Gasoline tops $2 a gallon (2.9 cents short of record-also set under *)

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2004-10-18-gas_x.htm

The retail price of gasoline rose for the fifth straight week to nearly $2.04 a gallon, the Energy Department reported Monday.

The national pump price for regular unleaded gasoline rose 4.2 cents over the last week to $2.035 a gallon, up 46 cents from a year ago, according to a survey of service stations by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The latest price is 2.9 cents short of the record $2.064 reached last May 24.

The Energy Department's analytical arm also said the average price truckers pay for diesel fuel climbed 8.8 cents to a record $2.18 a gallon, the fourth consecutive week that diesel fuel set a new record high.

Pump prices are highest on the West Coast, averaging $2.295 per gallon, and cheapest on the Gulf Coast, averaging $1.913 per gallon. In the Midwest, gas averages $1.990 per gallon.

[MisterP]

1. 2.57 in southern OC, Calif.

[anakie]

2. which is still pretty cheap by world standards

n/t

[acmavm]

3. Not if you can't afford it and can't get to work. I live in a city with a

really crappy public transportation system. You can't get from one end of this place to the other without fifty transfers. So you either set out around 4:00 a.m. or drive.

bush* says he's gonna invest in hydrogen cars now. The asshole said that the last time around. He will, you bet. Right after Halliburton drains that last barrel of oil out of the ground in Iraq.

[troubleinwinter]

4. He's also going to get rid of off-road diesel vehicles

:eyes:

[Pale_Rider]

5. $3.10 a gallon in Lee Vining, CA.

:grr:

[Journeyman]

10. Be honest and tell people how remote Lee Vining is. . .

and that gas there has historically been higher than the urban areas of California.

[mitchtv]

16. how about 2.42 ss reg in Coachella Valley

not so remote

[Career Prole]

6. Dubya in 2000...

Bush, a former oilman who has built strong political ties to oil companies as Texas' GOP governor, said the "main reason" gasoline prices are up is the administration's inability to spur the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to increase crude oil production.

"I would hope the administration could convince our friends at OPEC to open up the spigots," said Bush. "That's what diplomacy is all about."
http://ljworld.com/section/nationalpolitics/story/12625

Hey, you diplomatic sonuvabitch...what happened to your spigot?

[Astrochimp]

8. Just wait till ya get your heat bills. N/T

[StupidFOX]

7. Guess the ole October surprise of low gas prices...

didn't work out, even though they secretly met with Saudi Arabia to increase output. Sorry, guys! Try again, we'll keep laughing

[central scrutinizer]

9. I paid $2.09 yesterday - Eugene, OR

But it was a lot higher, close to $2.50, during the last gouging back in May.

[djg21]

11. $2.15 -- Albany, NY

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

12. Yep. DUHbya's economy's kicking ass

[ramapo]

13. $2+ in NJ

It will and must go higher. Sorry....

[happyslug]

14. If the following is true, these will be the lowest price ever....

This is from Association for the Study of Peak Oil&Gas, October Newsletter: (http://www.peakoil.net/ to get to newsletter hit "Newsletter.pdf" or Newsletter.doc")

435 The Nemesis Report
Our anonymous contributor from the heart of the oil industry returns with devastating insight.....

.....I calculate that for Saudi Arabia, we have now reached the point where its production peak can be predicted with some confidence. It is by the end of 2004.....

.....Saudi production is already declining by at least 600 kb/d each year, or around 50 kb/d each month.....

[Amich]

15. we haven't below $2.12 since last year.

goes higher but not lower here on the oregon coast

[TheWebHead]

17. well it may not be popular to say

But for the good of the globe from an environmental standpoint, the higher the cost of oil, the better. It is the one thing that above any government research or tax breaks can force the adaptation of alternative fuels, both from the consumer and manufacturer. I think a big rise, as long as it doesn't zoom into the stratosphere is good. Have it go up $5-10/barrel a year over the next 5 years and we'll go a long way towards reducing oil dependence.

[cdsilv]

18. I agree....however...

... I cannot agree with paying over 10K for a car. Just can't. Never have. Never will. I may have to go back to motorcycles. I like that the Chinese have introduced cars that run on Hydrogen Peroxide. Maybe we can get some over here, if Detroit won't make 'em, let 'em feel the pinch and learn, just as they learned from the Japanese in the 70's and 80's.


I've driven used cars, beaters and bikes for most of my adult life.

For awhile (10 years) out of ~30, I drove a company car. Was nice, but I still like my junkers.