We never get any real answers about gas prices. (533 hits)
Category: GeneralRating: 0.73 on 18 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Wildcat (View user info) at 2006-09-11 14:27:00 EDT
I'm at home on some twisted meds. Long story short: picking up the side of a Toyota Tercel while drinking can shred back muscles. Whodda thunk it? So here I am, dazed out of my mind watching daytime TV.
And now no real segue into my post. Fuck you.
I understand that in the US we get gasoline comparatively cheap. I don't mind it raising by an entire dollar over the weekend or 5 cents in a nanosecond like everyone in the media industry. It's gasoline. I need it for my truck. No matter the cost I have to buy, there's no point in crying about it.
However, I would really appreciate it if someone would give the final answer as to how the pricing works. If you watch CBS you'll learn it's Bush's fault. If you watch Fox News it's 'dem damned A-rabs'. NBC and ABC pointed some fingers at the gas company executives. I've read that government regulations increase the price as does customer demand. I think I even heard something about it being a combination of Al Queda, those crafty Masons, and Elvis.
Please, you fuckers, tell me how the hell you come up with these prices. When I pull up and see '2.32999999999999999999', am I really supposed think "Gee, I'm glad I'm not paying 2.33 like those fuckers across the street!" ?
And another thing, are you telling me that 1 gallon of gas is equal to 2 Jr. Bacon Cheeseburgers and a handful of fries from the Wendy's dollar menu at 2am when I'm drunk on a Saturday night? Come on guys, I can go 22 miles on one gallon of gas or finish off another six pack after my late night snack at Wendy's. How do they compare? Doesn't this just make the concept of money just a little more arbitrary? The fact of the matter is that if we had to barter, I'm not sure the current pricing system on ANYTHING in the US would remain the same.
And I'd certainly be able to get laid more often just by taking a gal out for drinks and pancakes.
Every time I watch another shitty piece on the news about gas prices I always feel like they end the whole thing with the Chewbacca defense because they bring up all these questions but never answer them. Then when they are done pretending to have accomplished something for the last 30 minutes they end the program by asking me to watch their shitty show again the next night. No thanks, Katie "I'd-look-like-a-fat-Princess-Leia-if-you-were-drunk-but-I'd-do" Couric. Bitch.
User Reviews
Submitted by Caulaincourt (user info) at 2006-09-13 00:16:26 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
i liked this
Submitted by jgreening (user info) at 2006-09-12 23:08:37 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
KNow what I *DO* love, though?
The week before primary elections, prices start to freefall.
I was paying $2.97 a gallon in Denver last time I filled up.
I filled up again yesterday, and I paid $2.84.
Next time I fill up, it'll probably be $2.60.
Submitted by jgreening (user info) at 2006-09-12 22:48:11 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
As bad as this sounds, I'm dead serious:
I'd explain it, but our heads would both explode right before I get to the part about being upstream or downstream of the refinery.
Just understand it involves Government, big business, Tarot cards, chaos theory, the panda that died in Washington DC and the pirce of Samoas.
The cookie, not the fat islander.
Submitted by shitfuck (user info) at 2006-09-11 22:35:57 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I make them up.
Submitted by Unabonger (user info) at 2006-09-11 20:29:32 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
it has something to do with OPEC and the supply and demand and the speed at which we are able to refine it and the consumption levels and....and...
ladies and gentlemen...this is Chewbacca. why am I up here talkin' 'bout a 6 foot wookie when a man's life is on the line? THAT DOES NOT MAKE SENSE!
Submitted by Jeanneee (user info) at 2006-09-11 19:57:57 EDT (#)
Ranking: 1
We never get any real answers about anything.
Submitted by youarsoghey (user info) at 2006-09-11 17:22:24 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Think about it in terms of supply and demand. Since the market for crude oil is relatively free, there is a world price for gasoline in many countries. What this means is that people in New York and other financial centers buy the commodities for the price that the seller is willing to sell that quantity at. So let's say oil is at $50/barrel. That means that:
The most anyone is willing to spend on a barrel of oil is $50 at that moment, and
The least anyone is willing to sell a barrel of oil for is $50 at that moment...
Because why would anyone want to buy a $51 barrel of oil if everyone else on the market is selling it for $50, and why would anyone want to sell one for $49 if everyone else is willing to buy it for $50?
However, this is all given that the barrels of crude oil keep flowing in at a regular rate. Anytime you see a massive spike in the price of gas, it is often related to instability in the supply of oil. People selling oil get freaked when a war happens in the middle east, a hurricane hits the Gulf of Mexico, or if terrorists blow up a pipeline because this means they will have less oil to sell in the future and they are willing to supply less for $50...or put into regular terms since everyone needs oil...they are willing to supply the same amount for MORE MONEY. So that same barrel of oil jumps up to $55 or $60 because the whole stock that it came with just became more valuable.
Think about it in terms of the price of goods when a hurricane hits. Just before it hits, there is a massive run on things like lumber and food. If you go down to a home depot, you will have to wait a while before you get wood, and when you finally do get to it, it will probably cost more because the home depot knows that they only have so much wood for a lot of demand.
Also, as you might be able to tell, an increase in demand has the same effect as a decrease in supply. When the summer months come around, crude oil prices tend to go up because of the greater amount of traveling Americans do in the summer. People need more gas, so in order to get it, they have to pay more as a society. This is just like the hurricane hitting and people needing more lumber. The sellers know they sell the same thing for more, so they'd be stupid not to do it.
In the end, it often has very little to do with the franchised gas stations that you interact with on a regular basis, but it does explain how Exxon's profits are in the billions every QUARTER considering the huge fears in recent years about the stability of the crude oil supply around the world. Using this process, you can also see how the recent find of a lot of oil in the Gulf of Mexico has caused prices to drop significantly. Just like everything else on markets, it's all abou the future and the EXPECTED flow (of profits for stocks, and supplies for commodities).
Hope this helps a little. If you want it dumbed down even more, go buy an introductory economics textbook.
Submitted by clairitea123 (user info) at 2006-09-11 16:32:41 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
I like the Souht Park pic
Submitted by JonnyX (user info) at 2006-09-11 16:04:27 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
Submitted by professorfuckface (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:35:27 (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Orgasmatron (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:31:04 (#)
Ranking: 2
We need more Venezuelan users here to send us $0.39/gallon gas
----------------------
Hugo Chavez himself offered it to the US, your government turned it down
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actually, he offered it ONLY to the niggers and spics that live in the projects, and whitey DON'T PLAY THAT
Submitted by Professional_Peon (user info) at 2006-09-11 15:19:41 EDT (#)
Ranking: 1
Feel free to blame me for it.
Submitted by Void_Where_Prohibited (user info) at 2006-09-11 15:17:38 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Funny...
Submitted by ubetidid (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:53:36 (#)
Ranking: 0
oh jeesus,
for drinks AND pancakes
i'd surely SUCK your dick, too.
Submitted by ubetidid (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:53:36 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
oh jeesus,
for drinks AND pancakes
i'd surely SUCK your dick, too.
Submitted by consuelo212 (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:50:58 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
And I'd certainly be able to get laid more often just by taking a gal out for drinks and pancakes.
Yes, hats off to you.
Submitted by Orgasmatron (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:45:50 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Chavez could have offered the country a handjob and the gov. wouldn't have accepted it.
I'm sure we'll take the oil once his forehead meets the tip of a bullet.
Submitted by St_Jimmy (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:41:50 EDT (#)
Ranking: 1
I've also wondered about the .9999 on gas prices. You never see other products priced that way.
What's causing high gas prices? I blame babies. God damn babies. It's just as good a theory as anything else out there.
Submitted by professorfuckface (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:35:27 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Orgasmatron (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:31:04 (#)
Ranking: 2
We need more Venezuelan users here to send us $0.39/gallon gas
----------------------
Hugo Chavez himself offered it to the US, your government turned it down
Submitted by Shlongy (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:34:29 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
Who gives a fuck about what you think?
Submitted by Orgasmatron (user info) at 2006-09-11 14:31:04 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
We need more Venezuelan users here to send us $0.39/gallon gas.