Well folks gas went up another 20 cent. Now were paying $1.79 for regular. Friends in WI say $1.92 is cheap there. Out in Southern California its already over $2.00. I've been told by people in the oil business that the new numbers to look for are $2.50 - $4.00 per gallon by end of summer.

Have we become so Complacent that nothing urges us to DO something?

There has to be more of us (the ones whom do not want to pay over a buck a gallon) than the ones that think $3.00 a gallon is fine.

IDEAS?

-- Kenneth in N.C. (wizardsplace13@hotmail.com), May 09, 2001

Answers

Stop using gas.

-- kim (fleece@eritter.net), May 09, 2001.

I have to agree with Kim walk more {even in a small town where we live everone stairs} car pool save gas any way you can, two horses in town yesterday, my mules will be next. Plan shoping and other trips together. Lets just doin't buy if we doin't have to. Remember 1978 gas got high and short supply. The only way that I know of to get their attention is to just say no and really cut back.

-- coaltrain (prairierose91@hotmail.com), May 09, 2001.

O.K. Kenneth, I will rise to the bait. What would you suggest???

-- diane (gardiacaprines@yahoo.com), May 09, 2001.

Look at the bright side, the air is gonna get so clear soon, we'll get to see blue skies again .

-- SM Steve (A12goat@cs.com), May 09, 2001.

What were we all going to do if Y2K turned out to be bad? Bike? Car pool? Change jobs? Use public transportation? Let's see if we can get together with one other family and do some carpooling? Can we eliminate ALL trips to town except once a week? Think! What can I do to use LESS gasoline today; this week; ect. I am comitted to only onece a week trip to town. And I am letting my goats be my lawn mowers this year. They look it - mee standing "guard" by my flower bed and them eyeing me for a distracted moment they can sneak a bunch of nibbles!

-- Eve in FL (owenall@lwol.com), May 09, 2001.

Can anybody establish any connection with Texas oil conserns and 1600 Penn. Ave??!

-- mitch hearn (moopups1@aol.com), May 09, 2001.

Mitch, that's just one of those strange coincidences that happens ,like the peanut farming governor that became president in 76' and soon after ward peanuts went from a poor mans staple to a gourmet food . I heard Sadam Hussain has more oil then he could sell. (cause of the imposed embargo) Maybe he'd cut us a good deal.We could trade him McDs and P-colas, foods that they can't replicate themselves which they've grown accustom too in Iraq before the dessert storm inncident

-- SM Steve (A12goat@cs.com), May 10, 2001.

Maybe if we told Sadam it takes 1,000,000 gallons to produce each episode of "Baywatch".... (the most popular show in Iran).

-- mitch hearn (moopups1@aol.com), May 10, 2001.

I could drive my tractor to town (3 miles)but that would not do much for me, our nearest grocery store is 15 miles down the interstate where i can't go with the tractor. Still my 17 gallon tank would last for a month @ 1/2 to 3/4 of a gallon per hour. Round trip to the nearest city in my pickup is 44 miles, that's 4 gallons of cheap gas. What about the price of motor oil, where does that fit into the price gouge? Kerosene? In the summer of 1999 I bought enough motor oil, grease, filters etc. to last me for years. I got 350 gallons of off road diesel and 50 gallons of K-1, I sitll have 40+ of kerosene and probably 100 gallons of diesel. recently I filled my 350 gallon gas tank for $1.51/9 per, it is now $1.67/9 I am still buying gas for my car and 2 trucks at the pump.

-- Hendo (redgate@echoweb.net), May 10, 2001.

Diane

To answer your question, I really do not know.

I'm all for saving. Out here in the sticks where I live there's about 145 families in a 2 mile circle. Of the people I personally know only 2 work at the same place. They carpool. It's 4 miles to nearest gas station (Truck Stop) 8.9 miles to nearest grocery store. The average miles to work one way is 48 miles. Some of the guys drive the micro- foreign cars. Others have older V-8 cars. The one common thread of all the families THEY ARE ALL IN DEBT! I'd venture that 1 in 20 might be able to trade off and get a better fuel mpg car. {Ok they could trade but could they afford the new car payment?} The question is how much trade in do you get on a 1989 Chevrolet Impala? (i'd guess not much) There's at least 15 of those in my neighborhood.

We have cut out trips to town to 1x per week. Other than going to work we stay at home.

I have read that the jobbers are to blame and then I read No It is the Oil Companies.

The Oil Biggies have made BILLIONS in the last quarter.

We use CF bulbs, recycle, and try to get 3-5 uses out of everything.

-- Kenneth in N.C. (wizardsplace13@hotmail.com), May 10, 2001.

Kenneth, thanks.....I really didn't mean to sound sarcastic or anything....the whole situation is a bit overwhelming to me. Every place I go I see so many people driving the big SUV's, major gas gusslers, and we drive this little Ford Ranger and try so hard to conserve in every area. We are only 5 miles from the nearest gas station, but town is 14 miles one way. I limit myself to once a week at the most, plus we drive 25 miles one way to church on Sunday. It seems that those of us who conserve are just such a SMALL drop in the bucket, that nothing we do matters except to us. I guess that will have to be good enough, just as the choices we make to grow our own food etc. give us satisfaction, no matter what others do. take care...

-- diane (gardiacaprines@yahoo.com), May 10, 2001.

Almost every day last week, I had to drive into Houston, about 160 miles round trip. I set the cruise on 55 instead of 70 and believe it or not, we really saved a lot of gas.

Greedy oil companys are our big problem, or maybe more so, the instance of max profits by stockholders. I don't like Sadam and his crowd any more than anyone else does, but in this instance he is not to blame. It is just pure, simple greed by oil companies and their stockholders.

I mean, you know, China shoots down one of our spy planes so the oil companies raise prices 20 cents per gallon. Theres no connecton there. It's criminal.

I don't think I'd like the feds to get too much control either. I wish we could all ride bikes. I have a little 250 Honda that gets good mileage but can't get my wife on it.

Remember Richie Cummingham on Happy Days. "Oh Well, life goes on." Eagle

-- eagle (eagle@alpha1.net), May 11, 2001.

In W. Washington where I am (central Puget Sound area) regular just moved up to $1.49/gal from $1.43/gal (ARCO, cash only.) I really think it depends on how close you live to a refinery (we have several in W. Washington) as to what you have to pay for gas...which leads me to believe that our problem is twofold, anyway...lack of capacity at refineries, coupled with stupidity regarding consumption. I don't know about where you live, but it's macho or something for folks (guys, really, that I have observed) to run their Ford 250s, 350s, etc. while they go in and negotiate biz deals at the lumber yard, sandwich shop, etc. That to me is CRIMINAL. Turn the !#*$( truck off, ya knucklehead!!! Anyway, I have read a few articles lately that indicate conservation would save a *lot* of energy, particularly at the Federal Government level. However, there seems to be this "wimp" factor about conservation. Sheesh! Don't wanna look like Jimmy Carter or anything!!!

-- sheepish (WA) (the_original_sheepish@hotmail.com), May 11, 2001.

I live in Chicago and pay $2.08/gal. My work truck gets 8 miles/gal. I also have small truck that gets 22/gal. so I try to use that as much as I can. Sometime when working far from home I get hotel to save wear and tear on truck and myself. Looking to get diesel truck and hope to get 12-15/per gal and pay about .30 less per gal. I hate to spend the money but I have to do something and need a truck large enough to hold my tools and then some. I think the savings on fuel and maintance will pay for the new truck. Been looking for a while and can not find a good used one.

-- ed (edfrhes@aol.com), May 12, 2001.

If gas gets to $2.50-$4.00 a gal...What do you think the price of propane will go to? I remember in the 70's, the price of propane was higher per gal. than gas. Am I remembering right?

I don't know where this will end....but it don't look pretty.

-- Lynette (fear_the_bear@webtv.net), May 12, 2001.

Actually, I'm glad to see gas prices go sky high, we will not get a good market for alternative fuels until supply prices exceed demand! Wind power generators will get cheaper, and then folks can and will, produce their own power, and charge their own electric vehicles. Toyota and Honda already have 0 emission vehicles ready to mass market, can you see the new dawn coming yet? I can , invest in green energy production, BP oil already has! Also see increased production of the biodiesel fuels for semi trucks and farm tractors, fossil fuels are going to be a thing of the past quickly, and this is only the first step of it's coming.

-- Annie Miller in SE OH (annie@1st.net), May 15, 2001.