How High Can Gas Prices Go - It's Cheaper by the Barrel

I have decided I will not buy cheap gas ever again!. Remember making that statement a few years ago. Because you thought the cheap stuff at the out of the way station was not worth the mileage that you were getting. Well your statement has probably run through your mind a hundred times over the last three years because the little station with the cheap prices is either higher than anyone else or out of business due to not being able to stay in the game. I would like to let every one in on a little secret being an ex convenience store manager of 11 years.

The corporate CEO's love us. If they knew each one of our names they would probably send us a Thank You card. Wait a minute if you have a store card they probably already know your name. You know the store card that if you do not have you pay up to a 1/3 increase in price. I live in a state where the Attorney General just filed a suit against one of the larger petroleum corporations on the grounds of price gouging. Are we paying more than we should at the pump? Well lets see, if a corporate CEO can clear almost five times the salary of the President of The United States and live in a home larger than a city block and afford to keep a truck load of attorneys on retainer or pay role to intercept allegations of price fixing than I would say yes we are are paying way to much at the pumps. Now there are a few things to consider since we have all became more familiar with pricing than we use to in the past.

One would be the cost of drilling the oil out of the ground,then the crews that bring it from the ground to the tankers,then from the tankers across the ocean to the refinery of destination,then the crews who refine the oil and turn it to gas,then the the company that bids the oil to sell at a branded or non branded location,then finally the hourly wage of the person setting the pump for you and giving that great customer service, who by the way is the lowest paid person on the pole in this great journey and takes the highest risk of robbery or theft by pump and driving off without paying which can cost them their job. Because the corporate CE O's cannot afford to loose any money. Yes there are many factors to consider with in reason. After 9/11 we said the terrorist did not win after the strike on New York. Well I believe by now everyone will agree that they may not have won but they sure put our economy on the injured list.

The petroleum industry in my view is in fear of alternative fuels putting a damper on business as usual. Sure there are a couple who claim to be conducting research with auto manufactures to create alternative fuels which will lower emissions and green house gases but at what expense to the public. Remember when one of the largest alternative fuels was ethanol and all the makers of it were telling us this would cut back a small percentage of the purchase of overseas oil and help lower emissions and (PRICES AT THE PUMPS). Well if you look at some of the places you purchase gas some will say that their gas has a 10% mixture of ethanol. There will be a sticker on the pump because the Dept of Agriculture requires it. So if I am only getting 90% petroleum and 10% ethanol why then am I paying the same price I would for full rated gasoline. Ethanol after all is cheaper to produce remember our government told us so along with the Dept of Agriculture. So this might raise a question in some minds are we paying to much at the pump?

It makes sense to me that if a station on one side of the street deals strictly with pure gasoline and they are $3.199 than why would the station on the other side of the street with 90% foreign fuel and 10% domestic produced alternative fuel be the same price when they are not paying the same price? If our pricing is dependent on foreign matters and natural disasters then why are we the only country paying the bill? One reason I can think of is that we are one of the if not the last country to start hybrid cars or alternative fuels. Why is possibly due to the loss of jobs due to the changing from conventional fuel which keeps all the major auto manufactures in business over to alternative fuels which would be a break through for consumers and a possible pit fall for slow converting auto makers in the U.S.. Ironically these same manufactures have built hybrids for some time in other countries. This is just my opinion on this with some experience in the matter. It just seems like we are budgeting ourselves every week to compensate the raising cost of gas but I would like the see the weekly home budget for a corporate chairman or CEO in the petroleum industry to see if they are cutting into groceries or rent or bills to afford the drive till the next pay check comes through.