1.89 here in LI

 

fck all you guys.just filled up here 2.33 at the cheveron....my trip meter was showing DTE: --- which means theres not much gas left

 

Cost me over $30 to fill-up the other day. I personally don't like it, because as I've said in the past, it's very regressive. Somebody else made a very, very, pro-oil and if I may say Republican comment that they could care less because essentially they can afford it. Can a 16 yr-old high school student afford $30+ to fill-up their car? Of course. Can a 41 yr-old CEO afford it? Of course. But who gets hurt more when gas goes to $2.50/gal or over $3?

Example--our co's head's house that he bought in July showed up in the paper last weekend, the real estate transaction that is. His house cost 900k. I was surprised he spent that little, that's not chump change but that's not a lot considering how much he makes, and there are more expensive ones around here (ask the sr mgt of those bogus internet cos whose stocks went from $240 down to $0.90 with the 90 cents including a 10-1 reverse split). Then compare it to how much I paid to get a house, and you say, wait a minute, his salary is more than double mine. It may be more like 5 times mine, yet he doesn't buy a house 5 times as much as mine. Can you know see how regressive a 1% real estate transfer tax is?

I really believe that those who are well-off need to be stewards in our society and pull their weight as far as taxes go. I'm all for the maximum income taxes to go up IF all the regressive costs were to be eliminated. You make big bucks, you pay big taxes, nothing wrong with it. Stop socking it to people who only make 10-120 thousand dollars/yr.

 

well shiet mang... aint that a *****... move down to SoCal 2.29!! cheaper in LA, SD is almost like the damn bay

 

I use to live in Surrey and I had a 67 MGB. I had to use lead replacement which was about 40p more a gallon.

 

There is far far far more at play here than just uncertainty over war with Iraq. While concern war with Iraq is a part of the issue, even a significant one perhaps, it is by no means the only critical factor. OPEC has ramped up supply, continually, and only has an additional 1.5-3 million barrels a day (depends on who you listen to). If war with Iraq starts you can count on their 2 million barrel per day contribution to the global oil economy ending. Now, if OPEC ramps up to cover the difference, you could, at MOST, gain 1 million barrels per day.

There's also the shortage of Venezuelan oil due to their strike, winter has been colder longer in the NE this year, and natural gas prices have been spiking bringing up the rest of the energy sector with it. Domestic reserve supplies are all at historically low levels as well and IMHO they shouldn't be tapped to let us drive around like crazies on cheap gas. Rather, if there is a sever disruption in oil supply to this country, they should hit the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and untap some of our stockpiles.

People in the NE can do a lot by using less heating oil. We can expect Venezuelan crude to be flowing here in about 2-3 months since the strike just ended. We also have the benefit of Nigeria's strike being averted. If the cold snap ends before the war starts, then I agree with Bill that when the bombs start falling, gas prices likely will too but I'm doubtful that it will be a 40% intraday drop like it was back at that start of Desert Storm.

The kicker here isn't what it's costing you and me to fill our tanks. The kicker is the cost to business and productivity in the US economy as a whole. It'll be interesting to see how it all plays out.

 

Shell has the best deal going at the moment. Get a Shell Mastercard and you get 10% off gas for 60 days and then 5% from there on out. As long as you fill up with Shell 9 times a year the annual fee is waved. The interest rate is a tad high, but I pay my cards off monthly so I don't really care about the higher rate.