Katrina affecting gas prices...

[chefjeff]

I say let the free market do its thing. I for one have started looking at hybrid vehicles. My SUV is simply becoing to expensive to drive. Thats how the free market works, and when more people experience this crunch on their wallets they will start seeking alternate methods of transportation and more efficient vehicles. The high prices will be the catalyst to moving the consumer base to cars that get better mileage, or turn to public transportation. Price controls and government regulation will only serve to further socialize our great nation. People have a tendancy to forget that the CONSUMER makes the decisions in free market economies, and consumers most certainly affect change by their purchasing decisions. If no one bought gas, and demand was significantly less, then companies would have to drop their prices to lure consumers back to the pumps, but as long as everyone is willing to go on paying more and more for their gas, while the supply does not increase, then the oil companies will continue to charge more and more and increase their profits. Let us not rely more and more on the government to take care of these issues for us. Each and every one of us holds the purse strings that make our economy run, and when the people realize that their spending habits are what fuel our economy and product prices, then we will hear less and less about government controls.

tap tap tap...wow, someone who has actually thought this through and discovered he has some control over his own destiny. Better look out, the statists will come for you...

For those who really think gouging is a problem and/or that the government should "do something" to "help" us, please read the articles in these links:

Walter Williams (a libertarian who fills in for Rush on Fridays once in a while...the only time I listen anymore)
http://www.washtimes.com/commentary/20050830-093351-9851r.htm

Gas taxes funding too much pork:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0831roberts31.html

How to create a shortage:
http://www.mises.org/story/1894

Remember the 70's!

Jeff Livingston

 

[chefjeff]

So called 'Price Gouging' is how the free market works.

Attempts to stop it simply result in shortages and long queues. Not to mention the detrimental effect this has on taking away incentives from the suppliers and distributors to increase supply and reduce costs.

That Bush is squeeling about gouging is more proof that the conservative movement has been taken over by socialist/trotskyites. Government can't fix these things, they just make it worse. We've seen what happens when governments start fixing price limits on food....mass starvation.

Here's one article to explain the myths of price gouging:
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/ed.../2004/08/22/bring_on_the_145price_gougers146/

The Globe is turning into a half-way decent paper, what with Cathy Young and all. Maybe in the den of socialists states, it will emerge as a saviour of the truth....nah!

The so-called "conservative" movement is made of former socialists, now called, "neo-cons," so would you really expect anything less from them? Look at the "conservative" tv network, FOX, crying about gouging, and never explaining what it means, of course, as this would disrupt their supposed moral outrage (at freedom---sigh).

If you don't like the price of something, don't buy it...there's alternative choices...so far, anyway.

Jeff Livingston

 

[matthew staton]

I agree this sucks, but we did it to ourselves. With everyone needing a Hummer or Escalade that gets 12 mpg and there is only one person in the car. What else did we expect we use more oil than the other top ten oil using countries COMBINED. My boat has a V8 and uses a ton of gas but it's what I wanted and now I have to pay for it. We could be in Europe and pay $6/liter every day.

hey tom I think the gas prices are going to kill the BCW this year what do you think champ?????

 

[Bruce S. de Lis]

West Side of PHX AZ

Was out running Errands, 319.9/Gal for Regular seem to be the Price....

 

[TheConArtist]

here in South Dakota, three days ago the prices were 2.69, the other day after that 2.89, the next day 3.15 but for the gooder kind 3.32.