Yay! I just bought my first tank of $4/gal Gas! :)

OK, so it was actually $4.09 but still.

I visited the ‘cheap’ gas station here in downtown New Orleans. And to be fair to the owner, I did buy 89 octane. The 87 was $3.99 but when you play the percentages of overall cost per gallon the added 10 cents for better performance seemed like a steal.

Actually higher octane gas in general is much more of a value now than it has been in previous years. Compare say 8 years ago when regular gas was around $1.29 per gallon. With 89 being 1.39 and 93 being 1.49 — that was 8% more for mid-grade and 16% more for premium. Compare that to the current number 3.99, 4.09, and 4.19 and it’s only 3% more for mid-grade and 5% more for premium. So if you’re going to go broke filling the tank, you may as well treat your car right.

Now in truth, I probably bought my first $4 gas a few years ago in Germany, but there are major differences between Europe and the US when it comes to dealing with this fuel crisis. For one thing although their prices are around $6 per gallon that have only risen by about a third of what US prices have during the past few years. Add to that the fact that things are much closer together, that people generally commute with the train and only drive on weekends, long trips, and for runs to IKEA or Obi (European Home Depot) and the gas equation doesn’t do as much damage to a person’s budget. Many cars there are considerably more fuel efficient as well (although admittedly lax on emissions) and much of the fuel costs are taxes that unlike here in the US are used to fund mass transit be it trains, subways, trams, buses, and even ensuring that cities the size of Alexandria have access to frequent and affordable air travel.

We’ve basically dropped the ball on this in the US. Our government leaders — well a certain party and it’s chief mainly — have not just dropped the ball but thrown it out like the world’s biggest opening season pitch. Regulations have been changed, anti-trust rules ignored, and pockets lined with cash all so that a single industry can enjoy massive profits at the expense of the other 300,000,000 residents of the country.

And…we have dropped the ball as voters and consumers. We have stood by like sheep and allowed these travesties to take place. As voters we have foolishly allowed politicians to waste valuable time arguing over gay marriage and idiotic attempts to legislate morality instead of demanding that they build bridges, trains, hospitals, ensure fair wages and prevent price gouging and market manipulations.

As consumers we have relinquished our most powerful weapon — our purchasing dollar. We have for too long sat back while major corporations have increased their profits at the expense of workers and shoppers alike. We allow companies like International Paper to pollute our air even though they have had the technology to remove all papermill stench for decades. We have allowed Wal-Mart to move into a position where they can dictate everything from product design, selection, delivery and pricing absolutley. We choose to shop at stores like JC Penny and Tuesday Morning who pay their workers in Alexandria half what they pay those same workers in Baton Rouge or New Orleans simply because they choose to do so.

We have accepted a marketplace where most people cannot afford to live independently on a full-time job. We have accepted government policy changes during the Bush presidency that have allowed companies to fire full-time salaried workers only to hire them back as hourly part-timers with no benefits and less pay. We for the most part no longer live under the threat of nuclear war, but we have allowed our own ‘leaders’ to replace the threat of atomic destruction with outsourcing — so workers don’t complain or we’ll send your jobs to Honduras or China, or Indonesia, or…

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Wake up everyone. Think back to what your financial situation was like 8 years ago. This of what you paid for a gallon of milk, a dozen eggs, electricity, gas, etc. Remember when a college education pretty much guaranteed you a job? Remember when at least a master’s degree did that? Well welcome to the 21st century — and a time when opportunity is quickly becoming the domain of the elite or the economically privileged.

We saw this once before. During the 1920’s and early 30’s when a majority of the educated and highly trained workers of the western world could not find work and could not make ends meet. It’s how we ended up with communism and fascism…

Responses

Bird

May 28, 2008

I might have to disagree on a few points. First as a consumer, we survived the 80s and the “me” decade where everything was about keeping up with the Jones’ and getting all of it for me and none for you. This helped to develop the consumer of today.

We ( and when I say we I mean the American public in general) took all of the equity out of our homes, our biggest asset, bought stock, bought cars, bought bigger homes, more stuff than we’d ever need, ran up credit cards to the hilt and are now suffering for it. The US economy has been surving the past 5-10 years solely on CONSUMPTION, not PRODUCTION nor INNOVATION.

When companies like Wal-Mart lead the Fortune 500 list, you know we’re in trouble. Wal-mart’s buying power is driven ONLY by America’s consumption power. When taking their traditional model overseas, it fails dramatically.

Yes, we want bigger cars, trucks, SUVs, etc. The era of the soccer mom led first to the minivan and now to women in suburbans and other large SUVS and guess what? They still can’t park the damn things and most can’t even figure out how to put gas in the tank at Kroger to save 10 cents per gallon.

Want to talk about commutes? It took 45 mins to over an hour to go 7 miles from Long Beach to Los Angeles during rush hour because of traffic. This was during the early 90s. It’s only gotten worse. It wasn’t until the 90s that the region began to consider a light rail system.

DC has a great metro system, only because they were forced to early on. Atlanta got theirs because of the national convention and upgraded it during the olympics. New York has one out of necessity. We only build mass transit when we have to not because we want to.

Alexandria workers make less than Baton Rouge and New Orleans workers and for that matter Shreveport workers for one reason only – cost of living. Wages are typically set up by cost of living. Employers will pay what the market bears. A worker at P&G in Cincinatti will make less than one in Pineville. Employers will not overpay the market. They do research ahead of time to determine what employees in their industry are making in that region. They fall in line with the range of pay.

Plant closings are not just taking place in the US. Manufacturing facilities were closed last month in Mexico, China, and Indonesia according to the national association of manufacturers. Labor is not the only issue. The use of technology in manufacturing reduces the need for human capital in a facility. With the looming workforce crisis now is the time to develop talent, skill and innovation if you want to survive in the job market.

Two-thirds of all new jobs will not require a college degree. Instead they will require a technical certificate or some form of technical training. Those who can bridge the gap between having a college degree and technical skill will survive and can earn a living. The challenge will be in how to bring the rest of the workforce along.

When Congress, urged by the President, and others implemented the alternative fuel standards they didn’t consider the trickle down impact on the cost of food. The demand for corn by the biofuel industry is impacting every aspect of our food chain from the meat we eat to the milk we drink. Corn can be found in most everything. Less cotton being planted means clothing and other textiles will go up. Less wheat and other grains means breads and cereals will increase. The rising costs of crude means anything plastic, containing the preface “poly”, asphalt, tar and other construction materials are all going up, not to mention anything that must be shipped by truck or air.

Several weeks ago stories broke about Sam’s and Costco limiting the amount of rice which could be bought due to a rice shortage. The head of the US rice association had to go on television to announce that US rice consumption depended on 80-90% of domestic production. At the time, there was no shortage of domestic rice. The US was still meeting its export quotas. What caused the policy at Sam’s and Costco? Pure speculation and rumor. The same thing driving up the cost of crude.

Oil sold for $100 per barrel because one rogue trader wanted to be known as the guy who first bought oil at that price. He bought 1 barrel and then sold it. Oil companies will tell you oil should be selling at $60 per barrell and that the ONLY reason its selling higher is because of traders and speculators. One economist last week predicted that when the world oil report comes out it will show there has been no increase in demand and there is plenty of supply – including new supply and that oil will drop to $95 per barrel. Another predicted oil to go to $150 per barrel by the summer. Who’s right? I guess we’ll see.

Reply
gas price tired

June 3, 2008

Someone told me high gas prices will cuase people to stop driving and cuase automakers to build better efficient cars. But that only means that less people will be able to afford new cars becuase better anything in the car business means more money [ cost].
I watched a guy walking down the road with his little boy, when i asked him if he needed a lift – he said “no, I’m almost at the corner store. I’m going to buy milk”…. I was on HWY 98 and the neares home was atleast half a mile away….

When things are tight – it doesn’t matter how efficient new cars are….

I guess I’ll try to win the $500 Gas Card !

Reply
MsCathy

June 5, 2008

Bird…
I can stop my big…no huge Jeep on a dime and parallel park that baby downtown….and pump my own gas at the Kroger!! Not all of us are helpless.

Lamar…
When we first moved back home from the Memphis area, it made more sense for me to stay home with our kids than go to work for even $7 an hour. I was making $12/hour as a receptionist for a mfg. plant up there. Payscales in Alexandria pitiful.

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