Yikes...$6 Gas? Could Happen if Dollar Keeps Getting Weaker

[giovonni]

footnote ~ the building just behind this little historic gas station is
the infamous Watergate Complex in Washington D.C.

Yikes...$6 Gas? Could Happen if Dollar Keeps Getting Weaker
http://www.cnbc.com/id/42683030

[conk]

Those who are living on the edge will really be hurt financially. Some can barely afford a $30 tank of gas. Now they will have to pay $60-$75 for a tank? Of course everything else is going up in price or going down in quantiy. So many will go broke, some of them not so honest or integreous. Beware and prepare.

[crosby]

ouch my check book hurts......... i have tried to accommodate my purse with my needs. if i only have 30 dollars to put in the tank, then i cut out more unnecessary trips here and there. i'm thinking MOPED........ if i could find a cheap one, that's the way i would travel back and forth to work. i live to far away to walk the distance and i have to be there at 5:30 in the morning...... i would have to leave at 2:30 to make it on foot..... and i know that i wouldn't be happy with that.... i'm thinking general strike against purchasing full tanks of gas. it will cut their revenue bit by bit. it would be almost impossible to quit buying fuel completely, but shaving away at their revenues is a good way too start.
regards, corson

[gardunk]

or stop buying the big boyz gas and go as local as you can

[Dick]

Here in the Netherlands, the price for 1 liter fuel is 1,74 euro, thats 6,44 euro a gallon, and if i'm right, the euro is 1,41 dollar, so that makes it 9,07 us dollar for 1 gallon here in europe (Holland), and it's a record here also.
Dick.

[EsmaEverheart]

I have certainly stopped making unnecessary trips. I also piggy-back errands when I go out. I have a feeling its going to get worse before it gets better.

[norman]

We've been paying that sort of money for gas here in Europe for a long time. The only difference, so far, is that we seem to not have to put so many miles on the clock to keep our lives together.

When I was on my one and only trip to USA ( Arizona - in the late 80s ) I was shocked by the scale of everything, and the cheap gas was all that was holding the system together. I wanted to walk to the shops etc but that was impossible. Huge culture shock.

At least I could get on a plane and return home after 3 months.

[giovonni]

Thanks Avalonian's for the post...your comments are very insightful-informative and and helpful coming from so many diverse perspectives...

i'm hoping you all will continue to share your individual (local) experiences here >as we continue into in what looks like another big squeeze into our pockets

[giovonni]

i will continue to keep tabs on all this

[jjl]

80 miles to the gallon

[dddanieljjjamesss]

Posted by gardunk (here)
or stop buying the big boyz gas and go as local as you can

Local gas near me is perhaps 5c cheaper on the dollar.

Also this doesn't stop all the futures trading that happens before gas even gets bought by ANYONE who will use it... for plastic, for shipping, for filling at the tank... I learned yesterday that almost $2 of what you pay at the pump is being produced just by those who are speculating on the future value of gas and driving the price up.

Better to put your money into effective sustainable technology. Where I live on the coast of MA (where the wind is whipping by me as we speak) a few small wind turbines would be greatly effective. If I can save money on home electricity, then I can spend more on gas. I don't see any way of really boycotting oil unless you REALLY BOYCOTT OIL.

[crosby]

Posted by jjl (here)

80 miles to the gallon

right on.....jjl, now that's what i'm talken 'bout....
corson

[dddanieljjjamesss]

I think a better way to think about this issue is less in the vein of, "how can I reduce the impact on myself?"
and more of "how can I change this to impact everyone positively."
Though I'm all for mopeds, they are not a solution for everyone (don't get me wrong!) I drive 30-40 minutes each day to my job, and I consider my car fuel efficient and I try to carpool as much as possible and I still fear having to move back in with my parents, and then because they are not of the mindset to be preparing at this time, what will happen when the three of us cannot afford to go to work.

Trying to get them on the idea of a dome greenhouse built to golden ratio vortex math Wish me luck!

[giovonni]

Note - even though this was just reported today...the local pump prices are already much higher in the U.S.

Apr 21, 6:18 PM EDT

No break this spring at the gas pump

By MICHELLE R. SMITH
Associated Press

With gas prices above $4 in some states, Americans are canceling spring break plans and rethinking summer vacation, and some tourist destinations are offering gas vouchers of as much as $50 to talk people out of giving up and staying home.

At Mount Rushmore, only about 37,000 people decided in March that seeing the four granite-etched presidential sculptures was worth the trip, down from about 43,000 a year before.

At the Grand Canyon, a marketing executive for one company that offers sweeping helicopter vistas says 10 percent fewer people than last year are driving up and booking tours. The company is counting on international tourists to make up the rest.

And along the Rhode Island coast, where 800,000 people a year show up to gawk at the opulence of Gilded Age mansions, it's even worse - business is off 30 percent just since the beginning of March.

Memorial Day is still five weeks away, and summer doesn't officially start for two months. This year, anxiety over high gas prices - and whether the family vacation will bust the family budget - has come early.

"I can't go anywhere because I can't afford it," said Greg Sensing, who works in admissions for the University of Maryland. "It's kind of nice to take a road trip, to get in the car, you see the country, and now why bother doing it?"

The gas jitters have much broader implications than how many people show up to take pictures of Bryce Canyon, Mount Rainier or the Everglades. Gas prices are closely tied to the health of the overall economy.

A gallon of gas costs an average of $3.84 in the United States, almost a full dollar more than a year ago. The average is above $4 in six states: $4.52 in Hawaii, $4.21 in California, $4.18 in Alaska, $4.11 in Connecticut, $4.08 in Illinois and $4.05 in New York.

It's too early to tell how much of a toll gas prices will take on the summer travel season. The jitters have come so early that AAA hasn't even put out its summer travel forecast yet.

But there are already signs that the eye-popping prices at the pump are changing Americans' behavior. In Oklahoma, where gas is a relatively cheap $3.69 per gallon, AAA says it's getting a lot more calls from people who are out of gas on the highway. National demand for gasoline, which should be rising this time of year, is falling instead.

Some tourist destinations are worried people won't bother piling the family into the car at all.

Branson, Mo., the Ozark Mountains hotspot that draws people from hundreds of miles away to tour caverns, frolic in amusement parks and see live entertainment, is offering a discount card worth $50 in gas starting in June.

The Preservation Society of Newport County, R.I., which runs several of the Rhode Island mansions, is offering $5 back to anyone who buys two $24.50 tickets to two mansions and shows their car registration.

Lake George, a resort village in the New York Adirondacks, hopes to capitalize on being an easy drive away from New York and Montreal. "We're in a good position for a `staycation' when people don't want to drive farther," said Luisa Craige-Sherman, head of the visitors bureau.

Among the deals available there: A "Spring Gas Buster" package at the Fort William Henry Hotel, which includes a $20 gas card and buy-one-get-one dinner.

Bill Pott, owner of Jellystone Park Camp Resort in Cave City, Ky., near Mammoth Cave National Park, says he's had a strong spring season so far, but he's offering an informal discount to help folks cover their travel costs: Stay three nights in a $70-a-night cabin, and he'll discount your bill $40 to pay for a tank of gas.

"Most people are driving three or four hours to get here, and I can't do a thing about national fuel prices or the economy, but I can help the kids have a good spring break," he said.

All that still may not be enough, especially if - as analysts fear - the price of gas keeps climbing.

"In my mind, if gas goes to $5 a gallon here, all bets are off," said Linda Schmitt, executive director of the Kansas Underground Salt Museum, which offers a 650-foot descent to see a vintage locomotive, train tracks and ore carts.

Already, economists say, most of this year's two-percentage-point cut in the Social Security payroll tax, which should bring in an extra $1,000 to $2,000 per household this year, is going straight into the gas tank.

If gas were to go to $5 a gallon and stay there, some analysts believe, it could erase the steady gains the economy is making and tip the nation back into recession because Americans would sharply curtail their spending elsewhere.

For now, though, destinations hope offering gas rebates will be enough to calm would-be travelers. Kalahari Resorts, in Wisconsin Dells, Wis., is bringing back a promotion from last year that offered customers a $40 gas card.

Sarah McPeek is going a step further. She made reservations at Kalahari two months ago, when the average price of gas was about 70 cents lower than it is today. She had planned to drive to the park with her 13-year-old son and meet friends there. Instead, the group of seven will carpool.

"It's going to be pretty tight," she said.

And in Fairmont, Minn., Jennifer Brookens is parking the minivan she calls the Mom-Mobile. She, her husband and their two children had hoped to drive the eight hours to visit family in the Black Hills of South Dakota for Easter weekend.

Flying is out of the question - after all, airlines have to buy fuel, too, and fares are going up fast. And Brookens has fresh memories of 2008, during the last gas spike, when filling up the minivan cost $100.

"At this rate," Brookens said, "there's no way."

Source;
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories...04-21-17-07-57

[crosby]

Posted by dddanieljjjamesss (here)
I think a better way to think about this issue is less in the vein of, "how can I reduce the impact on myself?"
and more of "how can I change this to impact everyone positively."
Though I'm all for mopeds, they are not a solution for everyone (don't get me wrong!) I drive 30-40 minutes each day to my job, and I consider my car fuel efficient and I try to carpool as much as possible and I still fear having to move back in with my parents, and then because they are not of the mindset to be preparing at this time, what will happen when the three of us cannot afford to go to work.

Trying to get them on the idea of a dome greenhouse built to golden ratio vortex math Wish me luck!

your greenhouse idea sounds like a plan. i'd truly like to be in the mindset of "how can i change this to impact everyone positively", but to be honest, i have to figure out what the heck works on a simple level, for myself and my family, before i can struggle with larger numbers. it is indeed a multi-faceted problem. but i like your ideas. it helps me to begin to start thinking bigger picture.
regards, corson

[jjl]

It's only my summer ride, I get 41 to the gallon in my toyota echo. Always been a cheapskate with gas, with everything I guess. Also, the scooter is only for local driving.

[Lost Soul]

Gas is going higher and with it, food prices.

The dollar is dying. Buy precious metals to protect your wealth.

[giovonni]

its quickening...

More Drivers Running Out Of Gas
Story/video
http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2011/...ng-out-of-gas/

*******Also

Orlando gas station charges $5.69 a gallon
Gas prices are on the rise nationwide, but one filling station in Florida
has earned the dubious distinction of having the highest prices in the country.
http://money.cnn.com/2011/04/22/news...dex.htm?hpt=T2

[Calz]

the "PLAN" is to go much higher.

what better way to collapse the world "economy"???

The question is what can we do to RESPOND???

why have all the free energy engineers been killed???

ummm ... shall I go on?

[Flash]

In Quebec we have been paying around $1 a litre (X4 = $4 a gallon approximately) for a while, meaning few years - from 93 cents to $1.25$. Lately we are at 1.38$ a litre (X4 = 5.42$ a gallon approx) and we do cover the same distances than in US. It has been very expensive for a good while - by the way our dollar is about at par with US currency right now. Some of the gaz price is to cover government taxes, most of it has to do with oil companies.

And it is true that the whole North American economy is based on cheap gas prices. Just thinking of my salads coming from California in winter, that i do not want to eat anylonger because of radiation anyhow. The food prices have raised about 20% this year, thanks to gaz price.