No gas for me tomorrow

[FirefightnRick]

There has been an email sent out(I've recieved it twice now) about trying to start a gas-out asking for everyone in north america not to buy gas for one day in response to the price gouging by the oil companies. But I think the day is tomorrow, Sept 1st which to me is not enough time to get the best response? Fox is reporting that it costs OPEC about $4 to produce a barrel of oil, the rest is solid profit. Could something like a gas-out force a discount on fuel?

Thoughts?

Rick

[Gakusei]

One day won't make a difference, especially when people are going to buy anyway on Sept. 2nd. In order for something like this to work, there'd have to be a huge shift in people's daily habits so that there's consistently much more supply than demand.

[HoustonEagle]

There has been an email sent out(I've recieved it twice now) about trying to start a gas-out asking for everyone in north america not to buy gas for one day in response to the price gouging by the oil companies.  But I think the day is tomorrow, Sept 1st which to me is not  enough time to get the best response?  Fox is reporting that it costs OPEC about $4 to produce a barrel of oil, the rest is solid profit.  Could something like a gas-out force a discount on fuel?

Thoughts?

Rick

←

Rick, US refinery capacity has been hovering around 95-99% before this disaster occured. We have struggled to meet demand for some time now producing fuels as fast as we consume them. Now a fair amount of the refinery capacity has been taken out. Just exactly what did you think was going to happen? I have many problems with the Energy Industry. The industry that provides me a job. Not the least of which is that our "beloved" Republican government gave the most profitable industry on earth right now tax breaks and subsidies for something they were going to do anyways. But that is besides the point. The prices you are seeing now in the wake of Katrina are supply and demand issues. As refinery capacity comes back on line you will see a drop in prices. How long that takes I don't know. Maybe for awhile dare I say we may all have to learn to "conserve" energy. Am I a bad American for using the "C" word?

Edited September 1, 2005 by HoustonEagle

[FirefightnRick]

I forgot to post the email. Here it is. One cousin of mine say's it's a spoof? Not sure it would work anyways but I'm not buying gas tomorrow just in case. That, and the fact I'm home tomorrow.

IT HAS BEEN CALCULATED THAT IF EVERYONE IN THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA DID NOT PURCHASE A DROP OF GASOLINE FOR ONE DAY AND ALL AT THE SAME TIME, THE OIL COMPANIES WOULD CHOKE ON THEIR STOCKPILES.

AT THE SAME TIME IT WOULD HIT THE ENTIRE INDUSTRY WITH A NET LOSS OF OVER 4.6 BILLION DOLLARS WHICH AFFECTS THE BOTTOM LINES OF THE OIL COMPANIES.

THEREFORE SEPTEMBER 1st HAS BEEN FORMALLY DECLARED "STICK IT UP THEIR BEHIND " DAY AND THE PEOPLE OF THESE TWO NATIONS SHOULD NOT BUY A SINGLE DROP OF GASOLINE THAT DAY.

THE ONLY WAY THIS CAN BE DONE IS IF YOU FORWARD THIS E-MAIL TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS YOU CAN AND AS QUICKLY AS YOU CAN TO GET THE WORD OUT.

WAITING ON THE GOVERNMENT TO STEP IN AND CONTROL THE PRICES IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE REDUCTION AND CONTROL IN PRICES THAT THE ARAB NATIONS PROMISED TWO WEEKS AGO?

REMEMBER ONE THING, NOT ONLY IS THE PRICE OF GASOLINE GOING UP BUT AT THE

SAME TIME AIRLINES ARE FORCED TO RAISE THEIR PRICES, TRUCKING COMPANIES ARE FORCED TO RAISE THEIR PRICES WHICH EFFECTS PRICES ON EVERYTHING THAT IS SHIPPED. THINGS LIKE FOOD, CLOTHING, BUILDING MATERIALS, MEDICAL SUPPLIES ETC. WHO PAYS IN THE END? WE DO!

WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. IF THEY DON'T GET THE MESSAGE AFTER ONE DAY, WE WILL DO IT

AGAIN AND AGAIN.

SO DO YOUR PART AND SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW. MARK YOUR CALENDARS AND MAKE SEPTEMBER 1ST A DAY THAT THE CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA SAY "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH"

[MootPoint]

The gas companies will just lower the price tomorrow and raise them back up on the 2nd to spite you.

[shaneb]

This email has been circulating for years and years. It has never worked and will never work.

What will work is to buy more fuel efficient vehicles, use alternative fuel sources, buy less fuel and reduce the demand.... therefore increasing the supply and reducing price... simple economics. Its the same theory as the email except that you can't trick economics.

Shane

[SCREAMING EAGLE-66]

Buying gas tommorrow or later doesn't make any difference.... USING alot less might if it were done long enough. Dumb idea by someone... and yes it has been circulating for years.... even when it was below $1.00 for a while about 1998.

[FirefightnRick]

Truly, the only way to solve the problem is to find a substitute and become less dependant of fossil fuels. Of course we know the auto and oil industry isn't going allow that, at least not until we have to of course.

Rick

[Cowtown]

saw on CNN yesterday that gas in Venezuela is up to about .05 per gallon.

Perhaps it is time to switch our focus from mid east to So. Am.

[Coffee and TV]

This email has been circulating for years and years. It has never worked and will never work.

What will work is to buy more fuel efficient vehicles, use alternative fuel sources, buy less fuel and reduce the demand.... therefore increasing the supply and reducing price... simple economics. Its the same theory as the email except that you can't trick economics.

Shane

←

there is not a truer post on this board.

[shaneb]

Truly, the only way to solve the problem is to find a substitute and become less dependant of fossil fuels.  Of course we know the auto and oil industry isn't going allow that, at least not until we have to of course. 

Rick

←

The auto industry won't do it for the same reason they won't offer small trucks with diesels in the US...... because people in America won't buy them. Continue to want bigger and bigger SUVs and that is what they will make... the increase in oil prices should change that in a sane world... but thats not where we live.

What I wouldn't give for a 4x4 Ranger with a 4cyl turbo diesel that will run biodiesel.

The fossil fuel industry is another story all together....

Shane

[MeanGreenBuzz]

Because of the EPA and all of our environmental laws it takes 7 years of red tape to get an oil refinery built in the US. Because of this the US only refines 25% of the gas it consumes each year. If we could cut back the red tape and start opening more refineries gas prices would go down and there would be more jobs created in the US... damn tree huggers...

[FirefightnRick]

One of our FF's just bought a diesel VW bug two weeks ago. Too small for me on U.S. highways of course but they do offer it. As I always say, you can't put a price on safety even though I know the oil industry is getting fatter by the day and I'll pay the higher prices and still drive a full size gas guzzlin truck. Hell I'd drive a military halftrack back and forth to work if I could get it registered and licensed.

Here's a thought. Instead of planning on more congested highways and putting in a toll road as the great minds of the future Parker County Transit Authority is discussing doing, how about we get with the rest of the free world start looking at light rail for our daily commute? I know the Denton County TA is looking at this. In fact all of the City of Denton's large equipment trucks are using Bio Diesel now as an alternate fuel. At least those running Denton County have some kind of ability to think ahead.

Rick

[stebo]

Truly, the only way to solve the problem is to find a substitute and become less dependant of fossil fuels.  Of course we know the auto and oil industry isn't going allow that, at least not until we have to of course. 

Rick

←

The feds have finally started to push for the Ethanol/gas mixture through subsidies. I saw a nice piece on it on the news a few nights ago - owners of cars that can handle the fuel are saving some serious money in the heartland of America... the 80/20 mix is going for about $2.10 a gallon right now and the corn farmers are loving every moment of it... (most cars made in the last 20 years can handle it - basically all fuel injected vehicles). The biggest arguement up to this point is that it takes more energy to produce the ethanol fuel then fuel that is produced. The only reason why is that it takes a petroleum fueled refinery to produce the 80/20 mix - thus burning one tank of gas to make another... But with the Federal Subsidies it is becoming a viable experiment at least. I think that the future of our energy problems will be solved by this mixture. It will take a few things to line up in the future with an alcohol based fuel to be viable. First, we have to keep up the subsidies long enough to have a few refineries switch over to the fuel so that they are not burning one to produce another. For now it is a nice way to experiment; but in the future we need to make the process a little more environmentally friendly. Speaking of environmentally friendly, the 80/20 mix burns much cleaner then normal petroleum (the mix is 80% traditional fuel, 20% alcohol distilled from either corn or grain). If we can get the "mix" down, then we can start to inch it towards a 50/50 fix. That coupled with more hybrid vehicles and more efficient engines will help with a lot of our energy prices (at least for automobile fuel).

We may still be spending the $2.00 bucks a gallon for gas in the end, but we will not be as dependant on foreign oil sources if we can cut our need in HALF by using a mix with alcohol... We will also be able to create a new source of income for our nation's farmers/economy. Finally, this gas price hike already has me determined to never buy a vehicle that gets less then 30 MPH the next time I need to buy a car/truck. I don't think I am alone in that regard... so we will e buring less fuel as a nation, which will help the environment and push the Hybrid movement forward on a National scale.

Basically, what I have come to believe is that we will never go back to $1.00/gallon gas - it just isn't gonna happen. We have to figure out ways to burn cleaner, with less foreign dependence, and on all scales (auto fuel is just the tip of the iceberg - my home electricity bill has probably gone up 20% this year as well) - we will have to tackle those other fronts later on, for now we need to tackle auto fuel prices, kind of as a big experiment. When you can save $.50 cents a gallon by trying the "other" fuel - then you are likely to give it a chance even if it does mean that it could screw up your fuel injector sooner. Nobody really knows for sure if the fuel will do any damage to cars/trucks - there has not been enough study on it yet. So the folks in the MidWest will be the Guinea Pigs and if it works out then I expect to see a new pump on a few street corners in Texas soon.

Hey, anyone have some extra money to invest? How about we open up a Mean Green Fuel Shop? It will be Mean because it will anhilate high gas prices & it will be GREEN because it comes frmo Mother Earth and is more environmentally friendly, not to mention the GREEN our customers would be able to keep in their wallets after it costs them $30 bucks to fill up rather than $40. All that I need is a couple million bucks, any takers?

[MeanGreenTeeth]

I can't beleive how many people out there lap this "oh we need to conserve more" "oh we need smaller cars" "oh we need to drive electric cars (where the heck do some people thing electricity comes from, the energy fairy?)"

I'm as annoyed as anyone with the gas prices, but really, these things are cyclical. There is going to be a bust, and boy will it be a bust. There is too much speculation in the market right now. There will be a sell off eventually and we will be okay. And despite what some people feel about "the oil Companies" it's really not a bad thing for them to make a nice profit every once and a while. It will increase their capital expenditures and will make thngs cheaper for us in the long run.

If we conserve to much, we go into a recession. If people aren't traveling there are going to be big hits in a lot of industries. What would help more than anything would be for us to relax our environmental regulations so that we could actually build some new refineries and maybe even drill in ANWAR.

/not an economist/stayed at Holiday Inn Express

[FirefightnRick]

And despite what some people feel about "the oil Companies" it's really not a bad thing for them to make a nice profit every once and a while.

I don't have a problem with them making a profit, but how much profit? And every once in a while? How about every day. And if I'm to believe what they are reporting on the news this evening then the oil companies are making a 95% profit per barrel of oil right now and this will continue.

Rick

[Gakusei]

saw on CNN yesterday that gas in Venezuela is up to about .05 per gallon.

Perhaps it is time to switch our focus from mid east to So. Am.

←

We receive most of our oil from Canada and Venezuela...At least that's what I was told once. Feel free to correct if it's wrong.

Edited September 1, 2005 by Gakusei

[posiesnivy]

Not that I'm an expert on this subject, but a big part of the problem in switching fuels and becoming less dependant and/or free of fossil fuels is the impact on thousands of people not only here but around the world who depend on the industry for their livelihood. There was a movie some years back with Keanue(spelling?) Reeves that covered this issue and the movie made a lot of sense when you think about it. In fact, the story line was about how our own government tried to stop Mr. Reeves and his associates from producing fuel made through processing water.

The scary part about this is that we currently have the technology to produce fuel through I think what they called Hydrogen cells and the byproduct is of course water instead of exhaust. In fact, there are mass transit systems currently using these systems.

I would also like to mention that there is research being done at OSU in which they have successfully developed a fuel from cut grass. The problem is that right now it costs about $1.00 a gallon to produce it.

As for the auto industry, I know for a fact that GM has developed pilot cars using alternative fuel sources, but until there is a big demand for them, they'll probably remain behind closed doors.

I personally believe there is a conspiracy to stop us from totally switching to other fuels because of the economic impact around the world, but I won't get into politics.

I'm trying to figure out how to tie this into football but haven't figured out how except to say "GO MEAN GREEN - SEE YOU IN TENNESSEE!!!

[shaneb]

I can't beleive how many people out there lap this "oh we need to conserve more" "oh we need smaller cars" "oh we need to drive electric cars (where the heck do some people thing electricity comes from, the energy fairy?)"

I'm as annoyed as anyone with the gas prices, but really, these things are cyclical.  There is going to be a bust, and boy will it be a bust.  There is too much speculation in the market right now.  There will be a sell off eventually and we will be okay.  And despite what some people feel about "the oil Companies" it's really not a bad thing for them to make a nice profit every once and a while.  It will increase their capital expenditures and will make thngs cheaper for us in the long run.

If we conserve to much, we go into a recession.  If people aren't traveling there are going to be big hits in a lot of industries. What would help more than anything would be for us to relax our environmental regulations so that we could actually build some new refineries and maybe even drill in ANWAR.

/not an economist/stayed at Holiday Inn Express

←

And Trickle Down Economics really DID work... this thread is gonna close. But before it does.... saying that we should relax enviromental policy is asinine. It is similar to saying that that you would sacrifice your childs seatbelt in the back seat to buy a cheaper car.

People in this country will pay whatever it takes in gasoline costs to drive the biggest SUV on the block so they can say they are the coolest.... but they gripe about the cost of cleaning up our air to prevent asthma in their children?? Wow.... killing me.

And you are right about the endsource being fossil fuels in many cases... but there is the ability to do it differently. Read about the Denton dump. Trash trucks pick up trash, take it to the dump, that produces landfill gas, the gas is used to power a biodiesel refining plant, the BD is used to fire the engines that drive the trucks that pick up the trash...... AND the plant produces a surplus of BD which is being sold at a profit to the city. This project is something for all of us to be proud of..... it got huge nation press.

There is a great cover piece in National Geo last month about America lagging behind Europe in the development of alternative fuels both on the end user and source sides. Its very interesting. Also a lot of info about our dependence on fossil fuels and their subsequent effect on the world we live in.

Shane

Edited September 1, 2005 by shaneb

[UNTFan23]

Who is it that is making a small sized truck that is a hybrid? I might actually consider such a vehicle right now ... that or jumping off a cliff.

[EagleD]

Damn liberals.

[shutter]

I am with Shane. Good post. I am one of those Damn Liberals thank you.

shutter

another NT Jounalist

[IslandEagle]

I forgot to post the email.  Here it is.  One cousin of mine say's it's a spoof?  Not sure it would work anyways but I'm not buying gas tomorrow just in case.  That, and the fact I'm home tomorrow.

IT HAS BEEN CALCULATED THAT IF EVERYONE IN THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA  DID NOT PURCHASE A DROP OF GASOLINE FOR ONE DAY AND ALL AT THE SAME TIME, THE OIL COMPANIES WOULD CHOKE ON THEIR STOCKPILES.

 

AT THE SAME TIME IT WOULD HIT THE ENTIRE INDUSTRY WITH A NET LOSS OF OVER 4.6 BILLION DOLLARS WHICH AFFECTS THE BOTTOM LINES OF THE OIL COMPANIES.

 

THEREFORE  SEPTEMBER 1st  HAS BEEN FORMALLY DECLARED "STICK IT UP THEIR BEHIND " DAY AND THE PEOPLE OF THESE TWO NATIONS SHOULD NOT BUY A SINGLE DROP OF GASOLINE THAT DAY.

THE ONLY WAY THIS CAN BE DONE IS IF YOU FORWARD THIS E-MAIL TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS YOU CAN AND AS QUICKLY AS YOU CAN TO GET THE WORD OUT.

WAITING ON THE GOVERNMENT TO STEP IN AND CONTROL THE PRICES IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN.  WHAT HAPPENED TO THE REDUCTION AND CONTROL IN PRICES THAT THE ARAB NATIONS PROMISED TWO WEEKS AGO?

 

REMEMBER ONE THING, NOT ONLY IS THE PRICE OF GASOLINE GOING UP BUT AT THE

SAME TIME AIRLINES ARE FORCED TO RAISE THEIR PRICES, TRUCKING COMPANIES ARE FORCED TO RAISE THEIR PRICES WHICH EFFECTS PRICES ON EVERYTHING THAT IS SHIPPED.  THINGS LIKE FOOD, CLOTHING, BUILDING MATERIALS, MEDICAL SUPPLIES ETC.  WHO PAYS IN THE END?  WE DO!

WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE.  IF THEY DON'T GET THE MESSAGE AFTER ONE DAY, WE WILL DO IT

AGAIN AND AGAIN.

 

SO DO YOUR PART AND SPREAD THE WORD.  FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW.  MARK YOUR CALENDARS AND MAKE SEPTEMBER 1ST A DAY THAT THE CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA  SAY "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH"

←

If everyone cared enough to drive fuel-efficient cars, we would have an oversupply. But, the American people have made it clear they don't care, even if it means our brave, young men dying in far-out places. He may have had his flaws, but Jimmy Carter tried in 1977 to set fuel efficiency and alternative energy guidelines that would have made us nearly self-sufficient by 2000 and he was hooted down.

You get what you ask for.

[hope24]

I don't know about the whole gas strike thing today that Rick was talking about, but I know I heard yesterday on the radio that gas prices were supposed to hit $3.15 a gallon today, and they were advising everyone to get gas yesterday while it's still under $3. I topped my tank off last night at $2.89...hopefully this tank will last long!

[EagleD]

Sorry. My "damn liberals" comment was said in fun.