If The President Doesn’t Control Oil Prices, Who Does?

While it's good to know I qualify for your sympathy, you really need to realize that American consumers aren't the only people who drive. Those groceries don't find their way to your store counters by magic: They're driven by trucks. We aren't the only people paying at the pumps. Smaller shipping companies have been put out of business because they cannot afford the cost of fuel which gets especially pricy since there is apparently "regulations" regarding what pumps truckers can use in certain cases. 

If it were just as simple as being green and arranging a car pool, you wouldn't hear as much grumbling. Yes, Americans have tightened their belt. But one can only tighten so much. Let's not pretend that the cost of living isn't going up while wages have not generally followed suit. 

Those suggestions would be wonderful if a person could afford to go out by a car on a whim or knew enough people to carpool, but as I've been driving home: The situation is not as one-dimensional as: "Americans are whiney losers who need to pull up their bootstraps and SUCK IT UP because that's how life works and I don't care if my generalizations come without intricate consideration for individual circumstances or varying areas being affected by corporate greed." 

Not everyone lives in the city. As I stated. Not everyone has reliable public transit. 

This article isn't news to me as I've always been aware of just who pulls the strings when it comes to gas prices. But that doesn't stop it from being annoying that EVERY time the subject comes up, people pretend that the problem is with Americans being lazy, stupid, and greedy. I just think this "let them eat cake" attitude is a wee bit much at times is all. 

 Toni_M Sorry but I live in a metropolitan city where people are CHOOSING to drive 30 or 40 or 60miles (one way) every day to work. They switch apartments and fail to consider gas prices in the determination of where to live. Or buy a house in a cool suburb that will give them a longer commute. Or they buy a new SUV that gets 12 miles to the gallon. Or vote against better public transportation options. Or not demand their politicians support responsible energy policies. They may not be able to set the price of gas, but they CAN control their consumption.

So as I stated, I don't feel badly for THOSE people who make poor choices and then whine about gas prices. I do however applaud companies who consume lots of gas and decide to make good choices regarding their consumption/ management of that expenditure. Southwest Airlines is one - they hedged on gas several years ago, realizing it was a commodity they couldn't control the price of but was highly dependent on; Delta is another - looking to buy it's own refinery. 

 Toni_M You're right that America is a very car dependent nation. European cities were built decades ( if not hundreds) of years before many American cities, and thus their cities were built more compactly--narrow streets and walkways--and with smaller living quarters. America was built up when the nation was booming and cars were coming onto the scene, plus the highway system was built moreso for military purposes rather than for public transportation; thus, America went big with everything--big cars, big houses--and we became addicted to driving because we could afford to do so. 

We are slowly becoming less and less able to afford the society we created. 

 Pearl Was it Who Killed the Electric Car?  Haven't seen it, but that's the only title related to this I can think of.

 TJD When I began driving at 17, back in the late 50s, gas was 25 cents a gallon - sigh! - when it went up to 35 cents, I thought the sky had fallen.

 SirLoinDeBeef lol sldb

@TJD Don't reminisce ....it's hurts my wallet.

 TJD You started teaching when I started driving. My friends and I started driving when gas like $0.99 to a buck and some change. Now gas is just going higher and higher. 

 Patricia Kayden God forbid no. What I am referring to is the blatant lobbying and blocking of legislation in the 80s that would have prepared this nation for high oil prices, like public transportation infrastructure funding and high speed rail ways as well as the blocking of funding of alternative energy sources outside of oil. these are not new ideas that were being talked about in the late 70s and 80s to avoid our being addicted to oil in present day.

 Shulamit  Patricia Kayden Obama funded Solyndra but when that company went under the Republicans used it to put a bad name on government funding of alternative/green energies. The problem with that the Republicans were doing is this: sometimes businesses fail. Just because 90 percent of restaurants fail doesn't mean that no one should ever again attempt to open up a restaurant. Meanwhile, the Chinese saw what we did with Solyndra and then they turned around and put 30 billion into R&D for alternative/green energies. 

One failure and the US ran; the Chinese are just going to keep going until they get it right. 

 FriendsofJay "...President Obama should absolutely get the blame for high prices"

Why? Especially since oil prices have generally been rising since the 1970's, with some periods where the price declined despite the fact that the long term trend in oil prices has been upwards for decades. 

 Shulamit I can't recall the guy's name, but Obama hired some energy adviser who once suggested that allowing oil prices to rise would encourage Americans to switch over to cleaner fuels and invest more in alternative energies--when Americans got angry instead of getting more creative, the adviser was forced to admit (before Congress, I think) that  his policy suggestion had not worked out as planned. 

Can someone think of the name of this energy adviser guy?

Obama hasn't done EVERYTHING he could do, but he's done a lot. And even if he did do everything in his power--allow the Keystone pipeline, open up as much federal land to drilling as he can---the long-term trend of rising oil prices will continue because oil is non-renewable. Oil has to run out at some point and the closer we get the point where all of the oil is gone, the more expensive it will be to harvest and process the oil until we have used every last drop.

Please pardon the typos, thos laptop keyboard is going away.

ddjs69

 I do not think the answer is DRILL BABY DRILLL, that is a short term answer to a long term problem. WE NEED to come up with alternative ways to use less crude oil and use alternative oil technologies which by the way was being shot down by Congress since the First Bush administration. IN fact the situation we are in is because of the Bushes and their friendship with Saudi, corrupt oil execs and Congressmen. However  the American people are just as much to blame for not keeping themselves informed. We need to STOP blaming the President for everything and start to take charge for our destiny in this country. because if we do not utilize our right to govern ourselves and not be governed by corporations--our going to sleep at the wheel since the 80s is the major issue- is what has TRULY cause the host of problems and wars that we are embroiled in.

Lets get'er done and stop pointing fingers.

@Grace80 where's here?

 Grace80 Most places in Europe are in the $8 to $10 (in American dollars range). Americans have come to think cheap oil is some kind of right. 

 Jamila And no one's asked to cut their energy use or contribute in any way to reducing our dependence on oil. How on earth did they get people in the 30s and 40s to agree to ration materials and contribute to the war effort?  We're just going to have to get used to rising energy costs every year, every generation because there's not enough work being done to cut the addiction.

 Grace80 But the question is how often do you drive and over how long a distance? Also, is public transit readily available? Are most people able to walk most places such as to the market and to work?

The flippant attitude of people outside of the US annoys me, admittedly because they assume that their paying more overall for gas than American citizens. Many Americans are having to choose between filling up the gas tank to get to work, school, and who knows where else over how many groceries they can afford to buy.

Moreover, rising gas prices are affecting the transportation of food and goods to supermarkets, driving up the cost of food. 

What may not seem like a big deal to you is intricately connected to all manners of life and lifestyle here. It's not as simple as you'd think it would be all things considered.

 Toni_M I don't drive much, only to my mother in law and when I'm buying food. But I live in the third largest city in the country. Sure I ride my bike and take a train to get to work. But that is city life.

But if you get out of the city everyone drives. There's no bus stops near my in laws. My husband drives like 10 km to work everyday.

And food is not cheap here. Not at all. One thing Americans complain about is how expensive everything is. And it will get more expensive since we don't drive our food in wagons with horses if you thought hat.

 Grace80 I'm not interested in a pissing contest. My point remains: You don't live here, you don't know what prices are affecting people and how. I imagine prices didn't rise over night, and I don't necessarily think things are yippy-skippy in various European countries (especially with the Euro being a bit wobbly in the last few years), but I don't go into those threads commenting "Pfft, this is why I'm glad we only have to worry one currency and economy."

It doesn't affect you, you don't live here, and the backhanded comment is a predictable generalization without actually being here and being affected or bothering to understand or care what's happening. 

And if I recall, certain people living in Europe tend to get up in arms over generalizations about life abroad from American perspectives of people not living there, or not living there while ________. 

 Toni_M And you don't live here. Let's end it at that.

Just saying, that the rest of the world pays a lot more. Not only the rich world.

and my 'pff' comment was light hearted.

 Grace80 I should also mention that outside of major cities and highly populated areas, public transportation is less convenient and reliable, and in some places, you can be miles from the shopping and work and have to drive regularly.

 Pearl bums? As in homeless people?

@Grace80 @Pearl As in hobos, beggar, derelict, drifter, migrant worker, street person, tramp, transient, vagabond, vagrant, wanderer, and a few more I can't mention here.

 Pearl Why would we have more bums? lol

Most people are on their own at 18-19 either working or studying. Sure we got bums here, what country don't. Thought there's more of them in Italy for example with all the men who stay home untill they are 35.