Each day that passes, I become more frustrated with the current gas pump prices. Why? Because over the last couple of weeks every gas price indicator, including available supplies, available refining capacity, demand, and oil prices have been extreemely favarable, not just leaning to ok, but extreemely good and pump prices have not budges more that a couple of pennies.
Currently we have more than enough gas supply to last the summer at current demand, and demand has not gone up as first believed. (Which initially caused prices to rise 20-30 cents a couple of months ago). If demand does suddenly rise, there is more that enough refining capacity available, for more gas to be refined. Then - here is the frustration - Oil prices have plummeted. They are down from $85.00 / barrel to $73.00 / barrel in one weeks time, and have dropped even further to $70.00 / barrel this last week. Pump prices in my area were $2.91 per gallon (unleaded), which to some of you in larger metro areas, might sound nice, but its not. With oil down 15+ % prices should be dropping. If oil went up $15.00/barrel pump prices would jump within 24 hours and to the tune of 20-30 cents per gallon or more.
Dont get me wrong here. I am not one of those big oil is bad people. Every business has a right to make a profit, but oil is something different than your average chocolate store business. I can pass on chocholate for the rest of my life, and miss it but I do not need it. Until alternatives are redily available we as a nation need to use gasoline to get around, and yes, we are dependent upon it, especially those of us who are somewhat rural, and do not have bus or subway options available for travel. For these reasons, the oil companies should not be allowed to gouge the consumer the way they do at times like this. Price gouging is easy to spot, except to government regulators. Big oil is currently picking the pockets of every man woman and child who has little option when it comes to driving and there are no police to call in this situation.
Just another quick point to touch on here. I realize that some will be saying, this is why we need to drill more oil, so we can be independent from other nations. If we rely only on american company drilled oil then OPEC cannot set the price we pay. WAKE UP.
Lets say that that happens. The US oil companies drill enough oil to satisfy our needs and we no longer need to buy foreign oil. If the foreign oil is selling on the open market for $85.00/barrel, do you think they will sell to the american market for less? Of course not, so Drill Baby Drill!! is not a pump price solution for the united states. An in order to be a truely independent nation we need to be completely free from foreign oil, but that blog is for a different day.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Monday, May 3, 2010
Imigration
Is the Arizona imigration law racist or is it boarder security?
I do not believe that anyone can reasonably argue that our boarders (North or South) do not pose a security risk for the United States if they are not secure. So for arguments sake, we must conclude that leaving the boarders unsecure is not an option. What does secure mean? In my opinion it means that we regulate and monitor the movement to and from the United States, of goods and people. Any failure of either of these things leaves the United States unsecure. Also for argument sake, it is not reasonable to believe that all people in the United States who arrived here without receiving proper approval will be returned to their respective contries. So, lets take a look at Arizonas law. Without going into specifics of the entire law, I believe the main contention for the law is that law enforcement will be able to ask for a persons papers showing they are in the US legally. As a result people are protesting claiming the law is racist. The question is does the law identify a specific race. The answer is no, but those against the law say that mexicans will be unfairly targeted in arizona, via ratial profiling. I ask you this: If the law were introduced exactly as it is written in Michigan to protect the Michigan/Canada boarder, would Michigan be racist against mexicans? How about canadians? The answer is no? Now if the law said in Arizona Law enforcement will be required to stop and check all mexicans for proper papers, YES ABSOLUTELY, this would be racist and ratially motovated because people are being targeted for their race. But if the exact same law were introduced and passed in michigan, the michigan Law enforcement would not automatically start pulling over mexicans to check for papers.
It makes sense that wherever the bill were introduced, the people who would most likely be traveling back and forth acrross the boarder would be the ones checked most frequently.
The point is made that this is how it was with blacks and women. Laws were introduced which required people to accomplish things such as intellegence tests, knowing that a specific race of people would not be able to meet the requirements, thereby they would not be prevented from doing things others could. This is not the case with immigration. Everyone who wants to immigrate to the US legally can and should be able to do so, with the possible (and reasonable) exception of those with contagious diseases and those with serious criminal records, or those with ties to organizations who have pledged to do harm to the US and its citizens. For these reasons I believe the law cannot be deemed racist in nature or intent.
There are those who think the boarders should be fully open, but we have determined that that would leave the US open to security threats, so that cannot be an option in todays world.
Tell me your thoughs. Lets dissuss in a manner free from insults and name calling. Just give me your opinion as you see it whether you agree or disagree. After all in the US we do have freedom of speech, and that means no matter what our opinion is, as long as it is not with the desire to do harm to others, we are free to speak our minds.
I do not believe that anyone can reasonably argue that our boarders (North or South) do not pose a security risk for the United States if they are not secure. So for arguments sake, we must conclude that leaving the boarders unsecure is not an option. What does secure mean? In my opinion it means that we regulate and monitor the movement to and from the United States, of goods and people. Any failure of either of these things leaves the United States unsecure. Also for argument sake, it is not reasonable to believe that all people in the United States who arrived here without receiving proper approval will be returned to their respective contries. So, lets take a look at Arizonas law. Without going into specifics of the entire law, I believe the main contention for the law is that law enforcement will be able to ask for a persons papers showing they are in the US legally. As a result people are protesting claiming the law is racist. The question is does the law identify a specific race. The answer is no, but those against the law say that mexicans will be unfairly targeted in arizona, via ratial profiling. I ask you this: If the law were introduced exactly as it is written in Michigan to protect the Michigan/Canada boarder, would Michigan be racist against mexicans? How about canadians? The answer is no? Now if the law said in Arizona Law enforcement will be required to stop and check all mexicans for proper papers, YES ABSOLUTELY, this would be racist and ratially motovated because people are being targeted for their race. But if the exact same law were introduced and passed in michigan, the michigan Law enforcement would not automatically start pulling over mexicans to check for papers.
It makes sense that wherever the bill were introduced, the people who would most likely be traveling back and forth acrross the boarder would be the ones checked most frequently.
The point is made that this is how it was with blacks and women. Laws were introduced which required people to accomplish things such as intellegence tests, knowing that a specific race of people would not be able to meet the requirements, thereby they would not be prevented from doing things others could. This is not the case with immigration. Everyone who wants to immigrate to the US legally can and should be able to do so, with the possible (and reasonable) exception of those with contagious diseases and those with serious criminal records, or those with ties to organizations who have pledged to do harm to the US and its citizens. For these reasons I believe the law cannot be deemed racist in nature or intent.
There are those who think the boarders should be fully open, but we have determined that that would leave the US open to security threats, so that cannot be an option in todays world.
Tell me your thoughs. Lets dissuss in a manner free from insults and name calling. Just give me your opinion as you see it whether you agree or disagree. After all in the US we do have freedom of speech, and that means no matter what our opinion is, as long as it is not with the desire to do harm to others, we are free to speak our minds.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Under construction
This blog is currently being created and will be up in a few days. My intent is to blog oneveryday average items that affect the middleclass person in the world and politics. My blog will address something of interest I encounter during my middleclass day and mymiddleclass reaction.
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