f@#$ing gas...~

[tommer]

i honestly hope nobody's gonna take what i say here as some kind of an insult, but i need to get it off my chest, it's just that i read this this thread without knowing whether to laugh or cry. dear god, you guys are SO blind!!!

even while new orleans is still flooded, you can't see the connection between gasoline exploitation and the hazardous environmental state of the planet; are you aware that the US is consuming a quarter of the entire global production of oil? don't you think it's a little absurd? thousands of american soldiers are fighting and dying year after year, war after war, just to secure the flow of cheap oil, later to be consumed by wasteful oversized cars. villain oil barons are becoming presidents and cultural icons, while nobody even bothers to stop for a minute, and ask whether this is all necessary, or is it just the selfish needs of a selected few, which over the years became an entire nation's irresponsible fetish.

at my nearest gas station a gallon of gas costs me more than 5 us$, and i think it's fair and decent. just like cigarettes - if you wanna use it so badly, okay, but do know that if you so vigorously insist on polluting and harming everyone around you, you should also expect to be heavily taxed (or in other words- get fined), coz after all, your nasty habits costs your country billions, and someone eventually oughta pay for this.

you could say i come from a pint-sized, densely populated rich country, where distances are not a real problem; it may be the case, but let me tell you i wasn't too shocked to see the almost exact same prices a month ago in India, which is a vast country, with a ridiculous income rate. so what do people do there? easy, they use their legs, bikes, scooters, smaller cars, and public transportation that's developed by their government despite its relative poverty. they silently pay the rising prices, caused mostly by wars they had nothing to do with.

it appears to me that most of you guys don't come even close to realizing the true price (economic, political and environmental) of your exaggerated (not to use the term "vulgar") thirst for endless cheap pollution. maybe you just need to pay the same price range as in anywhere else in order to understand that unhealthy, harmful dependency actually costs something.

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by tommer

i honestly hope nobody's gonna take what i say here as some kind of an insult, but i need to get it off my chest, it's just that i read this this thread without knowing whether to laugh or cry. dear god, you guys are SO blind!!!

even while new orleans is still flooded, you can't see the connection between gasoline exploitation and the hazardous environmental state of the planet; are you aware that the US is consuming a quarter of the entire global production of oil? don't you think it's a little absurd? thousands of american soldiers are fighting and dying year after year, war after war, just to secure the flow of cheap oil, later to be consumed by wasteful oversized cars. villain oil barons are becoming presidents and cultural icons, while nobody even bothers to stop for a minute, and ask whether this is all necessary, or is it just the selfish needs of a selected few, which over the years became an entire nation's irresponsible fetish.

at my nearest gas station a gallon of gas costs me more than 5 us$, and i think it's fair and decent. just like cigarettes - if you wanna use it so badly, okay, but do know that if you so vigorously insist on polluting and harming everyone around you, you should also expect to be heavily taxed (or in other words- get fined), coz after all, your nasty habits costs your country billions, and someone eventually oughta pay for this.

you could say i come from a pint-sized, densely populated rich country, where distances are not a real problem; it may be the case, but let me tell you i wasn't too shocked to see the almost exact same prices a month ago in India, which is a vast country, with a ridiculous income rate. so what do people do there? easy, they use their legs, bikes, scooters, smaller cars, and public transportation that's developed by their government despite its relative poverty. they silently pay the rising prices, caused mostly by wars they had nothing to do with.

it appears to me that most of you guys don't come even close to realizing the true price (economic, political and environmental) of your exaggerated (not to use the term "vulgar") thirst for endless cheap pollution. maybe you just need to pay the same price range as in anywhere else in order to understand that unhealthy, harmful dependency actually costs something.

Amen

though I think China consumes the most oil products now.

[skcin]

I appreciate your comment Tommer. No need to be sorry.

With everything going on, I don't know if I should feel blessed, or embarrassed, or guilty, or happy to live the way I do. I don't know how the hell to feel right now.

I am going to try to make an attempt to consume less fuel. I guess every tiny bit counts. Well, I hope it does.

[DavidMn]

It's 3.35 here as we speak

[Patti]

Gas here on Monday was $2.53 a gallon. On my home from work I saw it was now $3.05/gallon.

[estranged4life]

amount for a gallon of gasoline (Even the UK is cheaper by comparison), In Atlanta a gas station had unleaded for $8.99 a gallon (Either this is a price gouge or it is gasoline rationing by pushing customers away with high prices.)

I'm glad gasoline is still $2.80 a gallon here in Oklahoma (I am appreciative to owning a small compact car with a great mileage per gallon ratio)...And I agree with tommer's post, Well said, well said, well said!!!

[DavidMn]

Originally Posted by estranged4life

amount for a gallon of gasoline (Even the UKis cheaper by comparison), In Atlanta a gas station had unleaded for $8.99 a gallon.

I'm glad gasoline is still $2.80 a gallon here in Oklahoma (I am appreciative to owning a small compact car with a great mileage per gallon ratio)...And I agree with tommer's post, Well said, well said, well said!!!

You're lucky to live there, I'll bet the price is lower because Oklahoma produces oil isnt it?

[estranged4life]

Originally Posted by DavidMn

You're lucky to live there, I'll bet the price is lower because Oklahoma produces oil isnt it?

is part of the reason (Especially if ya live in/around Eastern Oklahoma and specifically in Tulsa, Formerly known as the "Oil Capital of America")and add to that the cost of living is the cheapest of any of the 50 states.

I never take for granted living here...I was born here and I will die here.

[DavidMn]

Originally Posted by estranged4life

is part of the reason (Especially if ya live in/around Eastern Oklahoma and specifically in Tulsa, Formerly known as the "Oil Capital of America")and add to that the cost of living is the cheapest of any of the 50 states.

I never take for granted living here...I was born here and I will die here.

That Ford Center in Oklahoma City looks pretty nice. I remember driving by it on my way back from California.

[diamondsnake]

Originally Posted by tommer

i honestly hope nobody's gonna take what i say here as some kind of an insult, but i need to get it off my chest, it's just that i read this this thread without knowing whether to laugh or cry. dear god, you guys are SO blind!!!

even while new orleans is still flooded, you can't see the connection between gasoline exploitation and the hazardous environmental state of the planet; are you aware that the US is consuming a quarter of the entire global production of oil? don't you think it's a little absurd? thousands of american soldiers are fighting and dying year after year, war after war, just to secure the flow of cheap oil, later to be consumed by wasteful oversized cars. villain oil barons are becoming presidents and cultural icons, while nobody even bothers to stop for a minute, and ask whether this is all necessary, or is it just the selfish needs of a selected few, which over the years became an entire nation's irresponsible fetish.

at my nearest gas station a gallon of gas costs me more than 5 us$, and i think it's fair and decent. just like cigarettes - if you wanna use it so badly, okay, but do know that if you so vigorously insist on polluting and harming everyone around you, you should also expect to be heavily taxed (or in other words- get fined), coz after all, your nasty habits costs your country billions, and someone eventually oughta pay for this.

you could say i come from a pint-sized, densely populated rich country, where distances are not a real problem; it may be the case, but let me tell you i wasn't too shocked to see the almost exact same prices a month ago in India, which is a vast country, with a ridiculous income rate. so what do people do there? easy, they use their legs, bikes, scooters, smaller cars, and public transportation that's developed by their government despite its relative poverty. they silently pay the rising prices, caused mostly by wars they had nothing to do with.

it appears to me that most of you guys don't come even close to realizing the true price (economic, political and environmental) of your exaggerated (not to use the term "vulgar") thirst for endless cheap pollution. maybe you just need to pay the same price range as in anywhere else in order to understand that unhealthy, harmful dependency actually costs something.

Those are interesting points but unless you live in a big city it is pretty much impossible to not rely on a car in the USA. Everyone I know has jobs or attends schools at places that are thirty miles away or more. That's like a four hour bike ride! I mean, get real. You just need a car in suburbian America. We don't even have the public transit in my town. And it would take me a half a day just to skooter to the groccery store....

So, I agree it is harmful for the environment, but I can't feel bad about it because there is no way around having a car in the USA (unless you live in a big city).

[amber]

Originally Posted by Lux

Why don't they have public transport in the smaller cities?

Because our economy and whatever was built during most of this century around the fact that we have cars.
Seriously, I guess it's too expensive to have public transpo run regularly and frequently into a town with not that many people. I mean, If no one had cars, it might make more money, but -
And the nature of our economic development, etc., has become a thing where...people for miles and miles and miles around all come into the city to work. Some towns are barely self sufficient, ie, there is not as many business there that people can buy everything they want from, and not enough jobs for all the people who live in that town to work there. So they have to drive to the city. Mostly it's a suburb type thing, though. People live where it's nice, and work in the cities. it's all very retarded.
Does that clear things up a bit? many people who work in San Francisco have at least an hour commute every morning, and some drive from 2 and 3 hours away. Some of those people could easily take public transpo, though, as we have a great system that goes really far, but for many, it's not as feasible.

[amber]

Originally Posted by Lux

I guess I wouldn't know because we all ride kangaroos and have never seen cars.

A big deal is made about using public transport here, they're constantly making it more extensive. I guess it's different here because we basically only live in the cities, there's not much in between.

I wasn't saying you guys didn't have cars. I was rolling my eyes at the lameness of the condition, of building everything around the fact of cars.
Yeah, that's different, most of our empty spaces are filled up. Or at least a significant portion. It's too bad....but the darn people keep having kids! And then all those new people have to live somewhere...

[amber]

Originally Posted by tommer

i honestly hope nobody's gonna take what i say here as some kind of an insult, but i need to get it off my chest, it's just that i read this this thread without knowing whether to laugh or cry. dear god, you guys are SO blind!!!

even while new orleans is still flooded, you can't see the connection between gasoline exploitation and the hazardous environmental state of the planet; are you aware that the US is consuming a quarter of the entire global production of oil? don't you think it's a little absurd? thousands of american soldiers are fighting and dying year after year, war after war, just to secure the flow of cheap oil, later to be consumed by wasteful oversized cars. villain oil barons are becoming presidents and cultural icons, while nobody even bothers to stop for a minute, and ask whether this is all necessary, or is it just the selfish needs of a selected few, which over the years became an entire nation's irresponsible fetish.

at my nearest gas station a gallon of gas costs me more than 5 us$, and i think it's fair and decent. just like cigarettes - if you wanna use it so badly, okay, but do know that if you so vigorously insist on polluting and harming everyone around you, you should also expect to be heavily taxed (or in other words- get fined), coz after all, your nasty habits costs your country billions, and someone eventually oughta pay for this.

you could say i come from a pint-sized, densely populated rich country, where distances are not a real problem; it may be the case, but let me tell you i wasn't too shocked to see the almost exact same prices a month ago in India, which is a vast country, with a ridiculous income rate. so what do people do there? easy, they use their legs, bikes, scooters, smaller cars, and public transportation that's developed by their government despite its relative poverty. they silently pay the rising prices, caused mostly by wars they had nothing to do with.

it appears to me that most of you guys don't come even close to realizing the true price (economic, political and environmental) of your exaggerated (not to use the term "vulgar") thirst for endless cheap pollution. maybe you just need to pay the same price range as in anywhere else in order to understand that unhealthy, harmful dependency actually costs something.

I've known all that for years and years, Tommer, since I was a wee lass.
And don't be sorry, it's the truth. Sadly, it seems to be the nature of humans to be short sighted. Or, at least American culture humans. (and others). I often think of America as the great tragedy and downfall of the planet. But that's at my most pessimistic. (before i arouse anger, yes, I know, there are many great things about America. Although most of those things we think great were built on the back of conspicous consumption and the rape of the planet and the third worlds, not to mention rampant bullying, racism, and war mongering...oops, I meant to say something good...)

[Stevie_Buck]

I just paid 3.39 a gallon.

I only put 20 in... strictly for emergency purposes.

I don't plan on going out anytime soon.

Sheesh--where's a horse when you need one!?

[tommer]

Originally Posted by amber

Because our economy and whatever was built during most of this century around the fact that we have cars.
Seriously, I guess it's too expensive to have public transpo run regularly and frequently into a town with not that many people. I mean, If no one had cars, it might make more money, but -
And the nature of our economic development, etc., has become a thing where...people for miles and miles and miles around all come into the city to work. Some towns are barely self sufficient, ie, there is not as many business there that people can buy everything they want from, and not enough jobs for all the people who live in that town to work there. So they have to drive to the city. Mostly it's a suburb type thing, though. People live where it's nice, and work in the cities. it's all very retarded.
Does that clear things up a bit? many people who work in San Francisco have at least an hour commute every morning, and some drive from 2 and 3 hours away. Some of those people could easily take public transpo, though, as we have a great system that goes really far, but for many, it's not as feasible.

1. people own cars everywhere, it's a question of how much they use them; in "normal" countries, to get to the city you use your car to get to the train station, and leave it there. the traffic, gasoline price, parking price/space in the city... they all direct you into doing so.

2. public transportation doesn't suppose to make money, a railway is the worst investment ever, it can take ages for it to pay itself up and make profit. city bus routs are more profitable than rural routs too, so what do goverments do? a. they subsadise, b. they regulate.

3. i don't think it's in a state's interest to have many cars on the roads and in the cities, the need to built, maintain, and expand roads is in fact far more expensive than investing in public transportation. the more cars you have on your roads the more police and paramedic forces you'll need (and i'm not even mentioning environmental issues ect..) , so again, if you wanna own a car, that's fine and decent, but be aware that you now cost more in terms of facilities. you should definetly not be encouraged to own many cars, just to give you a small notion, the simplest 2005 honda accord costs here about 43,000 us$, a price that in a way tries to compensate for some of the infostructure bill you gonna cost your state owning one.