Gas Prices

About speculators and the cost of oil, in recent testimony before Congress:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/11/opini ... ef=opinion

"Pure speculators account for as much as 40 percent of that high price, according to testimony that Rex Tillerson, the chief executive of ExxonMobil, gave to Congress last year. That estimate is bolstered by a recent report from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis."

It goes on to say that recent Dodd-Frank regulation has limited this speculation somewhat but has not closed the door sufficiently. There is still room for speculators to move oil prices.
 
Bill,
Thanks for the informative post. These speculators sound a lot like the bankers making money loaning morgage money to folks who they knew would not pay for the loans with wildly adjustable rates and then hedged their bets by betting that the same people that they gave the loans to would not repay the loans and then cashed in on insurance when they did not. The trouble was they ended up with the a glut of houses no one wanted and destroyed the housing market.
Now we as taxpayers pay to have mow the lawns on these forclosed homes that Freddie Mac and Fanny Mae guaranteed the paper on.
They need to control they types of transactions as these folks have no ability to store one barrel of oil. paper transactions that effect millions of people by inflating prices. Not exactly real supply and demand economics.
D.D.
 
An interesting thought about not buying gas on a particular day. All of us that use this product, is like using toilet paper. Sooner or later you will buy what you need. All the supplier has to do is wait till our 'human nature' takes its course. :roll:

So all you loving folks, may we enjoy our blessings and may you have full limits of fish, etc., in your coolers.

Art
 
Not buying gas on a particular day does nothing. The only way to make any effect is to not drive and therefore not consume any gas. And you can't just push your mileage off to another day, you must consume less over a period of time. So, if everyone each month consumes less, say 1/2 tank, well then perhaps that would have some effect, but it requires us changing our habits. Not likely huh?
 
G Gallagher":2ebo4lor said:
Not buying gas on a particular day does nothing. The only way to make any effect is to not drive and therefore not consume any gas. And you can't just push your mileage off to another day, you must consume less over a period of time. So, if everyone each month consumes less, say 1/2 tank, well then perhaps that would have some effect, but it requires us changing our habits. Not likely huh?
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American gas consumption has recently fallen significantly but India and China keep rapidly increasing theirs.For better or worse it's a global economy.
 
localboy":19fk0pgx said:
Saw diesel @ a Shell in Bothell yesterday: $4.59/US gallon. :roll: :evil: Don't think fuel prices like that will negatively effect all of the U.S. economy? I really worry for my g-kids. What will this country be like in 20 yrs?
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As long as the federal gov can borrow .40ct of every dollar they spend at very low interest rates, we continue being the reserve currency, and the federal reserve can print money with impunity maybe we can kick the can down the road and dump it on the grandkids. IMHO it's not if this comes to an end but when. Could be a lot sooner than 20 years. I guess time will tell.
 
I think that we Americans are changing habits. Some out of choice and some because they have no choice. Oil prices have a pretty big effect in the northeast as there is a population density, usually winters a little colder and a lot of folks use number two heating oil. A 275 gallon tank at 3.67 a gallon for 250 gallons = $917.50 does a pretty good job on any disposible income a younger couple starting out might of had. That's before they gas up the car to get to work. It kind of cuts into reinsulating the house or buying the new diesel Jetta.
I for one am changing my habits, as mentioned before with trailering between points of interest instead of cruising down the coast because of transcient slip costs and fuel at five dollars a gallon or more at the marinas. I remember not too long ago one woman started bitching on the internet about Bank of America's five dollar a month debit card fees. It went viral and the Bank of America backed down. Doing nothing at all does exactly that. Maybe write an email with your thoughts to your state representitives or senators. It can't hurt. I do it all the time.
D.D.
 
It is important for all of us to understand personal finances and 'national' economics. Unfortunately, we think not enough is taught in school in these areas. As boaters, knowledge of personal economics is vital in our use of our boats. As DD has said, with higher fuel costs we should all consider how this affects our budgets and make adjustments if necessary. Owning an economical boat, like our C-Dorys, is certainly a good choice.

Yes, letting our opinions known to our representatives is essential - we have family who work with the US Congress and they assure us that our emails to reps. ARE important ( we write two to three times a week about pending legislation).

We have a responsibility to ourselves and our family to exercise good economic sense in our personal lives -- for instance, balancing higher fuel costs with other priorities - and a responsibility as citizens to let our reps. know our opinions on the national economy - especially important now in a period of economic uncertainty. It is our responsibility to listen and consider all viewpoints, analyze using factual economic information ( and not just ideological buzz), and think critically before adopting an opinion.

Interesting times -- most all of us have been financially impacted, some seriously, and it is time to make adjustments in our lifestyles and in our opinions of national economics. Leaving consequences for our grandkids? Hmm - got an email from one (14 years old) yesterday who wants a 'family' discussion on how to adjust her 'investments' --
 
With summer a few months off, we should have our traditional price hike any time soon. Our gas prices around here typically increase around the time the kids get out of school and family's start vacations and stay there for the whole tourist season.

If you look at the trend line, I doubt there will ever be any real decrease in price. Sure a few pennies might get you excited, but its only temporary. This will not change until oil companies get competitive instead of sleeping together or our society comes up with new forms of transportation.

I love my volt. Still only 15 gallons purchased since I bought the car in November.
 
Front page story Wall Street Journal is "Pressure on Oil Supply Eases". It goes on to state that a surprising boost in global oil inventories, aided by supple increases from Saudi Arabia is blunting the possibility that sanctions agains Iran will drive up oil prices.

Remember that the rise in oil prices are due to commodity speculators and hedgers--not the oil companies. The global situation--use of oil, demand for oil, and availability of oil determine what the price does. If the Mid East blows up--then all bets are off......

I also worry about the grandkids---but my daughter assures me that they will be fine. I agree that we have to get the nation's fiscal affairs in order. Inflation is the biggest threat to those who are retired or on fixed income.
 
I love my volt. Still only 15 gallons purchased since I bought the car in November.
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Some of us cannot afford >$40K for such a vehicle. Not criticizing; just saying. It would take me an entire life to recoup the money spent vs. fuel savings.

I think that we Americans are changing habits. Some out of choice and some because they have no choice.
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I may buy a small scooter, for short errands/trips. I recently bought a new mountain bike and actually started riding it for the same reason; why drive an F250 to Safeway for a few groceries? And who knows, it may make me skinnier/healthier too. :wink:
 
We have two cars and a truck. i normally drive an 07 Honda Civic which I actually like to drive. It gets about thirty miles per gallon around town and 40 mpg if you set the cruise at sixty five on the highway. I use Mobil one synthethic oil and only change it once a year. Bought the little sucker new it's been faultless it's got only about seventy k on it. I even put a trailer hitch on it and got a light weight aluminum trailer that holds four kayaks and our Mokai. We will still get on the water even if things get real bad. my wife has a Honda CRV which gets about 25 mpg. my 09 three quarter ton Duramax diesel gets fourteen to fifteen usually pulling the boat. That's got about twenty eight k so it's not even broken in yet. We did a month in Florida trailering down from Pa and plan to get up to Block Island, Martha's Vineyard and Cuttyhunk putting in near Charlestown, RI in June. In the mean time we try to live fairly cheaply while we are not traveling so we can afford the price of fuel. Fortunately my truck sits unless I'm pulling a trailer of some kind. We have a big garden and grow a lot of veggies which we give a fair amount away as I like to grow things. My wife grows lots of flowers the truck pulls a landscape type trailer for mulch mushroom soil and moving equipment around to different family members like rototillers,mowers, snowblowers etc. In spite of the high price of fuel we feel very blessed with our position in life.
D.D.
 
localboy":24tpnowj said:
I love my volt. Still only 15 gallons purchased since I bought the car in November.
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Some of us cannot afford >$40K for such a vehicle. Not criticizing; just saying. It would take me an entire life to recoup the money spent vs. fuel savings.

I think that we Americans are changing habits. Some out of choice and some because they have no choice.
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I may buy a small scooter, for short errands/trips. I recently bought a new mountain bike and actually started riding it for the same reason; why drive an F250 to Safeway for a few groceries? And who knows, it may make me skinnier/healthier too. :wink:
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Good on you. Here's something we agree on! I started doing cycling to work (14.6 miles each way) 2 days a week in the late spring through early winter about 2 years ago and it's been good for my health and my pocketbook. While 14.6 miles may sound like a long distance, it takes about 1 hour each way regardless of traffic. In my car it takes 25 mins in the very early AM but 35 at rush hour (sometimes 40 on the way home). So on a typical day, it takes 1 hour and 10 minutes to drive to work and back and 2 hours to bike. If I drive, I usually go in early and exercise for an hour. If I bike, I get two hours of exercise and the time spent between exercise and transit is the same either way. I save the fuel, the parking expense and the wear and tear on the car and I save on health care in the long run since I'm healthier. I spend a bit more on food to replace the calories but it's win-win-win.
 
I used to ride a lot, back in Hawai'i...the beach, the store, just for fun...but then the weather there is...uhm...more conducive to outdoor activities. :lol:
 
I understand for the electic car people, they are going to install a GPS, so they can pay there fair share of road taxes by the mile. You get a bill every 9o days. C-Otter
 
C-Otter":2rb0ci4f said:
I understand for the electic car people, they are going to install a GPS, so they can pay there fair share of road taxes by the mile. You get a bill every 9o days. C-Otter
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Sounds fair to me. They use the roads too. In fact, in the PNW I think bicyclists should also pay for a yearly "tab" for the same reason.
 
On the bridge from Sault Ontario to Sault Michigan the cars are lined up bumper to bumper from one end of the bridge to the other going to Michigan to get gas. It's quite a sight to see, it's been like that every time i have looked.Next time i am fishing in the rapids i will snap a picture to show you. Tug
 
localboy said:
Some of us cannot afford >$40K for such a vehicle. Not criticizing; just saying. It would take me an entire life to recoup the money spent vs. fuel savings. quote

I will toss out some numbers.

My fuel savings from trading the dodge ram hemi for the volt is around $341 a month. My payment increase from the ram to the volt was $175 a month. At
present prices it will take 117 months to pay for the car with fuel savings alone. 10 years is not a lifetime and that is full price without the tax credit. With the tax credit that I did utilize it will payoff in 8 years and 1 month. Many car loans are now 7 year contracts. And trying not to be overly pessimistic, just how long will it be before we see a higher fuel price as the norm.

If you want immediate savings some of the lease contracts are cheap enough that your fuel savings alone will make the payments.

I could ride a bike or drive a motorcycle or walk. But for me and my business it is not practical to ride a bike to a clients or bring home cases of paper on something less than a vehicle.

One of my clients rode his bike to his job for several years and that man is fit. He is also happy. Regardless of how gas has effected your budget it has always been in your best interest to stay fit. I have surfed my whole life and now with the paddle surfing I have achieved fitness levels I had playing football. It feels good.

It really sounds like fuel price increases are impacting the american lifestyle. Hopefully we can find some good and accept less as better.
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