offsetting the 'loss' at the pump. It will work the other way too-if prices at the pump fall, your shares will likely cease gaining and may even go backwards. However, you will not lose as your shares may lose you money but you will 'make' it back in saving money at the pump.

At the same time, you can feel good because you've made an 'investment in America

Derby
Same here. I cut way back on driving. All our friends have also. I bought a vehicle thats a little piece of junk I"ll probably die in if in a wreck but it gets double the mileage...

Our reward? Same high prices getting higher.

Todd you nailed one of the problems. The Libs won't let us drill in the Gulf of Mexico but the Chinese are and the Libs say nothing. I bet if the Chinese want to drill in ANWAR the Libs would say nothing and give them the green (pun intended) light. Has anyone realized yet that the Libs are not Americans if they ever were. Limbaugh says that environmentalism is the new home of the Communists and he's right. What's Lib but a Communist/Fascist.

Like him or not, Michael Savage had it right when he wrote his best selling book, The Enemy Within. Enemy = Liberals. I'd like to mention another point to all of you who blame the oil companies. You had to have noticed the many mergers in the energy industr the past few years.....Exxon/Mobil, Conoco/Phillips, Chevron/Texaco, etc. Who let them do it????? The good ol' US Government, that's who. All of you Big Oil haters need to start pointing your finger there for starters (if you're one of those who thinks Big Oil is responsible).

Snide remark? Not exactly!

If you're so concerned about getting screwed in your pocketbook, why don't you study how economies and and the market works, and why we're taxed the way we are that Rocky Raab referred to. That's not "snide."

I live a few miles south of the refineries near Anacortes, west of Mount Vernon. Why are gasoline prices so damn high in Anacortes? Oak Harbor? Mount Vernon? And the I-5 corridor?

I'd blame Governor Greg-Whore before the oil companies, the Wa-state legislature (and the other 49 state-legislatures, Uncle Sugar, and 99.9999999percent of the dumb-azz greenie environazis! who have screwed over this country for the last 3 1/2 decades!).

BTW, last Christmas season (within the seven days prior to the 25th) I heard a radio report from CBS or ABC or similar, that Saudi Arabia revised their [official] estimate of the oil reserves their country sits over - to increasing it by over 80 years! Which means the Saudi's believe they have enough oil reserves to last better than 110-plus years into the future. And they're only one of MANY oil countries.

And to disgress a little, does anyone here know how much "profit" a grocery makes on its inventory? About 2 to 4 percent! (higher for the snob-stores with really high overheads). What this means is that grocery stores make their profits and ability to stay in business on a very low mark-up and a huge volume of business.

Before Rocky's post I wasn't aware that citizen-consumers are taxed as high as they are - by Uncle "Sugar" when using gasoline products. Think that's because the gubmnt is concerned about the environment? I don't think it is! But rather its because gubmnt knows what people need to survive, to exist - to live day-to-day as they go about their "bidness" going to work, taking care of their famms, traveling, re-creating, playing at whatever Americans do when not earning slave-taxes for Uncle Sour.

That sure isn't the oil companys' fault, and damn sure not Dick Cheney, Dubya Bush or his dad, or even any of their chronies.

Digressing again, many folks believe Lyndon Baines Johnson and his stupid wife made tons of jack ($$$) off of the Vietnam war and the huge oil reserves in the world-region during that time in history. If Cheney and Bush are getting so wealthy, no doubt President Johnson's aires are too!

Personally, I don' think anyone is getting "rich" but Uncle Sour. But you wanna take away "his gravy train?" Learn to make home-made biodiesel fuel (it works!) and tap into the underground economy (growing your own food is one legal and extremely proactive way to do this!).

Still digressing from the talk about gas prices, I once heard someone say that we have to work "twice as hard" to buy a car, house, new rifle or just pay off a loan - when taking into account how much of our income is paid in ALL taxes.

In other words, if you want $1000 cool ones from your credit union, but not counting interest. To pay that back and also manage to pay Uncle Sour his extortion-slave-taxes, you need to gross approximately two thousand dollars!

Just another point to consider, for whatever it's all worth.

I don't hate oil companies any more than I hate other industries. Some are better than others, but most might be considered "necessary evils," at one time or another.

I believe I said earlier in another post that I have a BS degree in ECONOMICS (I've also studied Accounting, Finance, Business Mgt and Operations, etc) - but so what!? I'd only add that ALL the economies throughout the world are often huge and VERY complex! Most of use here wouldn't even amount to a sand-spec on a beach - compared to the world.

If Amercans want to see gasline prices come down in "real terms," then we need to petition our leaders (poliwhores - most likely) to allow new oil fileds to come into production (ANWAR, off-shore drilling, etc.), and new power plants and refineries to be built.

AND IT WOULD STILL TAKE THREE TO SIX YEARS OR LONGER TO SEE "SIGNIFICANTLY" BIG CHANGES.

Someone stupidly - earlier - complained about nuke-powerplants.

Know where Japan gets a tremendous amount of thier electricity and domestic energy? Nuclear powerplants!

Same with many places in Europe. The US laggs waaaaay behind in this area, mainly because of environazi-dumbazzes and "politics."

According to the last Exxon/Mobil annual report it cost over a billion dollars to sink a hole. That's a lot of hay. Letting the oil companies merge is called economy of scale.

The way oil discoveries are done too day is like how minerals were discovered in the 1800's. First small companies get leases and prospect for oil and occasionally put a hole in the ground. Once it has been determined that a oil field has potential and how many barrels are likely to be produced than the leases are sold to big oil who actually drill for oil. Big oil does some prospecting mostly in the oceans but most of it is done by oil prospectors. How I know this is every once in a while I speculate on oil prospectors.

derby, I live in the middle of one of the biggest and most prolific oil fields in the inland US (Permian Basin). It doesn't cost near $1Bil to drill a well inland...several $ Mil is more like it depending on the depth. There are countless independent oil producers who drill/explore/produce oil and gas, not just majors. Big Oil mainly concentrates off-shore and overseas where odds of making big wells are much better. Most Big Oil have pulled out of this part of the world.

Most of the new reserves of any significance are drilling in areas that are expensive. An example, Reliance/Niko(Indian company with Canadian Partner) have found a huge gas/oil reserve off the East coast of India(called D-6). They are drilling this under two miles of water. The technoloy to do this didn't exist not too many yrs ago. Most of the reserves where you can stick a pipe in the ground and the oil will push itself out(like Texas used to have) are long gone.

Sounds alot less snide when you take the time to explain some things.

If you're saying I'm against nuclear power plants, you misread my post.

Ever heard of Eden Energy? Supposedly they are operating in your area although I think all they are doing is exploring I don't think they have any wells. Did a little speculating in their stock, got my money back and made 8 bucks. Would've made a lot more but I got greedy. BTW: you are right that big oil doesn't do as much drilling in this country anymore to much red tape so they say.