$4.00 Gas

[Dan]

THE OIL CRISIS YOU GOTTA LOVE this EXPLANATION -- CUTE & ALSO TOO TRUE!
A lot of folks can't understand how we came to have an oil shortage here in our country. ~~~
Well, there's a very simple answer. ~~~
Nobody bothered to check the oil. ~~~
We just didn't know we were getting low. ~~~
The reason for that is purely geographical. ~~~
Our OIL is located in: ~~~
ALASKA
~~~
California
~~~
Coastal Florida
~~~
Coastal Louisiana ~~~ Coastal Alabama ~~~~ Coastal Mississippi ~~~~
Coastal Texas ~~~
North Dakota
~~~
Wyoming
~~~
Colorado
~~~
Kansas
~~~~
Ohio
~~~
Oklahoma
~~~
Pennsylvania
~~~ And
Texas~~~
Our dipsticks are located in DC
~~~Any Questions?
NO? Didn't think So.

 

[Budnicks]

that's so true, it's $4.49 per gallon here now....

 

[mrkinger]

$5.89 here in Canada ,for no good reason ,corporate greed .Thats all

 

[Ron 73]

Ive seen that before, sure worth posting, maybe twice a week for those in public office that checks out what car folks have to say about gas/prices... Today i plan on putting my new fuel tank on, so i can fill the pockets, or my share in filling the pockets of those contributing to this gold for gas program.

 

[zdillinger]

Today i plan on putting my new fuel tank on, so i can fill the pockets, or my share in filling the pockets of those contributing to this gold for gas program.

I thought it was a limb for gas program? Lucky me I've still got all four limbs, but who knows for how long?

 

[Cranky]

$5.89 here in Canada ,for no good reason ,corporate greed .Thats all

You don't know what a refinery makes on a gallon of gas, do ya?

 

[Cranky]

Btw, Exxon made 9 cents on the dollar in 2010....what did the top drug companies make? And yet no one complains about them.

 

[mrkinger]

Everyone needs fuel,not drugs,and the drug companys spend lots on research.There all greety

 

[kb67mopar]

I am currently working on a modernization project for BP. All I can say is they throw money away just because they can.

In the last couple years they have purposely reduced drilling/production to reduce supply to drive up prices, this was not hidden, I believe even OPEC admitted it.

Every industry has done this, especially when there is no means of losing business. The steel industry shuts down facilities to reduce supply to keep prices high during low demand (I used to work for them directly). Its the same concept and its just to keep profit margins high.

Drilling just for the sake of drilling doesn't make sense, they just shouldn't be allowed to gouge us.

I paid $4.16 yesterday but have recently seen up to $4.35 (NW Indiana)

 

[mrkinger]

X10,ther is a protest going around the net ,not to buy gas from Sunoco or Esso.It may not hurt them,but its better then doing nothing at all

 

[Bruzilla]

The energy/oil companies aren't the problem. The problem is the energy markets. The laws changed in 2006, and allowed US oil to be traded on unregulated international energy markets. Before 2006, all US oil was traded on regulated domestic markets, and controls were brought to bear when spikes were detected. All that changed in 2006, and this drove lots of investors to the oil and energy markets as they no longer had to worry about price controls. Then we had the banking and housing collapses in 2007/2008, and suddenly gold and oil became about the only safe places to invest, and the demand for safe investments took over actual oil supply and demand issues.

Canada is a textbook example of the impacts of this. They pump 100% of their domestic needs, plus enough to be one of the World's largest exporters of oil, yet a gallon of gas costs the same in Canada as it does here. That's because all their oil is sold on the same markets as everyone else's, and for the same price, and it doesn't matter how much you pump domestically.

And staying on Canada for a sec, they've been rapidly increasing production from the oil sands in Alberta, and making big increases in global supply, yet market prices haven't gone down. That's because there are still folks lining up to buy oil futures just because they're a safe place to invest right now.

 

[Ron 73]

Btw, Exxon made 9 cents on the dollar in 2010....what did the top drug companies make? And yet no one complains about them.

Im not trying to be cute here, I don't know what they make, but i do my fair share each month i start handing $$ to my drugstore... Its killing us between gas and medicine. I wonder how much more we can get away with robbing Peter to pay Paul and it seems there's no relief in site. Hate to sound negative, but medications are out of this world, coupled with the gas prices i wonder where there going to hit us next.

 

[Ron 73]

I thought it was a limb for gas program? Lucky me I've still got all four limbs, but who knows for how long?

I hear ya buddy, another 50 bucks today... but, im still looking at 1/2 a tank anyway in my car..

 

[Bruzilla]

Im not trying to be cute here, I don't know what they make, but i do my fair share each month i start handing $$ to my drugstore... Its killing us between gas and medicine. I wonder how much more we can get away with robbing Peter to pay Paul and it seems there's no relief in site. Hate to sound negative, but medications are out of this world, coupled with the gas prices i wonder where there going to hit us next.

Don't know if this will help, but I used to work at Blue Cross Blue Shield and saw a lot of people getting ripped off on drugs. Doctors get bennies by writing scripts for the latest and greatest brand name drugs, but most all of these drugs don't work any better than older drugs, especially for common ailments like blood pressure, diabetes, etc. When you ask if there's a generic version of the drug, the answer is always no because the drug company patents run for about seven years, and once the patent expires and generics are made, the drug company has released a newer/better model and the cycle begins again.

The best thing you can do is go to Walmart and get a copy of their $4 generics list, which is pretty damn extensive courtesy of Medicare Part D, and ask your doctor "is there a drug on this list that would work for me?" That forces them into a box where they have to fess up if an older/generic drug would just as well as the Cadillac one they just prescribed you, and you can have them write a script for that drug.

My wife was spending $210 a month on high-end blood pressure medications, then she hit her Doc with the list and now she's paying $16 a month.

 

[mrkinger]

I just bought my wife a really nice MGB.they are pretty easy on fuel,we may drive it more than anything

 

[Richard Cranium]

The energy/oil companies aren't the problem. The problem is the energy markets. The laws changed in 2006, and allowed US oil to be traded on unregulated international energy markets. Before 2006, all US oil was traded on regulated domestic markets, and controls were brought to bear when spikes were detected. All that changed in 2006, and this drove lots of investors to the oil and energy markets as they no longer had to worry about price controls. Then we had the banking and housing collapses in 2007/2008, and suddenly gold and oil became about the only safe places to invest, and the demand for safe investments took over actual oil supply and demand issues.

Canada is a textbook example of the impacts of this. They pump 100% of their domestic needs, plus enough to be one of the World's largest exporters of oil, yet a gallon of gas costs the same in Canada as it does here. That's because all their oil is sold on the same markets as everyone else's, and for the same price, and it doesn't matter how much you pump domestically.

And staying on Canada for a sec, they've been rapidly increasing production from the oil sands in Alberta, and making big increases in global supply, yet market prices haven't gone down. That's because there are still folks lining up to buy oil futures just because they're a safe place to invest right now.

So in other words, the government fu**ed things up yet again.

 

[Bruzilla]

So in other words, the government fu**ed things up yet again.

In a few words, yes, but that's the role of government sadly. If things aren't changing, it doesn't look like government is doing anything, so they make lots of changes that work out, and a lot that cause unforseen problems.

Going back to drugs for a second, Medicare Part D was designed to provide drugs to seniors, but there are a lot of seniors and a limited budget, so how do you make that work? The government did it by making a plan that only covered drugs costs to certain amount ($2,300 or so), then the member had to pay $3,600 out-of-pocket, then the government started paying again. When the plan came out, seniors rushed out and got scripts for every Cadillac pill they could get since they were on the taxpayer's dime, but the joke was on them. Those folks who rushed out and demanded the best drugs quickly burned through their initial covered costs, and had to pay out-of-pocket for those drugs until they had shelled out $3,600 or so of their own money. Ouch!

The next year they learned their lesson, and started demanding more and more generic drugs be made available, which allowed them to stay under that $2,300 limit, which was a boon for taxpayers; but even better, this made so many generics available that WalMart, and soon after most others, started offering their $4 generic plans to everyone. Without Medicare Part D, we wouldn't have the range of generics we currently have, and would not be able to get a month's worth of them for $3 or $4, so sometimes government does something good.

 

[Ron 73]

Don't know if this will help, but I used to work at Blue Cross Blue Shield and saw a lot of people getting ripped off on drugs. Doctors get bennies by writing scripts for the latest and greatest brand name drugs, but most all of these drugs don't work any better than older drugs, especially for common ailments like blood pressure, diabetes, etc. When you ask if there's a generic version of the drug, the answer is always no because the drug company patents run for about seven years, and once the patent expires and generics are made, the drug company has released a newer/better model and the cycle begins again.

The best thing you can do is go to Walmart and get a copy of their $4 generics list, which is pretty damn extensive courtesy of Medicare Part D, and ask your doctor "is there a drug on this list that would work for me?" That forces them into a box where they have to fess up if an older/generic drug would just as well as the Cadillac one they just prescribed you, and you can have them write a script for that drug.

My wife was spending $210 a month on high-end blood pressure medications, then she hit her Doc with the list and now she's paying $16 a month.

Im fortunate to be able to have almost all generic drugs as of right now, I take some 10 different meds per day.. All are generic but one, my breathing treatment i use Symbicort which is among the worse with cost, i know of no generic version of this but ill try what you say, if its possible they do ill get it .. Being it is so pricey i try not to use it very much which in turn is very unpleasant to deal with... Im not surprised at prices of medications but some i think are high priced for obvious reasons, Pain pills are higher, it would be easier to say no to my diabetic medicine as compared to dealing with chronic pain, they knowing this, in my opinion make the price to suit the purpose, the same with so many other drugs that they know we will not go without.. i take other drugs, all legal prescription drugs but my doctor gives me samples as much as possible such as the Lyrica for the pain in my feet that honestly sometimes gets so bad you think you could saw them off and not care. neuropathy is something i didn't understand at all before it happened, now its made me a believer. Ill check, maybe there's something other then i have that would be cheaper, but for the most part, everything is generic.. i didn't mean to start a drug discussion, but i am one who complains about the cost of all these that i have to have.. my dinner over and im trying to help a guy get his car running.. Good advice!! thank you.

 

[Budnicks]

I.M.H.O. A less regulated, less taxed, non subsidized, less additives, less different type fuel blends for all over the country, "drill for our many currently known, available resources, HERE AT HOME in the U.S.", along with getting some many, many people back to work & a "totally free market system, based on supply & demand", would be much better for gas prices... I don't even want to start a conversation about NAFTA... As for the Pharmaceutical Companies they are way out of hand, I'm 52 & I personally don't take any meds currently, I took pretty good care of myself in my younger years, but my aging Pops take "way too many" that's his generation though, "take a pill for freaken everything", "a pill to wake you up", "a pill to make you sleep", "a pill for indigestion", "a pill for an erection", " a pill for contraception", "a pill for being happy", "a pill for being sad", on & on & on, they are way too dependent on meds, it's a damn crouch.... Also there is no way it costs, any were near, what they charge to make many of the medicines, even with all the science & research studies, especially some the many, many drugs that they push on TV all the time, it's a joke... The way to compensate is buy stock in both then you will profit & get some dividends, along with them... Depending on the govt. to fix it, won't work,it never does, just look at their track record, we need other alternatives than govt. subsidizing everything... Look at Walmart, I'm not a big fan of them, but they found an affordable solution to a big problem, free market works...

 

[Cranky]

Everyone needs fuel,not drugs,and the drug companys spend lots on research.There all greety

I know of no one that doesn't take some kind of meds from baby aspirin on up. And if you tried hard enough, you could live without using fuel. Take public transportation for one but yeah, you are still going to pay for the fuel being used in that. As for home fuel...burn wood in a wood burning stove for heat and cooking. That's not real feasible but it can be done.

I am currently working on a modernization project for BP. All I can say is they throw money away just because they can.

In the last couple years they have purposely reduced drilling/production to reduce supply to drive up prices, this was not hidden, I believe even OPEC admitted it.

Every industry has done this, especially when there is no means of losing business. The steel industry shuts down facilities to reduce supply to keep prices high during low demand (I used to work for them directly). Its the same concept and its just to keep profit margins high.

Drilling just for the sake of drilling doesn't make sense, they just shouldn't be allowed to gouge us.

I paid $4.16 yesterday but have recently seen up to $4.35 (NW Indiana)

I worked for Exxon for 26 years and saw lots of money in the dumpsters. As for steel mills, I also worked for ARMCO for a time and the only time we slowed down is when the stock yards filled up. One of those times was in 75 when Japan flooded our market with subsidized steel and our gooberment let it happen.