The Gasoline Conspiracy

corporate greed. no conspiracy necessary when the cowards in congress are willing to support failed billion dollar companies from failing, but balk at the prospect of reigning in price gouging by oil companies.

No wonder consumer spending dropped 1.2%. We don't have any fucking wealth left to reallocate to the wealthy.
 
it really is just to mess with our minds. If gas was 1.50 then goes up to 3.00, then eventually back to 2.00 people will be happy their was a decrease, not really considering its still .50 more than before
 
[quote name='mykevermin']corporate greed. no conspiracy necessary when the cowards in congress are willing to support failed billion dollar companies from failing, but balk at the prospect of reigning in price gouging by oil companies.

No wonder consumer spending dropped 1.2%. We don't have any fucking wealth left to reallocate to the wealthy.[/QUOTE]

Yep.
 
I'd like to point out that gas stations are quick to raise th eprices but slow to lower them. They make literally a couple cents per gallon that you and I buy, so if they could say make 10 cents for a few days, they definitely will.
 
Much like taxes, once gas prices went up as high as they did, it takes quite a lot for them to come back down to where they were. It's sad when we see $3.07 here and think "damn, that's cheap." But the days of sub-$1/gallon gas (as late as the 1990s!) are certainly gone. Oil companies are making record profits even as consumption has declined, so they're not particularly worried. Besides, there are only a few big ones and they own the refineries as well, thus they can act together easily to keep prices fixed at a higher point than they would be under a system where supply and demand was the dominant factor.
 
[quote name='mykevermin']corporate greed. no conspiracy necessary when the cowards in congress are willing to support failed billion dollar companies from failing, but balk at the prospect of reigning in price gouging by oil companies.

No wonder consumer spending dropped 1.2%. We don't have any fucking wealth left to reallocate to the wealthy.[/QUOTE]
Price gouging?

People are willing to pay that much; there's nothing wrong with the companies charging however fucking much they want.
 
[quote name='Liquid 2']Price gouging?

People are willing to pay that much; there's nothing wrong with the companies charging however fucking much they want.[/quote]
Just because people are willing to pay for it, doesn't mean it's not price gouging.

Plus, driving your car isn't exactly a "luxury" for most people.
 
What about when you use credit at the pump , and have to stop it the best you can yourself , and you get ripped off by a couple of hundredths of a gallon ?
More gas for them to resell . WTF ?

Before you all go off on me , did anyone see Superman III or Office Space ?

I say class action suit .
 
[quote name='Liquid 2']Price gouging?

People are willing to pay that much; there's nothing wrong with the companies charging however fucking much they want.[/QUOTE]

You conflate willingness and necessity.

Would you call it price gouging if the price of all available groceries jumped 10000%? Or is that the market simply showing their willingness to pay $200 for a red bell pepper?
 
[quote name='mykevermin']You conflate willingness and necessity.[/quote]

How many people having trouble filling up their gas tanks have cell phones?

Yes, gas prices suck. Welcome to the future. People need to change their lives to deal with the reality of high gas prices. This recession or depression will give those with jobs a short reprieve.
 
[quote name='mykevermin']You conflate willingness and necessity.

Would you call it price gouging if the price of all available groceries jumped 10000%? Or is that the market simply showing their willingness to pay $200 for a red bell pepper?[/QUOTE]

While I am torn on the issue of whether it's price gouging or not, that isn't a good example. You can never compare the necessity of gas with the necessity of food.
 
[quote name='thrustbucket']While I am torn on the issue of whether it's price gouging or not, that isn't a good example. You can never compare the necessity of gas with the necessity of food.[/QUOTE]

Of course you can, do you think the food walks right into your refrigerator?
 
[quote name='Msut77']Of course you can, do you think the food walks right into your refrigerator?[/QUOTE]

You don't need gas to live though. If somone is spending a lot of money commuting to work everyday there are alternative modes of transportation, and they are generally all cheaper than filling a gas tank. If you live far away from your job maybe a new job or relocation is in order. The point is, comparing the necessity with food with the "necessity" of gas isn't apt.
 
[quote name='RAMSTORIA']You don't need gas to live though. If somone is spending a lot of money commuting to work everyday there are alternative modes of transportation, and they are generally all cheaper than filling a gas tank. If you live far away from your job maybe a new job or relocation is in order. The point is, comparing the necessity with food with the "necessity" of gas isn't apt.[/QUOTE]
I live in, as my profile says, "Sunny Apache Junction." You would be correct in hypothesizing that the name makes the town seem as though it is small. It is. We have no public transporation system. The bus system begins in East Mesa, about eight miles away. So, yes, I suppose I could travel the eight miles in my car, park it, and take the bus 25 miles away to where I work. Which would take two hours, but I could do it. That still doesn't account for the fact that I'm driving into the next city to use the bus system since my town does not have one.
 
[quote name='RAMSTORIA']You don't need gas to live though. If somone is spending a lot of money commuting to work everyday there are alternative modes of transportation, and they are generally all cheaper than filling a gas tank. If you live far away from your job maybe a new job or relocation is in order. The point is, comparing the necessity with food with the "necessity" of gas isn't apt.[/QUOTE]

How do you think food reaches grocery stores?

Our society is basically structured in all but most urban centers to be reliant on automobiles anyway (and even then almost no one in the US lives close to their food) also I do not feel like discussing carpooling and public transportation for the nth time.
 
[quote name='fatherofcaitlyn']How many people having trouble filling up their gas tanks have cell phones?

[/QUOTE]

As opposed to a home phone, or just in general.. The bus/train is always an option..

I have a cell but my cell for my Wife and myself cost us $20 more a month than my home phone where lines were owned by verizon and my home bill was 70 a month for basic phone service. We cut the home phone off..
 
[quote name='RAMSTORIA']You don't need gas to live though. If somone is spending a lot of money commuting to work everyday there are alternative modes of transportation, and they are generally all cheaper than filling a gas tank. If you live far away from your job maybe a new job or relocation is in order. The point is, comparing the necessity with food with the "necessity" of gas isn't apt.[/quote]

OK it's not a 1:1 comparison. If I was stuck in a room for 5 days, I would want a dinnerroll and a glass of water before I wanted a few gallons.

But on a sliding scale from necessities to luxuries in an industrialized society, a reasonable allowance of gasoline ranks pretty high on the necessity side. Unless of course you are Amish, in which case replace "gasoline" with "hay"

There is also that point about gasoline costs going into food costs, very valid (seeing as we still don't have those startrek transporters yet)

He who controls the Spice controls the universe!
 
[quote name='Friend of Sonic']I live in, as my profile says, "Sunny Apache Junction." You would be correct in hypothesizing that the name makes the town seem as though it is small. It is. We have no public transporation system. The bus system begins in East Mesa, about eight miles away. So, yes, I suppose I could travel the eight miles in my car, park it, and take the bus 25 miles away to where I work. Which would take two hours, but I could do it. That still doesn't account for the fact that I'm driving into the next city to use the bus system since my town does not have one.[/QUOTE]

Hehe, I happen to own a 1.25 acre lot in Apache Junction with a half built 4,500 square foot house that will never get finished. Maybe you can drive by and blow it a kiss for me.
 
[quote name='thrustbucket']Hehe, I happen to own a 1.25 acre lot in Apache Junction with a half built 4,500 square foot house that will never get finished. Maybe you can drive by and blow it a kiss for me.[/QUOTE]
You're kidding me.
 
[quote name='thrustbucket']Nope. On Kaniksu Drive.[/QUOTE]
Why in the world...? Not to derail this thread or judge you of course. But why? And did you start building before or after the collapse?
 
[quote name='Friend of Sonic']Why in the world...? Not to derail this thread or judge you of course. But why? And did you start building before or after the collapse?[/QUOTE]

It's a rather long story, but in a nutshell...

In 2006 my cousin (who lives in mesa) started building houses and flipping them, making lots of money. He convinced me to do the same, with his company. I used my credit to get a $530,000 loan. Half way through 2007, he broke up with his partner (the builder) because he had stolen nearly $100,000 from my loan money and had hardly done any work on my house.

I spent the next year trying to get another builder to finish it. I finally got one, but in March of this year vandals cut and stole all the wiring in the house. It turns out my builder used a fradulent insurance policy on my loan, so it wasn't insured. There is no longer enough money in the loan to finish the house.

It's a common story. I'll be in litigation with the builder for probably years. I have just been ignoring the bank, as I have no way to pay them their $1300 a month interest payments, expecting to forclose whenever they figure out nothing else is going to happen.

I hate to be a statistic, but there you have it. And I Am.
 
That's sad Thrust. I am sorry to hear that.
If you'd like, I can urinate at the site. I'll need some place to do that kind of stuff when our country collapses and running water becomes a luxury.
 
Captain Obvious: You guys realize Gas is going to shoot WAY up come the holiday season/thanksgiving? They pull this shit every year and it pisses me off to no end. Holiday spending is going to be WAY down but they'll still try to capitalize.
 
[quote name='thrustbucket']It's a rather long story, but in a nutshell...

In 2006 my cousin (who lives in mesa) started building houses and flipping them, making lots of money. He convinced me to do the same, with his company. I used my credit to get a $530,000 loan. Half way through 2007, he broke up with his partner (the builder) because he had stolen nearly $100,000 from my loan money and had hardly done any work on my house.

I spent the next year trying to get another builder to finish it. I finally got one, but in March of this year vandals cut and stole all the wiring in the house. It turns out my builder used a fradulent insurance policy on my loan, so it wasn't insured. There is no longer enough money in the loan to finish the house.

It's a common story. I'll be in litigation with the builder for probably years. I have just been ignoring the bank, as I have no way to pay them their $1300 a month interest payments, expecting to forclose whenever they figure out nothing else is going to happen.

I hate to be a statistic, but there you have it. And I Am.[/quote]

Wow man. That's really bad luck. All politics aside I hope things work out for you.
 
[quote name='Friend of Sonic']That's sad Thrust. I am sorry to hear that.
If you'd like, I can urinate at the site. I'll need some place to do that kind of stuff when our country collapses and running water becomes a luxury.[/QUOTE]
Certainly. If I can find the exact address I'll give it to you.

[quote name='camoor']Wow man. That's really bad luck. All politics aside I hope things work out for you.[/QUOTE]

Yeah. Thanks sir. I am sure I'll eventually have a couple hundred points hit on my 780 credit score, but oh well. Live and learn.
 
That sucks, thrust. I could make a silly political joke but that would just rub salt in the wound. I hope you win the lawsuit and the lawyers don't take all the money you win.
 
You can make the political joke depascal, I don't mind ;).

I don't know that I'll ever see a dime. I'm trying to get the Pinal county DA to sue him. But there is another builder suing the shit out of him right now, and he will likely go to prison. Not sure what I'd gain to sue him at that point.
 
Since nobody argued ...

[quote name='Msut77']How do you think food reaches grocery stores?[/quote]

Today, trucks.

Tomorrow, railcars, barges and local production (nearby farm or victory garden) can replace trucks.

[quote name='Msut77'] Our society is basically structured in all but most urban centers to be reliant on automobiles anyway (and even then almost no one in the US lives close to their food) also I do not feel like discussing carpooling and public transportation for the nth time.[/quote]

Our society does a lot of things wrong. As a people, we've gotten weak and soft. When hard times come (and they come for every society), a lot of human chaff is going to get lost.
 
[quote name='fatherofcaitlyn']
Our society does a lot of things wrong. As a people, we've gotten weak and soft. When hard times come (and they come for every society), a lot of human chaff is going to get lost.[/QUOTE]

QFT.

And I guess "chaff" in this case is anyone who has relinquished themselves to the comfort world of the big cities, unable or unwilling to learn how to learn basic cultivation and survival skills almost all humans have always known until recently.
 
[quote name='thrustbucket']QFT.

And I guess "chaff" in this case is anyone who has relinquished themselves to the comfort world of the big cities, unable or unwilling to learn how to learn basic cultivation and survival skills almost all humans have always known until recently.[/quote]

Yep. Yuffies and yuppies are in the same boat if a real food shortage ever occurs.

To be fair, I don't expect a common person to fill in for "Survivorman" or "Man Vs. Wild". However, a common person has trouble seeing beyond this week.

For example, even my own wife refuses to stock up when prices are cheap. Tonight, pasta and sauce at Meijer's are 30 or 40% off. I wrangling both kids. I see the prices and say to stock up since it was her payday. The kids get tired of the "sit in the cart quietly" thing and I take them out to the car to prevent the return of the 100db boy.

Many minutes later, the wife exits the store. She bought a whopping 3 boxes of pasta and 2 jars of sauce. Upon asking why she bought so little, she responds, "I only liked those two flavors."
 
[quote name='thrustbucket']I hope you have a chest freezer. I've come to realize that a large freezer and buying mass stuff on sales is key.[/quote]

Honestly, I want to (re)learn how to can. Freezers are great until the electricity goes out. In the Louisville area, a wind storm related to Ike knocked out power for 270,000 people for up to a week.
 
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