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Gas is probably the thing we notice the most in our daily lives, but the real impact goes way beyond that. Gas prices affect nearly everything in at least one way. Most of our manufactured goods are moved around by truck, so increased diesel prices affect everything.

Also, most of these companies are also the producers of the pastics that go into almost everything we buy. The pricing on that plastic follows the price of oil just like gas, but it still has a natural profit margin built in. When companies have to pay too much for their raw materials, they begin looking elsewhere to reduce their costs to stay profitable, like looking at foreign manufacturing, reducing their workforce, decreasing their retirement contributions.

So gas is a great leading indicator, but the affect on our encomony is systemic.

xmacro

^ +1 to everything doromath said.

It's not so much price gouging as it is a variety of factors - everything from increasing demand from China and India, to our own Government screwing up it's monetary policy. You can also thank the Fed, and Ben Bernanke to a large extent. By keeping interest rates at historic lows, he's contributing to a deflated dollar - which means that a dollar today doesn't buy as much as a dollar yesterday, so we pay even more. Add to that the fact that commodities are rising, food prices are rising, gas is rising, and all Bernanke or Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner can say is "these are just transitory things; they don't count in terms of core inflation". It's real easy to call this crap "transitory" and say it doesn't really matter, when they aren't opening their own wallets to pay for stuff.

The sooner we get rid of our Government that thinks printing money has no consequences, and get one that believes in a strong dollar, the better. Tim Geithner and Bernanke both say "we want a strong dollar", but every action they've taken only pushes the dollar down, making imports more expensive for every taxpayer

EDIT - and $4 bill is nothing - it's not even peanuts - it's eaten, digested, and sh!t out again peanuts, when we've got a $14 trillion debt, $1.65 trillion deficit for this year alone, and Obama is proposing to increase spendin . . .er, "investments" for next year.

phobicsquirrel

xmacro:
^ +1 to everything doromath said.

You can also thank the Fed, and Ben Bernanke to a large extent. By keeping interest rates at historic lows, he's contributing to a deflated dollar - which means that a dollar today doesn't buy as much as a dollar yesterday, so we pay even more. Add to that the fact that commodities are rising, food prices are rising, gas is rising, and all Bernanke or Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner can say is "these are just transitory things; they don't count in terms of core inflation". It's real easy to call this crap "transitory" and say it doesn't really matter, when they aren't opening their own wallets to pay for stuff.

The sooner we get rid of our Government that thinks printing money has no consequences, and get one that believes in a strong dollar, the better. Tim Geithner and Bernanke both say "we want a strong dollar", but every action they've taken only pushes the dollar down, making imports more expensive for every taxpayer

lol... I agree that the FED needs to be reigned in but the Dems have been trying (a few times thus far) to end subsidies to Big Oil however the GOP has stopped all attempts. This is the private side you love so much so go with it. Like I've said before, the govt only does what we the people vote for, thus if we continue to vote for people who owe their jobs to the big donors than we lose, if we elect people who owe their job to us then that will probably be where our policies go...

Your so called "privatize" fetish only serves one thing, we have no voice. Yes, how many large corporations really care about us? Sure microsoft and apple make things for consumers but I'm talking about companies that impact our lives, literally. Like oil companies, gas companies, pharmaceuticals, and defense contractors. We are all but lab rats to them. The government is all that we have to stop them and that front line is almost gone. Unless we as a nation wake up and stop voting for people who are shills for their corporate masters.

btw that 4 bill is but that 4 bill could go to help education or construction or other things. There are billions of other dollars out there that could be saved but money cut usually comes from social services and such, not corporate welfare. Hell the GOP stopped bills that were going to end tax cuts for corporations shipping overseas, and give them for staying here hiring American workers. WTF!!! Corporations are doing what they have done for decades in other countries like throughout Asia, Brazil, Mexico - they are destroying our way of life making us poorer and poorer and taking our resources.

kuzi16

Joeyjoe21_8:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Chevron-profit-rises-36-apf-3877587240.html?x=0

This is why...im all about a company making money...but when gas shoots up and all of a sudden so do the profits...its price gouging at its finest. Thats all there is too it. Yet..our goverment still gives out 4 billion a year in subsidies to the companies....dude...they a fukin making 60billion a year most gas companys! they can afford not to get that other 4 billion in subsidies.

youve been suckered in my friend.
the oil company makes about 5 cents or so per gallon. to make that 5 cents they have to spend years looking for oil, drill it, transport that crude oil thousands of miles, refine it, transport it thousands more miles, set up systems to pump it, and get it to you, all while staying within the regulations that the country it is in has set up for the entire system.

on the other hand, the government makes about 50 to 90 cents a gallon off of the same oil and all they have to do is slap a tax on it then sit back and condemn the company for making it so expensive. not to mention the corporate taxes they collect from them as well on the other end.
where is the gouging here?

I do not wonder why gas is so expensive. I wonder why the government is making it worse.

xmacro

phobicsquirrel:
lol... I agree that the FED needs to be reigned in but the Dems have been trying (a few times thus far) to end subsidies to Big Oil however the GOP has stopped all attempts. This is the private side you love so much so go with it. Like I've said before, the govt only does what we the people vote for, thus if we continue to vote for people who owe their jobs to the big donors than we lose, if we elect people who owe their job to us then that will probably be where our policies go...

Your so called "privatize" fetish only serves one thing, we have no voice. Yes, how many large corporations really care about us? Sure microsoft and apple make things for consumers but I'm talking about companies that impact our lives, literally. Like oil companies, gas companies, pharmaceuticals, and defense contractors. We are all but lab rats to them. The government is all that we have to stop them and that front line is almost gone. Unless we as a nation wake up and stop voting for people who are shills for their corporate masters.

btw that 4 bill is but that 4 bill could go to help education or construction or other things. There are billions of other dollars out there that could be saved but money cut usually comes from social services and such, not corporate welfare. Hell the GOP stopped bills that were going to end tax cuts for corporations shipping overseas, and give them for staying here hiring American workers. WTF!!! Corporations are doing what they have done for decades in other countries like throughout Asia, Brazil, Mexico - they are destroying our way of life making us poorer and poorer and taking our resources.

You're only half right. Big Government is just as dangerous to liberty as big corporations that suck at the Gov't teet and depend on taxpayers for sustenance. Navigating between the two is like navigating between Scylla and Charybdis - one isn't going to protect you from the other; they'll both kill you if you let them

That said, $4 bill is nothing; see my EDIT comment in previous post. Compared to our debt and deficits, that $4 bill is nothing buy a distraction so Obama can make up a straw man villain for his re-election. He can't run on his record, so he's going to make up straw men to knock down

Joeyjoe21_8

kuzi..... dude....so ur telling me that chevron who makes over 60billion per quarte times 4 quarters in a year is only making 5 cents a gallon? ur nuts if u think that man....yes the goverment makes a ton too....but come on...5 cents per gallon?

everyone else....As for the 4 billion in subsidies...yes its only 4 bill out of a trillion, but hey, could that 4 billion be put towards better things such as Veteran care for our military, to pay down our deficit, education, etc.....1 penny is a penny at the end of a day, save it up over time, and then see how many pennys u got....in other words, money is money no matter how big or small u look at it.

xmacro

If you drop that $4 bill, how about dropping all these green subsidies for solar/wind that never work on a large scale? How about dropping the subsidies for ethanol in gasoline, which not only is less efficient than gas, but produces more CO2 than gas? What about the $2 billion in Fed funding that Florida just rejected? Instead of funding some pipe-dream of high-speed rail which will never be able to pull its own weight, how about reducing the deficit?

Like I said, the $4 bill is a distraction by Obama so he can point the finger at "those evil oil companies" and get himself re-elected, even as GE, a multi-billion dollar corp, paid no taxes - and oh yeah, it just so happens GE's CEO is part of Obama's administration.

But pay no attention to the guy behind the curtain, ignore the crony capitalism, ignore the tens of billions being doled out to well-connected friends of the administration, ignore the plummeting dollar, rising food prices, rising commodity prices and reckless Fed monetary policy - those evil oil corporations are the root of all the nations problems; if we only eliminated those $4 bill in subsidies, that'll solve all our nations high gas problems.

EDIT - And let's not forget candidate Obama saying that gas prices will necessarily need to rise to $8/gallon in order to force people to stop buying SUV's and buy more compacts. How Obama has shut down Gulf oil production and barred not only drilling - oil companies aren't even allowed to use seismic mapping of the east coast to find out how much oil is there. No, it's all those evil oil companies, just gouging us with their $0.05 profit margins

laker1963

kuzi16:
Joeyjoe21_8:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Chevron-profit-rises-36-apf-3877587240.html?x=0

This is why...im all about a company making money...but when gas shoots up and all of a sudden so do the profits...its price gouging at its finest. Thats all there is too it. Yet..our goverment still gives out 4 billion a year in subsidies to the companies....dude...they a fukin making 60billion a year most gas companys! they can afford not to get that other 4 billion in subsidies.
youve been suckered in my friend.
the oil company makes about 5 cents or so per gallon. to make that 5 cents they have to spend years looking for oil, drill it, transport that crude oil thousands of miles, refine it, transport it thousands more miles, set up systems to pump it, and get it to you, all while staying within the regulations that the country it is in has set up for the entire system.

on the other hand, the government makes about 50 to 90 cents a gallon off of the same oil and all they have to do is slap a tax on it then sit back and condemn the company for making it so expensive. not to mention the corporate taxes they collect from them as well on the other end.
where is the gouging here?

I do not wonder why gas is so expensive. I wonder why the government is making it worse.

Do the math... at $.05 per gallon how would all those oil companies have record earnings year after year for years now? Don't be so gullible, guy's. That's a whole lotta company line that you are swallowing there. Think about it. Governments do quite well on oil as well, but it is a fabrication that the oil companies make $.05 a gallon. If that were the case, the investors would be shipping their money into better, more affluent investments. That is what makes the capital system work.

Joeyjoe21_8

I never said anything about Obama being a god president and he is a great person to point the finger at for oil companies cuz at this moment he cant do anything, nor does he want to.....he was the number 1 president when he was campaigning to be elected to recieve more money from oil companies then any other president in the history of the U.S. but seriously.....I want to see a fact for this .05 profit margins u speak of. lol

lilwing88

That 4 billion in subsidies is a drop in the bucket compared to the taxes the Fed, state and local government get at the pump. It's a pretty sweet deal, if you ask me. Not to mention what big oil pays in campaign contributions that goes directly into one person's pockets.

We've all been duped.

When Obama points the finger at big oil, three fingers are pointing right back at him. Don't take big oil's money, drill for oil and stop bedding down with ME oil barons...... Then I'll listen to what Obama has to say about the issue.

Joeyjoe21_8

here here my friend.

cabinetmaker

http://www.api.org/aboutoilgas/gasoline/ There is some of the information. Oil companies spend $2/gallon turning oil to gas. Then its taxed. It still has not made it to the pump yet. It has to be transported by pipelines, tankers, etc. It's still not at the pump yet. Now it has to be transported. You can add $$ at every stage.

Jetmech_63

Anyone notice food prices starting to inch up? It's getting a little steep here in the central valley, noticed it last time gas prices went up that food, produce, meat and eggs were in inching up. A gallon of tropicana orange juice is now over 7.80, and that's at a "bargain grocery store". Things could get interesting...

Joeyjoe21_8

yeah bro....i was at the store the other day, 18 ct eggs are now 3.70.....used to be 1.97 at my raleys....artichokes were 5 bucks each...always was 2 for 4....etc....fukin stupid

PuroFreak

laker1963:
kuzi16:
Joeyjoe21_8:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Chevron-profit-rises-36-apf-3877587240.html?x=0

This is why...im all about a company making money...but when gas shoots up and all of a sudden so do the profits...its price gouging at its finest. Thats all there is too it. Yet..our goverment still gives out 4 billion a year in subsidies to the companies....dude...they a fukin making 60billion a year most gas companys! they can afford not to get that other 4 billion in subsidies.
youve been suckered in my friend.
the oil company makes about 5 cents or so per gallon. to make that 5 cents they have to spend years looking for oil, drill it, transport that crude oil thousands of miles, refine it, transport it thousands more miles, set up systems to pump it, and get it to you, all while staying within the regulations that the country it is in has set up for the entire system.

on the other hand, the government makes about 50 to 90 cents a gallon off of the same oil and all they have to do is slap a tax on it then sit back and condemn the company for making it so expensive. not to mention the corporate taxes they collect from them as well on the other end.
where is the gouging here?

I do not wonder why gas is so expensive. I wonder why the government is making it worse.

Do the math... at $.05 per gallon how would all those oil companies have record earnings year after year for years now? Don't be so gullible, guy's. That's a whole lotta company line that you are swallowing there. Think about it. Governments do quite well on oil as well, but it is a fabrication that the oil companies make $.05 a gallon. If that were the case, the investors would be shipping their money into better, more affluent investments. That is what makes the capital system work.

Actually Kuzi's numbers are correct. The problem is you forget that the bulk of their profits aren't made from gasoline sales. In gas sales they do make approx $.05 a gallon, but they sell the oil to many many other sources and make a lot more money there.

This is part of the reason the left has had such an easy time demonizing the oil companies with the American people. I've grown up with everyone in my family working in the oil and gas business at every level from the top down. People don't understand that the oil companies DO NOT SET THE PRICE OF OIL. In fact they have very little to do with the price, which is set by investors and commodities speculators. Also the sales of oil is a very complicated process with so much government red tape and B.S. that it is very easy for someone to tell a small portion of the story and make it look like the oil companies are screwing everyone. People need to learn what they are talking about before making such insanely false comments.

Vulchor

Another discussion turning into right vs left instead of discussing how to fix the problem or at least change the way we handle things. EXACTLY, what the left and right want....keeps their power centrailzed and we fight against each other instead of the institutions themselves holding people down.

PuroFreak

No Vulch, I'm not saying this is the let's fault at all. All im pointing out is that the general public's lack of understanding of the oil industry and how it works has allowed the left to demonize the oil companies, when in fact they have little to do with the price. Why don't people raise hell with companies that mine gold when the price of gold shoots through the roof like it has now? The price of gold is as much their fault as the price of oil is the oil companies fault. You don't hear anyone attacking "big gold industry." It's seriously ridiculous.

xmacro

Vulchor - Because it's a common talking point to rally the Left's base to tell them "the evil corporations are gouging everyone - more Government is the only thing that can stop them"

EDIT - Puro beat me to it

Vulchor

I understand fellas and dont disagree----but the right has their hot button issues as well. All these issues do is divide the "average joe" to keep the wealth and power where it is and where they want it to be. That is not a right or left issue, its a power--control----and money issues.....but we allow politicians and the media to make it an ideological debate whenthe only REAL idology is those who REALLLLLLY have, keeping it and making sure the have not's dont try too hard to get a share.

xmacro

Gotta disagree with you again - this is America, where a man can go from rags to riches by hard work. With the exception of China, I don't think any country has as many first-generation millionaires as the US. It's not about the have's and have-nots, it's just about envy and jealousy of success.

Too many people in this country are jealous that someone else is more successful than them - instead of trying harder to better their own lot in life, they'd rather drag someone else down, and it just ain't right; it's even worse when we get politicians who agree with that sentiment, and instead of trying to lift all boats, they demagogue and try to drag the successful people down until everyone's mediocre.

Nietzsche said it best, "Politicians divide men into two categories - tools and enemies"

PuroFreak

I understand your point, I just don't see it as accurate. It's nothing personal or anything political, but your argument assumes that there is a fixed "pie" (wealth) and the only way to get more pie is to take it from someone else. I tend to disagree and think it is possible to make more pie rather than taking from another. The only way that can occur is through true unrestrained economic growth.

And yes the analogy I used was stolen from the late economist Milton Friedman. Not trying to take credit for it, just believe it is very relevant. I just don't see the wealthy as this evil club of people who try to keep everyone else down...

Vulchor

I would also disagree because I totally disagree with the theory wealth cannot be created....dont agree with this at all. I am simply equating wealth with power and need to keep both when you have them. The more that is obtained, the more energy is used to keep it and to obtain more. The best way to do this is ensure your wealth continues to grow but eliminating any competition to your wealth. This is where I beleive the powerful attempt to create debates and ideologgical differences to keep those with less than they themselves have from obtaining it. This is where I would get into the Bildeburgers, Trilateral Commission, ect. I dont believe its conservative vs liberal or right vs left....I feel it is much deeper than that, and has more to do with power to the extreme (via wealth) and keeping the masses controlled.

laker1963

PuroFreak:
laker1963:
kuzi16:
Joeyjoe21_8:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Chevron-profit-rises-36-apf-3877587240.html?x=0

This is why...im all about a company making money...but when gas shoots up and all of a sudden so do the profits...its price gouging at its finest. Thats all there is too it. Yet..our goverment still gives out 4 billion a year in subsidies to the companies....dude...they a fukin making 60billion a year most gas companys! they can afford not to get that other 4 billion in subsidies.
youve been suckered in my friend.
the oil company makes about 5 cents or so per gallon. to make that 5 cents they have to spend years looking for oil, drill it, transport that crude oil thousands of miles, refine it, transport it thousands more miles, set up systems to pump it, and get it to you, all while staying within the regulations that the country it is in has set up for the entire system.

on the other hand, the government makes about 50 to 90 cents a gallon off of the same oil and all they have to do is slap a tax on it then sit back and condemn the company for making it so expensive. not to mention the corporate taxes they collect from them as well on the other end.
where is the gouging here?

I do not wonder why gas is so expensive. I wonder why the government is making it worse.

Do the math... at $.05 per gallon how would all those oil companies have record earnings year after year for years now? Don't be so gullible, guy's. That's a whole lotta company line that you are swallowing there. Think about it. Governments do quite well on oil as well, but it is a fabrication that the oil companies make $.05 a gallon. If that were the case, the investors would be shipping their money into better, more affluent investments. That is what makes the capital system work.
Actually Kuzi's numbers are correct. The problem is you forget that the bulk of their profits aren't made from gasoline sales. In gas sales they do make approx $.05 a gallon, but they sell the oil to many many other sources and make a lot more money there.

This is part of the reason the left has had such an easy time demonizing the oil companies with the American people. I've grown up with everyone in my family working in the oil and gas business at every level from the top down. People don't understand that the oil companies DO NOT SET THE PRICE OF OIL. In fact they have very little to do with the price, which is set by investors and commodities speculators. Also the sales of oil is a very complicated process with so much government red tape and B.S. that it is very easy for someone to tell a small portion of the story and make it look like the oil companies are screwing everyone. People need to learn what they are talking about before making such insanely false comments.

I am not getting dragged into a left / right arguement here. But Puro that was offensive. Insanely false comments? *** you Puro.

Redtailhawkoz

kuzi16:
Joeyjoe21_8:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Chevron-profit-rises-36-apf-3877587240.html?x=0

This is why...im all about a company making money...but when gas shoots up and all of a sudden so do the profits...its price gouging at its finest. Thats all there is too it. Yet..our goverment still gives out 4 billion a year in subsidies to the companies....dude...they a fukin making 60billion a year most gas companys! they can afford not to get that other 4 billion in subsidies.
youve been suckered in my friend.
the oil company makes about 5 cents or so per gallon. to make that 5 cents they have to spend years looking for oil, drill it, transport that crude oil thousands of miles, refine it, transport it thousands more miles, set up systems to pump it, and get it to you, all while staying within the regulations that the country it is in has set up for the entire system.

on the other hand, the government makes about 50 to 90 cents a gallon off of the same oil and all they have to do is slap a tax on it then sit back and condemn the company for making it so expensive. not to mention the corporate taxes they collect from them as well on the other end.
where is the gouging here?

I do not wonder why gas is so expensive. I wonder why the government is making it worse.

+ 1 on that I have a friend that OWns several Oil and gass companys in Northeast Ohio.. yes they are Filthy Rich ...... But its sure not from the Gas Per Say... and they are regulated and taxed todeath..... this is just the kind of stuff that makes him crazy!

sol1821

i pay $12 a gallon for the cheapest stuff

Russ55

The solution, or part of it is hydrogen vehicles. The technology is there, but we lack the infrastructure, ie stations, and probably the political will to implement it.

xmacro

Hydrogen, while plentiful, is difficult to manufacture, requires specialized transporation, and is extremely flammable.

I say just start drilling - offshore, ANWR, etc (for that matter, why the hell are we giving subsidies to Brazil to drill for oil?) and force any oil company that wants to drill to sign a contract that says they'll foot 100% of the bill if anything goes wrong - no caps on damages, no indemnity, or anything like that. If they screw up, they pay for everything. If our politicians had had the political will to drill 5 yrs ago, we'd be seeing the benefits by now

Absent that, natural gas would be much easier to transition to instead of hydrogen - the US has some of the worlds largest reserves.

Russ55

xmacro:
Hydrogen, while plentiful, is difficult to manufacture, requires specialized transporation, and is extremely flammable.

Sounds like gasoline.

PuroFreak

laker1963:
PuroFreak:
laker1963:
kuzi16:
Joeyjoe21_8:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Chevron-profit-rises-36-apf-3877587240.html?x=0

This is why...im all about a company making money...but when gas shoots up and all of a sudden so do the profits...its price gouging at its finest. Thats all there is too it. Yet..our goverment still gives out 4 billion a year in subsidies to the companies....dude...they a fukin making 60billion a year most gas companys! they can afford not to get that other 4 billion in subsidies.
youve been suckered in my friend.
the oil company makes about 5 cents or so per gallon. to make that 5 cents they have to spend years looking for oil, drill it, transport that crude oil thousands of miles, refine it, transport it thousands more miles, set up systems to pump it, and get it to you, all while staying within the regulations that the country it is in has set up for the entire system.

on the other hand, the government makes about 50 to 90 cents a gallon off of the same oil and all they have to do is slap a tax on it then sit back and condemn the company for making it so expensive. not to mention the corporate taxes they collect from them as well on the other end.
where is the gouging here?

I do not wonder why gas is so expensive. I wonder why the government is making it worse.

Do the math... at $.05 per gallon how would all those oil companies have record earnings year after year for years now? Don't be so gullible, guy's. That's a whole lotta company line that you are swallowing there. Think about it. Governments do quite well on oil as well, but it is a fabrication that the oil companies make $.05 a gallon. If that were the case, the investors would be shipping their money into better, more affluent investments. That is what makes the capital system work.
Actually Kuzi's numbers are correct. The problem is you forget that the bulk of their profits aren't made from gasoline sales. In gas sales they do make approx $.05 a gallon, but they sell the oil to many many other sources and make a lot more money there.

This is part of the reason the left has had such an easy time demonizing the oil companies with the American people. I've grown up with everyone in my family working in the oil and gas business at every level from the top down. People don't understand that the oil companies DO NOT SET THE PRICE OF OIL. In fact they have very little to do with the price, which is set by investors and commodities speculators. Also the sales of oil is a very complicated process with so much government red tape and B.S. that it is very easy for someone to tell a small portion of the story and make it look like the oil companies are screwing everyone. People need to learn what they are talking about before making such insanely false comments.
I am not getting dragged into a left / right arguement here. But Puro that was offensive. Insanely false comments? *** you Puro.

You can be offended all you want, but that comment wasn't directed at you, it was directed at politicians on the left who make these insanely false statements at the general public, who don't know enough about the business to know any better. Jesus people get so fucking thin skinned around here when a discussion turns political... And everyone can piss and moan about it turning political, but with the unbelievable amount of government interference into the oil and gas industry it is a political issue MUCH more than a supply and demand issue.

P.S. Thanks for keeping it mature rather than verbally assaulting people. Classy!

xmacro

Russ55:
xmacro:
Hydrogen, while plentiful, is difficult to manufacture, requires specialized transporation, and is extremely flammable.
Sounds like gasoline.

Gasoline is easy to keep in the liquid state; hydrogen, not so much, plus there's techincal hurdles to overcome. http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2008/01/11/hydrogenfuel-cells