http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/analysis_publications/primer_on_gasoline_prices/html/petbro.html
A primer on why gas prices fluctuate.
posted by Brinton @ 12:38 PM
3 comments
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
A primer on why gas prices fluctuate.
3 Comments:
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It begged a Mastercard “priceless” joke. When I thanked Cory for giving me his White Stripes ticket, he responded, “It was a no brainer. Forty bucks for a ticket, ten for dinner, ten for gas…that would buy two bottles of wine at the Hitching Post.”
The fact is, at the time I thought it was hilarious that he had a specific calculus for determining value based on its alcohol equivalency. But it later dawned on me that his calculus included the cost of gas. That’s a sobering sign of the times.
I remember when I started driving, distance was measured in time. I could tell you to the minute how long it took to get from Dana Maloney’s house to mine, (right at the light-not straight) so I could make it home at 11:59. Making it any earlier was suspect; making it any later was more so. Around college it became a matter of miles. It was 8 miles to the mall, 12 to campus.
Today a trip home isn’t 35 miles, or 45 minutes, it’s $6.00. One way.
Believe me, nothing would give me more pleasure (well…there’s that, but you really gotta know what you’re doing or it can hurt) to blame the high price of gas on collusion, or better yet--the self-serving interests of the Bush cabal. But the truth is, according to inflationary patterns, we are right where we should be. Gas prices will stabilize at around $2.25/gallon without dips in abundance or demand. It’s arguable that with China projected to build 50,000 miles of infrastructure next year, and God wrecking havoc on the depraved oil-producing countries (die, Pat Roberts…just die) we’ll be paying even more.
In short, we’re all gonna need a calculus to help us prioritize.
Cory and I can disagree. I’ll go to my grave thinking $60 to see that concert was a sound investment…my friends, seeing Jack White in spandex pants was indeed priceless.
Gas has been part of my calculus since it hit 1.79 a couple years ago. Of course, if you go back far enough, I was poor, and anything consumable was considered. I don't feel much more uncomfortable now paying 2.29 than I did in college paying 1.29. As environentalists we might even be glad that it's high enough to make people try to conserve a little bit, but that requires just a little bit of calloused arrogance, as I know people who are not fortunate enough to live eight miles from work, and bring home what I do. I know people who are driving fifty miles to work and making ten dollars or less an hour. It's those people that are hurt by the riing cost of fuel. My family spends an enormous amount on fuel, but fuel costs (the fuel we pump into the cars) never exceeds about 20% of our monthly budget. I'm sure there are families out there who are shelling out 40-50% of what they make to buy gasoline.
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