Gasoline folly
I see the stupid "Don't buy gas for a day" meme is making its way around MySpace.
Before we go through with some futile attempt to "hurt the gas companies" by boycotting gas one day this year (which just means you'll see a spike before and after, because people aren't going to change their consumption), let's think about this a little bit.
-Gas prices are higher because environmental and air quality standards require special processing. This is not a judgement, but it is a fact.
-There are different standards for different geographical regions in the US. In the Pacific NW, we often get gas from California, which has the highest standards, and therefore the highest price.
-Prices are far more affected by lack of refining capacity than by supply of crude. Environmental concerns have prevented any significant new refining capacity in the United States in many years.
-Green movements are opposed to nuclear power, and again, no new nuclear plants have come on line for a long time. *The majority of petroleum burned in this country is for generating electricity. (*Correction: I was wrong about this.)
-There are technologies for gasification of coal which are proven to be cheap, effective, and cleaner than burning coal in electricity-generating power stations.
-A significant portion of price at the pump is federal and state taxes. This varies state to state.
-Gas prices in most countries are FAR higher than in the United States. In many cases, 3 times as much. This is due to even more taxes, less refinery capacity, and transportation costs (most countries don't pump and refine their own petrol- they pay a premium for transporting the finished product.)
-Our commie buddy Hugo Chaves just siezed the majority of the petroleum industry in Venezuela (America's 4 largest supplier of crude) to 'nationalize' the industry. He intends to sign sweetheart deals with his commie buddies in China, and cut off supplying North America in favour of increasing Venezuela's influence in South america. This is not paranoia, it's what he says openly. His crazy 'revolutionary' talk has been destabilizing the oil market for several years now. Risk is a cost. It's basic economics.
Before we go through with some futile attempt to "hurt the gas companies" by boycotting gas one day this year (which just means you'll see a spike before and after, because people aren't going to change their consumption), let's think about this a little bit.
-Gas prices are higher because environmental and air quality standards require special processing. This is not a judgement, but it is a fact.
-There are different standards for different geographical regions in the US. In the Pacific NW, we often get gas from California, which has the highest standards, and therefore the highest price.
-Prices are far more affected by lack of refining capacity than by supply of crude. Environmental concerns have prevented any significant new refining capacity in the United States in many years.
-Green movements are opposed to nuclear power, and again, no new nuclear plants have come on line for a long time. *The majority of petroleum burned in this country is for generating electricity. (*Correction: I was wrong about this.)
-There are technologies for gasification of coal which are proven to be cheap, effective, and cleaner than burning coal in electricity-generating power stations.
-A significant portion of price at the pump is federal and state taxes. This varies state to state.
-Gas prices in most countries are FAR higher than in the United States. In many cases, 3 times as much. This is due to even more taxes, less refinery capacity, and transportation costs (most countries don't pump and refine their own petrol- they pay a premium for transporting the finished product.)
-Our commie buddy Hugo Chaves just siezed the majority of the petroleum industry in Venezuela (America's 4 largest supplier of crude) to 'nationalize' the industry. He intends to sign sweetheart deals with his commie buddies in China, and cut off supplying North America in favour of increasing Venezuela's influence in South america. This is not paranoia, it's what he says openly. His crazy 'revolutionary' talk has been destabilizing the oil market for several years now. Risk is a cost. It's basic economics.
posted by Larry at
5/02/2007 12:16:00 PM
1 Comments:
"Don't buy gas for a day"
There are some fallacies that make me smile. Some make me indignant and argumentative. This just makes me sad.
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