Is there anyone NOT bothered by the price of gas?

[shelly3girls]

Why not? If the students went a couple of extra hours a day for the 4 days - and teachers did NOT lose pay - then they should be for it.

I could only see an objection if teachers were required to work additional hours and still come in on the 5th day for the same or reduced pay.

As a mother of a 7 and 9 year old, I do not possibly see how 4 longer days = 5 days. Kids already get burned out by the amount of work they do in one day. Their attention span is limited. Although I do not normally support the teacher's union, I would believe the teachers if they said it was not practical.

 

[dawnball]

From what I understand, we don't need to buy from other countries for our oil if the Oil Companies would just refine oil that is pumped here.

Oil is a fungible commodity. There is no difference between a US barrel of light sweet vs an OPEC barrel of light sweet. Everyone is trying to buy the cheapest barrel of oil they can, or sell the most expensive. If we're buying foreign oil instead of US oil - it's because it's CHEAPER. If US oil is sold overseas instead of to the US - it's because there's more profit to be made. The reasons that there is more profit to be made that way are frequently political. If we used US oil exclusively, then oil company profits would drop, and US gasoline prices would rise.

One problem we are seeing is that there is less light sweet oil and more heavy sour on the world market. Heavy sour oil requires more complex refining, and most of the world's refineries can't handle heavy sour. As there's less light sweet and more heavy sour - heavy sour sells at more of a discount. The US has (compared to the rest of the world) high amounts of capacity to refined heavy sour. So we buy heavy sour on the cheap - and sell light sweet at a profit. That's where most of the current US oil profits come from. There just isn't any extra refining capacity, and building refineries (particularly those that can handle heavy sour) is expensive. It could be cost effective to convert more refineries to handle heavy sour - but only if the price divide stays high in the future, and in the short term gas prices would go up due to diminished output of refined fuel during the upgrade.

Oil companies (even with these record profits) are still making a lower percentage profit margin than banks or credit card companies. They're making a third less than the *average* profit margin on the S&P 500. They're also making more than a third less than my local regulated power company that can't set it's own rates.

Most US oil and gas company shares are owned by mutual funds, pensions and IRA accounts. That's individual (mostly middle class) people saving for their retirement.

Am I bothered by the price of gas? Yes and no. I think that the transition to higher fuel costs has to happen sometime, and that it will be horrendously painful for a lot of people whenever it happens. However - I also know that there are significantly more fuel efficient cars available in the world than those sold in the US. And I know that automakers are looking for a steady gasoline price above $6/gallon before they bring them to the US. I currently drive a car that's 9 years old (and was not purchased with fuel economy in mind), and would still rank in the top 10 most fuel efficient cars if it were sold today. That's a terrible thing, in my opinion.

 

[CarolA]

Oil is a fungible commodity. There is no difference between a US barrel of light sweet vs an OPEC barrel of light sweet. Everyone is trying to buy the cheapest barrel of oil they can, or sell the most expensive. If we're buying foreign oil instead of US oil - it's because it's CHEAPER. If US oil is sold overseas instead of to the US - it's because there's more profit to be made. The reasons that there is more profit to be made that way are frequently political. If we used US oil exclusively, then oil company profits would drop, and US gasoline prices would rise.

One problem we are seeing is that there is less light sweet oil and more heavy sour on the world market. Heavy sour oil requires more complex refining, and most of the world's refineries can't handle heavy sour. As there's less light sweet and more heavy sour - heavy sour sells at more of a discount. The US has (compared to the rest of the world) high amounts of capacity to refined heavy sour. So we buy heavy sour on the cheap - and sell light sweet at a profit. That's where most of the current US oil profits come from. There just isn't any extra refining capacity, and building refineries (particularly those that can handle heavy sour) is expensive. It could be cost effective to convert more refineries to handle heavy sour - but only if the price divide stays high in the future, and in the short term gas prices would go up due to diminished output of refined fuel during the upgrade.

Oil companies (even with these record profits) are still making a lower percentage profit margin than banks or credit card companies. They're making a third less than the *average* profit margin on the S&P 500. They're also making more than a third less than my local regulated power company that can't set it's own rates.

Most US oil and gas company shares are owned by mutual funds, pensions and IRA accounts. That's individual (mostly middle class) people saving for their retirement.

Am I bothered by the price of gas? Yes and no. I think that the transition to higher fuel costs has to happen sometime, and that it will be horrendously painful for a lot of people whenever it happens. However - I also know that there are significantly more fuel efficient cars available in the world than those sold in the US. And I know that automakers are looking for a steady gasoline price above $6/gallon before they bring them to the US. I currently drive a car that's 9 years old (and was not purchased with fuel economy in mind), and would still rank in the top 10 most fuel efficient cars if it were sold today. That's a terrible thing, in my opinion.

Great post with some good info.

My car is 7 years old. It gets better gas milage that a LOT of things I see advertised out there. (Now part of that is due to the fact that I drive a manual transmission!)

 

[MrsPete]

If walking isn't do able maybe a scooter with helmet and leather that gets 100 miles per gallon would work. In other words, it is always easier to justify why not instead of yes I can.

Two reasons why a scooter wouldn't be a good choice for me:

1. I'm already using less than a gallon of gas/week to get to and from work; at that rate, it'd take me a long time to make up the initial cost of the scooter. I really couldn't use a scooter for most of my errands because I couldn't carry a family's worth of groceries, etc. I'd walk to and from work (as I said in my previous post, if it wasn't for a giant, dangerous intersection) because that wouldn't require any up-front money.
2. I have two daughters who also go to school with me. We can't share a scooter.

For a different person -- one with a longer commute -- a scooter would be an excellent option (even if that person kept a car for rainy/cold days). In fact, I saw one of my fellow teachers arriving at school on one just this morning. These things are probably a great choice.

As good as this sounds, I don't think that it will ever happen. My mother's school system tried to do something where they had the entire month of Jan. off and then lost the 2 spring breaks to compensate. It would have lowered the oil bills by an insane amount, and this was BEFORE the recent run up. The union fought it like heck and the plan failed. I think that in school systems with strong unions (which would be a lot of school systems), 4 10 hour days won't fly any better than the taking Jan. off plan.

I don't live in a union state, but I think everyone can see that something has to happen; the schools can't print money on their memographs -- they're taking it from your pocket and my pocket.

Teachers would benefit personally from a switch to 4 days/week; they, too, would only be driving their cars to and from school 4 days.

As a mother of a 7 and 9 year old, I do not possibly see how 4 longer days = 5 days. Kids already get burned out by the amount of work they do in one day. Their attention span is limited. Although I do not normally support the teacher's union, I would believe the teachers if they said it was not practical.

I agree that it would be very bad for the younger children; it shouldn't be a problem for middle and high school students though.

(Now part of that is due to the fact that I drive a manual transmission!)

An oddity: I bought a new car last year, and I was waivering between whether to get the automatic or the straight-drive. The automatic actually gets 2 mpg MORE than the same model manual-transmission; I was shocked because that didn't used to be true!

 

[sandisuze]

one of the things that bothers me most is the pricing games that are played:
Example: Last Thursday gas went up anywhere from 4.00 to 4.20 a gallon and stayed high over the weekend and Memorial day
Today the SAME gas stations have lowered their prices to 3.87 to 3.97 a gallon.
Hurricane season starts in a few days. Can you imagine what it'll be if there's even a hint of a storm anywhere?

Working in non profit I see a lot going on and although some have not made wise decisions IE: Buying a house they can't afford, buying stuff to keep up with their neighbors etc.- i see others that all it will take is an illness or a cut in hours and they will be in bad shape. I see a lot who take advantage of the system so others can't get help.
(Ok I 'll stop being off topic now -Sorry)

 

[patsal]

Why not? If the students went a couple of extra hours a day for the 4 days - and teachers did NOT lose pay - then they should be for it.

I could only see an objection if teachers were required to work additional hours and still come in on the 5th day for the same or reduced pay.

That would make for a 7.5 hour day for the kids at the very least--now let's look at what research tells us about children, adolescents and learning styles--pretty much the average student has the ability to process information in concentrated amounts for minutes equivalent to 2Xthier age--so a 12 year old should be able to sit and do sustained work in any subject area for 24 minutes before their brain needs a rest form it, a 16 year old 32 minutes, etc. Now that is average we have of course the other two ends of the spectrum so a bunch can work longer while another bunch can't process for that long. We can't group them by ability any more so adjusting the time to meet individual needs wouldn't work. Give them 3 day weekends and the retention rate goes down for those that do not reinforce skills at home. So now my emergent readers are not reading for three days a week rather than two, my slower learners are not getting the extra reinforcement, and my gifted kids are not being challenged. Personally, I'd love it if I only had to go in 4 days per week but from what I know about kids and learning styles I don't think it would be best for kids.

 

[karinbelle]

That would make for a 7.5 hour day for the kids at the very least--now let's look at what research tells us about children, adolescents and learning styles--pretty much the average student has the ability to process information in concentrated amounts for minutes equivalent to 2Xthier age--so a 12 year old should be able to sit and do sustained work in any subject area for 24 minutes before their brain needs a rest form it, a 16 year old 32 minutes, etc. Now that is average we have of course the other two ends of the spectrum so a bunch can work longer while another bunch can't process for that long. We can't group them by ability any more so adjusting the time to meet individual needs wouldn't work. Give them 3 day weekends and the retention rate goes down for those that do not reinforce skills at home. So now my emergent readers are not reading for three days a week rather than two, my slower learners are not getting the extra reinforcement, and my gifted kids are not being challenged. Personally, I'd love it if I only had to go in 4 days per week but from what I know about kids and learning styles I don't think it would be best for kids.

I agree that early elementary may have a problem. There is an issue with not enough breaks in the school day as it is - recess is minimal and only one time per day. PE is only 1 week per month at my DS's school. Perhaps if the longer day were broken up with more active, social learning situations it could turn a negative into a positive for the younger kids. Emotional Intellgience is what they are sorely lacking in many cases and it's showing up in the higher grades.

Another thought - many kids are already in care situations where they are in structured programs from 6 am to 6 pm or later.

For the middle and high schoolers - it could mean more opportunities to work their jobs, interact with their parents, job shadow, etc.

 

[MrsPete]

That would make for a 7.5 hour day for the kids at the very least--now let's look at what research tells us about children, adolescents and learning styles--pretty much the average student has the ability to process information in concentrated amounts for minutes equivalent to 2Xthier age--so a 12 year old should be able to sit and do sustained work in any subject area for 24 minutes before their brain needs a rest form it, a 16 year old 32 minutes, etc.

Ah, but a rest or a break doesn't mean a lunch period or a 30-minute recess. Any high school teacher who teaches 90-minute block scheduling periods will tell you that it's necessary to break the class up into several small segments within that 90-minute block. So the class might spend the first 20 minutes on a grammar exercise when they walk into class . . . then they get up and physically move (which helps them all) to put their grammar books away . . . then the teacher lectures on the novel they're reading for 15 minutes . . . then they move into small groups to complete an activity that asks them to reflect upon the reading that they've finished . . . then they move back to their rows for a quiz at the end of class and closure. For high school students, those 2-3 minute transition times ARE their breaks within the class. They don't completely walk away from the subject, but they "switch gears". The research supports these short breaks/transitions as a healthy learning choice -- the students don't totally disengage from the subject as they would if, say, they went to lunch and then came back to the same class.

 

[karinbelle]

Ah, but a rest or a break doesn't mean a lunch period or a 30-minute recess. Any high school teacher who teaches 90-minute block scheduling periods will tell you that it's necessary to break the class up into several small segments within that 90-minute block. So the class might spend the first 20 minutes on a grammar exercise when they walk into class . . . then they get up and physically move (which helps them all) to put their grammar books away . . . then the teacher lectures on the novel they're reading for 15 minutes . . . then they move into small groups to complete an activity that asks them to reflect upon the reading that they've finished . . . then they move back to their rows for a quiz at the end of class and closure. For high school students, those 2-3 minute transition times ARE their breaks within the class. They don't completely walk away from the subject, but they "switch gears". The research supports these short breaks/transitions as a healthy learning choice -- the students don't totally disengage from the subject as they would if, say, they went to lunch and then came back to the same class.

Exactly right Mrs. Pete. Many adults also need mini-breaks through the work day. So in these terms, a 7.5 hour day for a child would not be much different than a 6 hour day as long as good teaching practice was taking place (a break or transition every 20 minutes or so).

 

[PBader]

I own 2 gas stations and have hated to see the spike in prices. It really has put a crimp in my business cash flow. Since the beginning of May my wholesale price has gone up 50c. I cringe now before I look at my fuel costs for the day. I look back at when gas retailed for about $1 a gallon and a load of gas cost me $8K, now that same load is $34K. My gas jobber debits my account the next day for a load of gas. There are many days now that I lose money on every gallon of gas I sell after I pay Visa/MC the credit card fees. At $4 a gallon they are making almost 13c for each gallon of gas that is sold.

Am I bothered by the price? Yes and no. I feel for the folks out there that the increase has really hurt, especially the truckers and people that drive a lot for their work. I have quite a few employees that work for me part time for a 2nd job, quite a few of them have asked for an additional day to help out with their budgets. I also don't get many of my full timers turn down overtime anymore.

With the exception of a few of our large cities, there is just not much infastructure that is in place for mass public transportation. If we had that available in more cities I am sure that it would be well used. To build that now--most cities just couldn't afford it. They are already scrambling trying to cut $ out of their budgets to pay for the increase in fuel. Louisville has jacked up the property values to try to increase revenues, both of my locations values increased this year one 27% and the other 125%. Some businesses around me got increases of over 300%. While my house went up 6%. All this at a time when it is being reported that property values are down.

Our personal purchases of gas, really haven't effected our budget yet. We do fill up now at half a tank instead of letting it get low---I think that makes it easier on the mind, because it is about what it used to cost to fill up. We also don't carry any debt except for our house so I think that plays a large part of it not really "crimping our style".

 

[LadyTrampScamp&Angel]

Am I bothered by the price of gas? Yes, now I am. I was ok for a long time but now as it is approaching $4/gal here and I'm seeing the increase in groceries etc, I'm now bothered.

I'm a SAHM, my DH walks to his office and our kid's school is .7 miles from our house. Most of our driving is recreational but now it's to the point that I am combining errands into one trip, re-thinking some trips this summer and not happy with what it will cost to drive to Chicago in a few weeks for a wedding. Still, we are very fortunate. I really feel for the people who have long communtes to work etc.

I'm not really obsessing about future prices, more preparing. Gonna buy that plug in Prius as soon as it becomes available. Right now I'm driving my 1990 Miata that gets 30 mpg as much as possible.

 

[CarolA]

Our personal purchases of gas, really haven't effected our budget yet. We do fill up now at half a tank instead of letting it get low---I think that makes it easier on the mind, because it is about what it used to cost to fill up. We also don't carry any debt except for our house so I think that plays a large part of it not really "crimping our style".

This is my SIL's method.. She says it still costs the same to fill up her Tahoe.

My brother who pays the credit card bill sees it a little differently however!

 

[bluehen]

Yes, but people were commenting how high France's taxes are. I think that for everything they get for their high taxes, it's a great deal.

It's not how much you pay...but what you get for your money.

Right now I don't believe I am getting my money's worth in the good old
US of A.

 

[MoniqueU]

I am getting even more concerned. Gas here is now ranging from 4.06 a gallon to 4.42 for regular. With some prices down where my husband works in San Diego at over 4.50. As the list of people I know that are unemployed rises I start to worry for them more and more since it doesn't seem like there is any hiring going on right now.
I have been reading this board more and more to find coupons and codes for things that I need.

 

[C.Ann]

I had to come back to my DD's today for a medical emergency.. I had just above a quarter of a tank and put in $30 worth of gas - at $4.14 a gallon.. Because I do so little drivng, that isn't really a "worry" for me.. However, I do get annoyed that 65 cents of it is taxes alone and like clock work, if they know the weather is going to be good - or there is a holiday weekend coming up - they immediately jack the price up higher.. It is no coincidence - it's been a pattern for years now, but this year the prices are jumping at an average of 45 cents a month here - meaning that they raising the prices much more frequently..

So - what do I worry about? The rising cost of food (pretty much double from last year) and the rising cost of everything else that has to be transported in some way, shape, or form.. I can do without a lot of things, but there are other people out there who can not do without the basic necessities of life - and those are the choices that they are having to make now.. Many people live where there is no form of public transportation and no ability to car pool.. So - in order to be able to afford to drive to work, they are sacrificing in crucial areas: food; housing; utilities; healthcare; medications; etc.. And what pray tell are these same people going to do when winter arrives and the heating bills are even more dramatic than they were last year?

Around the lake, the boating activity is already next to nothing.. This in turn will put many business around the lake out of business - which of course will mean more people having to file for unemployment and/or resort to food stamps, welfare, Medicaid, etc..

Then there are the elderly people - whose incomes will never rise to any level that will be of any benefit to them.. Each year SS issues a "cost of living" increase - which is immediately wiped out by the raises in the Medicare costs that are deducted from their monthly checks.. Even if they have saved and planned well for their retirement - in addition to their SS benefits - with the cost of everything rising so dramatically - due to the impact that rising fuel costs has on everything across the board - eventually that money will dwindle away to nothing.. (And heaven forbid, they have to deal with an extended catastrophic illness, they'll be wiped out in no time..)

The housing market is atrocious.. People can't simply sell their homes and move elsewhere to make it easier to get to work and wherever else they need to go because houses just aren't selling (at least in my area) for a price that would even cover paying off their existing mortages.. I have a close friend who has been one of the areas top leading realtors for many, many years.. Historically, buy this time of the year he has sold at least 50 homes.. To date, he has sold six..

The rising cost of fuel - both for vehicles and heating - is having a dramatic impact on every aspect of peoples lives - whether they care to recognize it or not..

At this point I am not cncerned about myself - I'm in a stable situation and keep myself that way by not spending money in a frivilous manner because I don't know what is going to happen 2 months, 6 months, or 12 months down the road.. However, I am very worried about other people and really don't know how some of them are going to manage if something doesn't change soon..

I guess only time will tell..

 

[Michelle67]

I don't obsess about the price of gas, but I certainly don't like it! Where I live the bus isn't much of an option (only runs every two hours, doesn't run past about 7 at night, doesn't run at all on the weekend, and only comes down my road if you call the day before to request a pickup) and neither is a moped with three kids to haul around. We have to drive over 10 miles just to get to the nearest "real" grocery store. I choose to live out here, though, and don't regret my choice at all. I'd rather pay for expensive gas to get to the grocery store than pay the much higher "price" of having my kids back in the city schools. I still almost choked when I filled my tank yesterday at $4.19 for 87 octane, but I don't bother to complain. It does no good. I'm just getting really good at combining trips and making lists so I don't have to make repeat trips to the grocery store!

It is a much bigger deal for my parents, though, who are trying to make ends meet with their social security some supplemental income, and are having a very hard time! Because yes, it affects not only driving around, but eating, heating, etc.