What is the deal? OT | Arthritis Information

 

Headlines of today:


Oil price spike has wide economic impact
Continued surge could spark 'something worse than a mild recession'



The story is on MSN.COM today.

Here is my question:

Is there really an oil shortage? Or are the oil companies just making a killing right now?
Why are we allowing this?Some say their is a shortage, others say their isn't a shortage, the speculators are causing the price hike.  Then others say that it isn't either of those, but thy're (whoever "they" are) are forcing prices up to penalize western country's high use of gasoline.  Well Linda, I know I'm not going very far from home this summer. I just wonder when it will all level out. I"m not sure if I want to pay that much for gas....or groceries...but then again....there doesn't seem to be many choices out there for any of us. We HAVE to have these things to get to our job...and live. Same here Lori.  I drive a little Mazda and it cost me 42$ to fill my tank yesterday.  I just work a few hours a week for my bro.  We have a deal that when gas goes up he pays me extra. If we didn't do that it wouldn't really be worth it for me to go in.We have a prius but my husband drives 40 miles each way to work but he also car pools with 3 other guys so only has to drive one week a month. I am 7 minutes from the hospital and work 3 days a week. I put 5000 miles on my caravan last year, and it is not going to get that many miles this year. I refuse to consume and feed this monster. Another twelve months of this an I can see a rise in domestic trouble as people are couped up at home, not to mention, governments ready to snap.

Billions are being made by someone and it's not me.
Yeah Stephen, I have not seen a check in the mail....dang.Sorry guys, I meant to share.It's too complicated to blame anyone, so I guess I'll blame our government for their lack of foresight in this situation.  I think it's everyone, government, speculators, big oil, little oil, oversees suppliers, and wall street.  Where's our reserves, why are we sitting on unproductive, capped wells; why are oil co's making unprecedented amounts of money?  I certainly don't understand.  We've settled into an RV park in Washington state and this is where we'll stay for the next 5 months. and then we're off to our place in Mexico for 6 months.  Diesel is  is approximately .00 a gallon in Mexico.  We're not doing any traveling this summer.  I refuse to give big oil any more money than I absolutely have to.  Groceries are another matter - we have to eat.  I'm just shopping smarter than before.  LindyStill, compared to many other countries gas is still relatively cheap here.  Not that makes it easier to afford, but it could be worse.I live in a big offshore oil town and they are laying people off.  I don't know if it is from a shortage, or if they just aren't getting enough contracts right now.  This happens often here even when there isn't a shortage.

bubbagump2008-05-22 19:34:11

Lori - my hubbie and I have been asking the same question - why is it jumping by dollars instead of pennies.  It was a big deal when it jumped 10 cents, now .00 a day is nothing?  This is so manuevered and is destroying America while DC twiddles their drunken thumbs.  And Alaska's Governor just gave away yesterday in a big news conference Alaska's natural gas reserves to Canada.  WTG American "leaders"

It was reported that oil companies are raking in the biggest profits ever and they are still getting tax breaks and subsidies from our government.  Last week when Bush asked the Saudi's to please up oil production they basically said they saw no reason why they needed to up their oil porduction for the US.  Several members of our own government have their fingers in that oil pie and you are not going to see oil prices go low for awhile and it didn't help any when you had that idiot economist annouce last month that he felt oil was going to go up to 0.00 a barrel.  We are over the preverbial barrel, I  told my husband this reminds me of when we were back in high school and we had the oil embargo and we actually drove cars that got more then 35mpg.  I know we are not doing much traveling this summer, and it is worrying me about my daughter's school trip in the fall, they already had to raise the price 0.00 more due to gas prices, they are going to Washington DC.  I know of one child who can't go because the parents can't afford the extra money, I am worried more of our children, including mine,won't be able to go if oil prices keep going up. here in the uk petrol and diesel prices rocketing .. garages seem to be charging
what they like ..  petrol is now 5.13      Diesel is 5.85  A gallon

which is  10.17 dollars  a gallon    and     11.59  dollars a gallon of diesell

rumoure is the uk goverment want prices up to   6.75  pounds a gallon
13.38  dollars  saying it is for the good of the enviroment and cars will be
forced off the road.. at the same time bus and train fares have trebled   OMG boney. I think if it gets that high, I'll get a snow mobile. I am not sure if Americans could afford those kinds of prices. Where I live, we don't have the option of transit so we are on our own to get from place to place, making consumption.


Suzanne, that is an excellent idea. That is worth checking into. It would be nice to set up a website to coordinate this.    the big con by the uk goverment was to change the Gallon to Litres
so when we were paying say 3 pound a gallon it changed to 1pound a litre
looks good  but there are 4. 5 litres to a gallon.. people never realised the hikes..

AA automobile association say most people are only doing short trips..
price hikes will hit home when the holidays come up .. and people
start having day trips out. were normally a full tank would get them
there and back ..now they will need to refuel on the way home...
it is estimated  billions will be made..

Boney2008-05-23 10:23:39Well, I think it's simple supply and demand. There hasn't been a new oil refinery built in this country in almost 30 years. Europe gets their oil from the same countries we do so why is their price rising as well? I'd say it's the Saudi's who are raking in the money there. We need to drill in Alaska. The last oil refinery was built here in 1979. The environmentalists stop every attempt to build more. The Saudi's can send more oil, but we don't have the capacity to refine it.

As far as food prices going up, we can blame that on ethanol. Corn farmers are growing their corn to produce this alternative feul, thus there's less to feed the livestock and voila! Your price of meat goes up. The wheat farmers see more $$$ in growing the corn so there's less wheat being grown and voila! Your price of breads and cereals go up.

Honey2008-05-23 10:42:31Suzanne another thing too is maybe if families could coordinate with groups like the Shriners, who do these weekly trips all the time, and have the vehicles for it.   It would be nice even if they had to charge families who are not being helped by the Shriners to help pay for gas it sure would help out alot of people in your situation. You wouldn't have to drive alone, and it would be company on the road.  [QUOTE=meme]Suzanne another thing too is maybe if families could coordinate with groups like the Shriners, who do these weekly trips all the time, and have the vehicles for it.    [/QUOTE]

I know one person who goes to a Shriners hospital, but as far as I know, they don't have ped rheums there.  It's closer, too, only 1 1/2 hours away!  She always drives it herself, too, I don't think they have anything organized.

I might e-mail our newspaper health reporter and see if she would mention in it a column.  I could set up a yahoo e-mail, to see if anyone is interested, then take it from there if people are.

I'm so glad you guys think it is a good idea!  It takes all day to go there, no matter what happens, so I  think everybody would be okay with leaving in the a.m. and coming home at night.  Even if we have quick visit, I let my daughter play around awhile after, because it is terrible to get right back in the car for another long ride.  If she runs around a little, she is more likely to sleep on the way home.

Mark and I were talking about this  earlier today.

 actually deciding exactly where we can cut costs.. We are NOT signing Ally up for the rec departments program.. we simply dont have 0 for a summer program.

 

 I honestly think if the common people simply refused to go anywhere  for one full day   you would see prices drop.. I mean it, no driving, no spending, no flying, no work.. one full day.. maybe a few days..essentially have a general strike.. boy I betcha  things would change..

Just to make every body feel good, I pay .70 a litre here in OZ and we are already being prepped by the government to expect .00 by the end of the year, if not sooner.

Forget about those Al Gore sheep that reckon the earth is going to Fry/freeze (when ever they make up their minds),
we will be at war well before any doom sayer gets it right.
Over what,                                                                    fuel.!
Bodak. Do the people of Australia consume lots of gas? Do they ride their bikes, transit? Do they drive SUV's?   How do the people of your country keep their gas cost down? [QUOTE=kathy_in_wlsv]

Mark and I were talking about this  earlier today.

 actually deciding exactly where we can cut costs.. We are NOT signing Ally up for the rec departments program.. we simply dont have 0 for a summer program.

 

 I honestly think if the common people simply refused to go anywhere  for one full day   you would see prices drop.. I mean it, no driving, no spending, no flying, no work.. one full day.. maybe a few days..essentially have a general strike.. boy I betcha  things would change..

[/QUOTE]   You might have to check around Suzanne, in my area the Shriners in several counties own several vans and buses which they use to transfer patients and family back and forth to Chicago several times a week.   I know this because my husband is a Shrine Clown and is involved with it.   It would depend on how close a shrine hospital to your hospital.gas prices won't drop simply because we dont use it for a day.  unlike a hotel room or a airplane seat that goes unsold gasoline is a timeless commodity.  if you don't sell it today you can sell it tomorrow.  and in the case of gas it will be sold tomorrow. [QUOTE=lorster]Bodak. Do the people of Australia consume lots of gas? Do they ride their bikes, transit? Do they drive SUV's?   How do the people of your country keep their gas cost down?[/QUOTE]For me I now try and wait untill I need several things from the same location before venturing out.
It is very frustrating not to act on impulse and say, I'll just duck down there and do this or that.
Even with photography, I just can't cruise around looking for locations with the view to returning to capture what has taken the eye.

I drive a 4x4 diesel Patrol and have no chance of selling it now.
I need a little buzz box for what I do.
Bodak2008-05-23 17:00:59Here in NZ we have reached .01 per lt for 91, ,07 for 95, and -74 for diesel, as from yesterday. That's the 4th price rise this month,  - a 19% increase in the last three months, and almost 30% increase in the last 12 months.  Yeeks!!

We need to stop beating up each others as Americans via "the Rs vs Ds" or "liberals and conservatives".  Our fight shouldn't be coming from ourselves, from within.  It's time to rally the home troops.  I say we are taking a huge beating in oil supplies, for whatever political reason.  Our American leaders can no longer say its impossible for them to solve American problems.  Constitutional Convention Time.  Term limits for Congress and SCOTUS NOW.  JSNM

justsaynoemore2008-05-23 18:03:09
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