Gas vs. Mac

[Paramnesia]

Oh don't get me started on food prices. I barely can afford red meat. I'm only getting a students welfare payment which has decreased, yet the prices of food increase constantly. I know here in the past 2 years milk has gone up over 50cents and Public transport has gone up 40cents.

 

[KikiB]

^Stephen Colbert's most recent "Bears & Balls" segment was a funny spoof of all the food prices going up. It is definitely worth a watch for the laugh, but it is true what is going on.

 

[xsnowwhite]

I pay like $3.85 and it sucksss. Plus where I live everything is at least 15 minutes away, and nothing is within walking distance so it is very difficult not to drive. My car only gets like 18 MPG so I find myself filling it up 2+ times a week since I'm taking classes at another school this summer.

 

[tiramisu]

This does suck, raising kids and trying to get by... minus so much "extras" that we're all used too (as in silly m/up expenditures!) I have cut back on stuff like mac, even though it totally sucks. I have plenty of m/up in my stash to keep me content at least. There are worse things, I guess, huh? LOL

I am hoping by the time I complete law school (and owe a huge fortune) the economy will be better than it is now!

 

[Divinity]

$4.55 for regular here. It pays to take the bus AND feeds my MAC addiction so I don't have to cut back

 

[AppleDiva]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KikiB At the gas station closest to me gas went up 30 cents in the last week...I am glad I don't drive, instead I have a bus pass: it's $81 a month for me and I can pretty much go anywhere in the county. Granted you deal with smelly people and annoyances but hey, it beats the gas prices right? I am noticing it though...it is making me look at how I am spending my money and really cut down on the fun stuff and try to start saving some so that I can eventually move out. Also all the food places at the mall are jacking up prices, and I notice that I am skipping more and more meals because a) my parents pay for my food at home and I don't want them to pay for a ton, and b) when my meal at some places goes up by $1, I can't eat there...I have to take something less filling. I work retail and the pricing on everything is gradually creeping up-in fact they were going to execute a massive reticket on pretty much everything in our biggest line in the store, and one of our high-end lines is getting reticketed. The only thing I do hope is that the newer MAC collections underwhelm me in person like Cool Heat did, because that's more money to be saved for other stuff.

You are blessed because where you live has great public transportation. Many people do not have that luxury, so driving is a necessity.

The price of housing affected where people lived and how much they paid for gas. When I lived in the Greater Boston area, I found that many of my co-workers lived far from work, which meant longer commutes. Prices of houses were going up and up and people where driving to Boston from New Hampshire and Maine (there was not a ton of work in those place.)

I agree that MAC's new collections have greatly underwhelmed me, so I do not have to worry about paying for MAC and gas. I am still looking forward to Cool Heat.

 

[*Stargazer*]

Quote:

Originally Posted by redambition petrol/gas prices are out of the control of the government and unfortunately it seems like they aren't going to go down unless another major oil source is found.

Two thumbs up.


Anyone that thinks "regime change" is going to bring down gas prices must be forgetting that the Democrats promised us that would happen if they took control of Congress. Guess they forgot.

Worldwide demand, fueled (tee hee) by two slightly populated countries (India and China), is a major part of rising oil prices. They will probably come back down at some point, but the days of $30 a BB gas are gone. I think we can probably realistically expect to get back fown around 2.50-2.75 in the future, but it won't be because of anyone being elected in the US.

We've been lucky enough to be insulated from rising grocery costs because we shop at the commissary, but I'm going to look for an evening job to offset the cost of other things so that we don't have to cut back on anything. I'd rather work nights than go without the things I enjoy.

 

[redambition]

Quote:

Originally Posted by *Stargazer* Worldwide demand, fueled (tee hee) by two slightly populated countries (India and China), is a major part of rising oil prices. They will probably come back down at some point, but the days of $30 a BB gas are gone. I think we can probably realistically expect to get back fown around 2.50-2.75 in the future, but it won't be because of anyone being elected in the US.

It is true that the price at the moment seems to be a bit of a bubble and there is a possibility that the price of oil may drop a bit... but the drop won't be that huge. high prices are here to stay (which i don't like).

 

[coachkitten]

I see myself cutting back in a lot of ways due to the rising fuel prices. In Seattle the price of fuel is around $4.21. It has gone up almost $.40 in the last few weeks. My honda accord is taking around $50 to fill up which is something that I have never had to do before.

Frankly I am trying creative ways to cut back spending but at this time I am still spending around the same on MAC. I am really dedicated to my budget (as I am trying to save for a condo/house) and I have still allowed myself to have part of my budget given to MAC. If gas gets much higher I might have to pull a little money out of that. Usually a full tank of gas lasts me two weeks as I live in walking distance to work.

I hope that during the election that gas prices will go down a little. At this point who knows!

 

[breechan]

The gas prices here in Japan recently skyrocketed from about $1.40/litre, to $1.75/litre. To calculate that into gallons...(there's 3.79 litres in a gallon )... $6.63 per gallon! Thank god I drive a teeny tiny k-kar!

 

[coachkitten]

Quote:

Originally Posted by breechan The gas prices here in Japan recently skyrocketed from about $1.40/litre, to $1.75/litre. To calculate that into gallons...(there's 3.79 litres in a gallon )... $6.63 per gallon! Thank god I drive a teeny tiny k-kar!

Holy crap that is a lot of money for a gallon of gas! I am thankful that we have not gotten that high yet.

 

[captodometer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pumpkincat210 Surely things will get better with a new president, right?

No, they won't. Oil/fossil fuels are a limited resource, and whoever happens to be sitting in the White House doesn't change this fact. Unless Obama or McCain have managed to invent cold fusion, which I doubt that they have

Best estimates are that the world has just reached or already exceeded peak oil production. So from here on out the price will increase because demand is increasing and the supply is dwindling. Unless some other easy to use source of energy comes along, the oil-based economy is over and we all just better get used to the pain.

I feel for the people who are truly having trouble paying for the basic grocery items, but meat and dairy products don't fit the bill. They are basically luxury items; we wouldn't all die of malnutrition if we stopped eating them. The price of these items goes up when gas prices go up because they are so resource intensive. The amount of water and feed that has to go into a cow to get back a gallon of milk is staggering, and it takes energy to pump the water, grow the feed, etc. I'm a veterinarian, and animal based food production has been one of my primary sources of income, but even I realize that the current system is going to have to change, out of economic necessity if nothing else.

I personally think that things will get a lot worse before they stabilize. There's tough times ahead.

A gallon of gas is NZ$7.83, or about US$5.84.

 

[pumpkincat210]

Quote:

Originally Posted by captodometer No, they won't. Oil/fossil fuels are a limited resource, and whoever happens to be sitting in the White House doesn't change this fact. Unless Obama or McCain have managed to invent cold fusion, which I doubt that they have Best estimates are that the world has just reached or already exceeded peak oil production. So from here on out the price will increase because demand is increasing and the supply is dwindling. Unless some other easy to use source of energy comes along, the oil-based economy is over and we all just better get used to the pain. I feel for the people who are truly having trouble paying for the basic grocery items, but meat and dairy products don't fit the bill. They are basically luxury items; we wouldn't all die of malnutrition if we stopped eating them. The price of these items goes up when gas prices go up because they are so resource intensive. The amount of water and feed that has to go into a cow to get back a gallon of milk is staggering, and it takes energy to pump the water, grow the feed, etc. I'm a veterinarian, and animal based food production has been one of my primary sources of income, but even I realize that the current system is going to have to change, out of economic necessity if nothing else. I personally think that things will get a lot worse before they stabilize. There's tough times ahead. A gallon of gas is NZ$7.83, or about US$5.84.

I saw on the news the iranians say we need to be paying $10 a gallon for gas, and the saudis only seem to care about getting rich.
Ethanol is another source but it is costly and we have nowhere near the amount needed to fuel our country.
I say that a new president could do something because the president we have now doesn't seem to care. Infact i haven't even seen him in months.

 

[noahlowryfan]

i heard that if you buy gas from a name brand station like Chevron and Shell, you don't waste as much gas but if you bought it from an unknown name gas station, you will waste as much because i heard that the unknown gas station's gas are mixed with water. basically, you're just wasting more money if you buy gas at an unknown name gas station. i think thats why their gas is always cheaper than the name brand stations.

 

[coachkitten]

Quote:

Originally Posted by noahlowryfan i heard that if you buy gas from a name brand station like Chevron and Shell, you don't waste as much gas but if you bought it from an unknown name gas station, you will waste as much because i heard that the unknown gas station's gas are mixed with water. basically, you're just wasting more money if you buy gas at an unknown name gas station.

That is kind of scary!

 

[captodometer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pumpkincat210 I saw on the news the iranians say we need to be paying $10 a gallon for gas, and the saudis only seem to care about getting rich. Ethanol is another source but it is costly and we have nowhere near the amount needed to fuel our country. I say that a new president could do something because the president we have now doesn't seem to care. Infact i haven't even seen him in months.

I actually agree with Iran on this one. America is spoiled rotten on the gas issue; the rest of the world realizes that oil is a finite resource and therefor taxes it accordingly. The price of gas in the US is so low because the government bends over backwards to keep it that way; many people in Europe and Asia pay twice as much for gas as the average American and always have. So if Americans are paying $4.50 a gallon, the Japanese and British are probably paying $9-10.

Ethanol won't work in most areas of the US because it's too cold; doesn't work well at temps below freezing. My mostly ethanol powered car would be going nowhere on a January day in upstate NY or Wisconsin. And even if ethanol were to replace gas in the US, the cost of meat and dairy would become astronomical. Remember what I said earlier about how much feed and water have to go into a cow to get back anything worthwhile? The majority of grain, especially corn, in the US goes to feeding livestock. It would all have to be converted to ethanol production, and even then it is unlikely that supply would even come close to meeting demand for fuel. And then there's nothing left to feed the livestock, so the economy crashes anyway because roughly 20% is linked to agriculture in some way.

George Bush is clueless and useless: I agree. But this doesn't change the laws of supply and demand: there's a finite and decreasing amount of oil and there are 6.5 billion and rapidly increasing people who want it. Also, change is not instantaneous. Even if the new president initiates a massive push to find alternative energy sources, it's not going to happen overnight so the price of oil and gas isn't going to decrease. Smallpox vaccination has been around since the 1700's; we succeeded in eradicating the disease in 1981. We've been working on a cure for AIDS since we discovered HIV in 1983: 25 years later, no cure or vaccine. Icarus put on wings and flew in ancient Greek mythology, and Leonardo was working on flight plans during the Renaissance; we got the first airplane flight in 1903. Just because we have the vision to do something, doesn't mean that we can. The technology has to catch up. And the technology to move away from an oil based economy is probably a generation away.

And Noahlowryfan, I think what you said about noncorporate gas stations is an urban legend or propaganda by the branded oil companies. The Bureau of Standards and Trades(or your state equivalent) strictly regulates the sale of gas. If the pump says it sold you a gallon, it sold you a gallon. And if it says that the gallon was 93 octane, it probably was. When I lived in the US, I was responsible for covering about 25% of New York state and drove 45-60,000 miles a year; I filled up wherever I was when the tank was near empty, and my fuel economy never changed. No name station in Ogdensburg was the same as Mobil station a block from my house in suburban Rochester: I could go 350 miles on a full tank. As the prices rise, I imagine that enforcement will become even more stringent than it already is.

 

[Billie28]

Quote:

Originally Posted by breechan The gas prices here in Japan recently skyrocketed from about $1.40/litre, to $1.75/litre. To calculate that into gallons...(there's 3.79 litres in a gallon )... $6.63 per gallon! Thank god I drive a teeny tiny k-kar!

Same in Germany

 

[user79]

Quote:

Originally Posted by *Stargazer* Worldwide demand, fueled (tee hee) by two slightly populated countries (India and China), is a major part of rising oil prices. They will probably come back down at some point, but the days of $30 a BB gas are gone. I think we can probably realistically expect to get back fown around 2.50-2.75 in the future, but it won't be because of anyone being elected in the US. We've been lucky enough to be insulated from rising grocery costs because we shop at the commissary, but I'm going to look for an evening job to offset the cost of other things so that we don't have to cut back on anything. I'd rather work nights than go without the things I enjoy.

Hm well I'm not sure if the increased consumption of India and China is one of the main reasons yet. Of course, that is one of many reasons. Sure, that will make a huge impact on consumption in the future, but the main consumption of resources is still western democracies, especially the US.

Another reason that the oil prices have been soaring is because of speculation on the market, which is jacking up the prices.

But anyhow, the increasing cost of oil is a strong factor in the increasing cost of food, so the two are inextricably linked.


Quote:

Originally Posted by pumpkincat210 I saw on the news the iranians say we need to be paying $10 a gallon for gas, and the saudis only seem to care about getting rich.

I agree that the US should be paying more for oil, because the rest of the world is paying disproportionately more, as has already been stated. Maybe that would also spur on a move to decrease personal consumption. Well, the Saudi leaders have called for an OPEC meeting to discuss the recent rise in prices. So hopefully something will be done, but I'm not really counting on it. They are getting rich....

The only long term solution to the oil crisis is reducing consumption and looking for alternative sources of energy. I personally don't think drilling for oil in wildlife reserves like the Arctic is the answer, which has been suggested by Bush (big surprise there). Anyhow, oil will run out eventually. It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when. The problem with bio energy like ethanol is that it uses up masses of potential food crops to manufacture a minute amount of ethanol, which is causing famine in many areas of the world, especially Africa. So it's not really a clean source at all, it also promotes monoculture and desertification of arable land. The world is in dire need of food crops, not crops to be made into Ethanol.

Ugh, it just seems like a big vicious circle.

On a personal note, I take mass transit and the train to work everyday. We have 1 car between my bf and I. My commute is much longer than his to work, so I've thought about buying a 2nd car for myself. But now I've kind of put it on a back burner until I get a better paying job because I just don't want to have to limit my lifestyle to pay for gas. I can afford a car, I've saved up a lot, but once I have a car it would be eating up all my fun money.

 

[*Stargazer*]

Quote:

Bolstered by speedy economic development and industrialization, energy demand from Asia has been one of the main contributors to higher oil prices. Over the last two years, China and India accounted for about 70 percent of the increase in energy demand and the world’s energy needs would increase 55 percent by 2030. Another reason for higher prices is investments not made by oil producers, including the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, the agency said.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/07/bu...nd-energy.html

 

[thehannahband]

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned, but you all need to watch the doc "Who Killed the Electric Car" it's about an electric car design that met 99% of the populations needs and then got crushed, because of a number of dumb reasons..PLEASE WATCH IT!