Thread: What's up? Gas Prices Down???

I'm no geologist and I have no dog in this fight other than I like to drive as cheaply as possible, but Dasculling your graph doesn't tell the whole story and you should know that. When Opec dumped cheap gas on the U.S. It almost ruined the economy of Texas. You could buy what were once expensive houses for little or nothing. The reason was that domestic production which had been in full swing almost came to a halt. I've driven past miles of oilfield equipment in the Midland Odessa area that was just sitting there rusting away. Now that prices are so high the equipment is being bought up.

Dasculling...I didn't mean the supply of it...I mean the demand and purchase for it. The price at our pump is based upon what we are willing to pay for it....here Our market here determines the price...unless of course...that market is being manipulated as I believe it was during the past 2 years by our Dear Beloved Oil Companies.

In southern CA gas has been above the national norm for a long time. Then last year it seemed like rest of the nation was catching up with us. We're somewhat higher due to environmental requirements, blends change with the season, whatever. But driving around in one day you can see the hugh jump depending on the area. Like, by the airport where cars are rented and tanks filled up upon return the prices are sky high. Also in the affluent areas the prices are a lot higher. That is gouging to me.
I'd love to see this country get serious about other fuels and not dependent on the oil from the middle east. But we all know the monumental power the oil companies have.
I've been watching this thread for awhile and just thought I'd throw in my 2 cents worth.

I'm no economist, but I find discussing economics interesting. Ignorance can be fixed. Please don't fit me with a tinfoil hat.

Originally Posted by jean

In southern CA gas has been above the national norm for a long time. Then last year it seemed like rest of the nation was catching up with us. We're somewhat higher due to environmental requirements, blends change with the season, whatever.

CA and other areas use "oxygenated" or reformulated fuels. They cost more to produce and distribute separately. After the hurricanes the rules were loosened because there was a problem of refinery capacity. Likely the country seemed to be catching up to CA, but CA was probably getting the same fuel as the rest of the country.

But driving around in one day you can see the hugh jump depending on the area. Like, by the airport where cars are rented and tanks filled up upon return the prices are sky high.

The price at the rental car filling places might reflect a willingness of consumers to pay more for convenience. Then again frugal consumers would bring cars back nearly full and only purchase a gallon or so. The costs of running such a fueling station would require a higher price on lower volume. Kind of a chicken/egg situation.

Also in the affluent areas the prices are a lot higher. That is gouging to me.

Gouging to me is taking advantage of a market undergoing a tragedy. The whole idea of sellling is to make as much as you can. I have noticed that more affluent areas do seem to carry higher prices. There is a price point on all products at which consumers will drop out. The affluent area would have a higher drop out point just because the extra would not bother the consumer as much. Sales would not suffer significantly. The case in the less affluent area with a dime price increase might result in enough lost sales making the higher price counterproductive.

Now I'll put on the tinfoil hat. It has been many years since I sold gasoline. In those days we drove around to check pricing of competition. I loved ringing their bell on my drive-by. These days it seems that all outlets are on a satellite computer link. The oil companies can track how much gas is in the ground, how much is being pumped per selected time period, at each price,etc. I think they can play the consumer like a flute.

loservillelabor said:

I think they can play the consumer like a flute.

You nailed it!!

Here in oklahoma, its dropped from $2.85 to $2.09 in a matter of a few weeks. I also thought it was kind of funny that it is before elections.

Daculling, what you are saying justifies a price increase. I'm pretty sure our demand hasn't changed, so the supply must have increased OR we were getting massively ripped off. I vote for the latter.

I think our evil leaders have been surprised how much we have been complaining. I don't care if gas does down to .99 a gallon, I still want illgals deported and no trans-texas corridor.

Originally Posted by andyt

Dragons5 did you mean hydrogen or hybrid? A hydrogen fuel cell car would be like achieving nuclear fission. I'd love to see one produced. There is a prototype used by a utilities company in Fla or Georgia but it cost over a million dollars. Their only emission is water vapor.

I meant Hydrogen. GM can do all the research they want, but BMW has already started producing the cars and will have them on our shores next year. It's not science fiction and it's not like nuclear fission (fission requires splitting unstable particles to create heat which then turns water to steam and turns turbines to generate electricity, it is what Nuclear Power Plants use) Fussion is much harder as instead of splitting particles you are combining them.

I can't wait. We are living in remarkable times

I never said it was nuclear fission. I said it would be the technological equivalent. Not surprised it's a foreign company. Our CEOs are too tied into quarterly profit statements and bonuses to get into research and development. As for fission, our government could undertake another project compatible with the Manhattan project and make us completely free from dependence on the middle east and Venezuela , but don't hold your breath.
I don't think we'll be driving hydrogen powered Bimmers in 07 either.

Originally Posted by Daculling

Originally Posted by CrocketsGhost

Also, the idea of petroleum as a non-renewable energy source is antiquated. There is no such thing as a "fossil fuel," because petroleum is a natural product of the Earth's crust and mantle, not the residual deposits of deceased organic matter like ferns and dinosaurs. A number of wells that have been tapped dry have demonstrated the ability to regenerate as much as 40% in a decade.

I really wish I could believe in abiotic oil but it has not been proven. If that theory was correct our domestic production would not look like this.



So while abiotic oil may in fact exist it does not have a significant impact as we are using so much more than it can replace. Hmm, oil does not come from ferns and dinosaurs. It was created from the detruis of algae blooms in shallow seas.

LOL!!! The reason that domestic oil production has dropped is purely economic. Adjust domestic oil prices for inflation and you will see that the fall-off has nothing to do with supply, but rather with the relative cost of production relative to OPEC states coupled with pressures from environmental groups to limit offshore production.

As for your claim that oil comes from algae, there is absolutely no proof of that oft-repeated claim. The existence of biological markers in petroleum means nothing because those materials can be introduced by anaerobic bacteria. The Russians, for example, have long rejected the concept of "fossil fuels." Do yourself a favor and read The Deep Hot Biosphere by Thomas Gold.