gas prices we deserve

[Kaw1000]

I haven't checked but..aren't these Hybrids Expensive??

[DieAz]

http://www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/progs/all_state_summary.cgi?afdc/0

link for looking to see if your State gives credits, rebates, tax reductions, etc. for alternate fuels.
And other Info.
some have programs for helping buy ev conversions, green vehicles, EV, hybrids, etc.

[lazs2]

mojava.. it does not surprise me that you have drank the socialist liberal democrat kool aid.

ANWAR drilling will not solve the entire problem and.. as pointed out.. your precious democrats have delayed it for too long.. it will take ten years (probly more like five) but...  if we had started 10 years ago when we should have.. if we had told the socialists to pound sand.. we would be using that oil today.

It is not just about drilling in Alaska tho.. it is about drilling in the gulf.. china will do it and with their normal fastidious concern about the environment.. any spill of theirs will be on our coast.   yet...  the democrats won't let us drill!!

It is about cheap electrical yet the democrats won't let us build safe and clean nukes because the old hippies are the same old hidebound commies they always were and "nuke" scares the pantywaists.

It is about a sensible and progressive energy policy not about some 60's hippie democrat socialist programs mired in old ideals and flower power.

Face it.. our problems are about 60% your socialist parties fault... the reason we don't get a solution and just get taxed more will be your parties fault.. yours is a party of old ideas and junk science and no solutions.

lazs

[Airhead]

So the Dems are responsible for the gas prices too? Boy, for a party that didn't have the House, didn't have the Senate and didn't have the White House for eight years those rascally Democrats sure gummed things up, eh?

[Ripsnort]

The US doesn't have a refinery capacity problem at the moment. It has in the past, for example May 2007, when gasoline prices averaged $3.15 a gallon, at a time when oil was about $64 a barrel.

May 2007, of the $3.15 for a gallon, $1.45 went to pay for the crude oil, and 88c went to pay the refiners.

This April, the latest figures the DOE have published, with a gallon of gasoline at $3.46, $2.52 paid for the crude oil, the refiners got a little under 35c.

The current price of gasoline has everything to do with the price of oil, and nothing to do with refinery shortages. In fact, US refiners have been cutting back production earlier this year because of weak demand.

It's alittle more complicated than that as I'm sure you're well aware of.  Saudi Arabia, Kuwait Venezuela, and Iran produce heavy, sour crude. This has a high sulphur content.

Angola, Libya Nigeria, and the United Arab Emirates produce higher quality, light sweet crude, with a lower sulphur content.

Refinery capacity for heavy crude is lacking. There is more heavy crude than light sweet crude.  Light sweet crude is easy to refine. The light sweet is most suitable for refining into petrol, gasoil and heating oil.

Heavy crude is in surplus however many refinerries are not set up to process heavy crude because it is more difficult and expensive to refine into products.

[Mojava]

  Laz...you listen to way too much right wing radio propaganda.

   I think you party is the one with the backward ideas and the 1950s polices.  It's a new world buddy, global economy.  Think outside the box instead of shutting yourself up in it.  I'm pretty sure if your high and mighty right wing folks weren't making a substantial profit, we would have drilled for oil, or increased capacity by now.   

[AKIron]

  Laz...you listen to way too much right wing radio propaganda.

   I think you party is the one with the backward ideas and the 1950s polices.  It's a new world buddy, global economy.  Think outside the box instead of shutting yourself up in it.  I'm pretty sure if your high and mighty right wing folks weren't making a substantial profit, we would have drilled for oil, or increased capacity by now.   

"Global Economy". When I hear that it is usually spoken by those who embrace the idea thinking it a Utopia. I'll go on record saying that a "global economy" will never bring about peace and prosperity for all nations. Our nature is far to selfish and competitive for that to ever become a reality. Some think we need only a central government with full authority to bring this about. Millions were murdered thinking the same thing.   

[Mojava]

 Oh boy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_economy

[AKIron]

Oh boy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_economy

I know what it is. Perhaps you aren't one of those who embrace a world government as the savior of mankind? Perhaps you aren't fooled into thinking the "global economy" will ever be equitable so long as there are government run sweatshops in places like China? There are many who do and are however.

[jimson]

We are always going to be screwed when the people we rely on for oil are the same ones that hate us.

There is no one magic bullet, but what we can do is lift restrictions on domestic oil production, build new refineries, increase the gov't standards on mpg, require all vehicles being produced to have flex fuel capability, develop flex fuel conversion kits for exisiting vehicles and offer tax rebates for them, lift the tarrifs on ethanol imports from countries such as Brazil, build new nuclear powerplants.

Once we move in this direction and money is to be made, we will see ethanol on sale at every corner gas station. When we can use either one, there will be a price war between gasoline and ethanol producers. We badly need for "big oil" to have some competition.

Just moving in this direction will make OPEC s**t their pants and they will suddenly become more cooperative, I bet.

[Toad]

increase the gov't standards on mpg, require all vehicles being produced to have flex fuel capability, .

You don't need government standards on MPG. You don't need to require flex fuel (not even going into the debate on how much energy one really gains from the production of ethanol).

Tax. Tax something, you get less of it. Subsidize it, you get more of it.

Want higher MPG cars? Slap a $2 gallon tax on gasoline, all the money earmarked to pay down the national debt or to be directly rebated via Social Security payroll tax reductions or something. I assure you, you WILL get higher MPG cars very quickly. You will significantly reduce US consumption of gasoline simultaneously. Instead of the extra money from $2 gas going to the oil producers, it will come back to the US citizens. (Bonus is that illegals won't get the rebate. )

Also, by taxing gas and not ethanol or other flex fuels, you will drive the market to flex fuel vehicles.

Of course, you'll never ever get rid of the $2 added gas tax, even after the problems are improved or resolved. But hey.. that's big government for ya!

[Captain Virgil Hilts]

So the Dems are responsible for the gas prices too? Boy, for a party that didn't have the House, didn't have the Senate and didn't have the White House for eight years those rascally Democrats sure gummed things up, eh?

Tell you what. Go back to the 2006 mid term elections, and tell us, what was the housing sale rate? The cost of a gallon of gasoline? The cost of a gallon of diesel fuel? The unemployment rate? The growth rate of the economy?

[Captain Virgil Hilts]

Oh boy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_economy

Quoting "wiki" is really a great basis for any argument.

[Toad]

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[Modas]

In 2010 the Chevy Volt will sell like hotcakes.

Remember that people will be charging their electric cars at night, during off-peak hours.  I think the US should adopt the policy of many Canadian communities and charge more for peak-hour electricity during the day.  This will make charging your electric car at night even cheaper.

Not when people see the sticker price.  Did a quick google on the Volt the other day and found an article saying the volt was going to start around 30,000 and mostly like end up in the $40,000 range.  I can't afford that, and I'll be a good bunch of others won't.  Electric/hybrid vehicles are worthless, unless the masses can afford them.

If the price only allows 100,000 of these on the road, then whats the point?  There are what, 20+million cars on the road?  The technology has to be affordable for everyone, otherwise, whats the point.

I'm concentrating on putting in a 2kW wind turbine on the house and some hot water solar.