Crude Oil is going up like a rocket.

[franmarz]

Maybe the people will start buying bicycles now.

[TheFarseer]

1. does that bike have a Hemi?

Nope sorry, it will still be 1970 to US car manufacturers and 90% of the people who buy cars until gas costs. . . I don't know, maybe $70 a gallon.

What's really a damn shame is that refineries are taking production capacity away from diesel to refine more gas and keep the masses somewhat happy. Truckers, farmers, ect can't do much to cut back diesel usage and diesel prices are starting to really hurt. Most gas users could cut back driving or buy a fuel efficient car and help the problem.

[mtnester]

4. Maybe we will find that out next week

as fast as it is rising, $70 per barrel is NOT out of the realm of possibility in the next 10-14 days.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

8. I noticed that diesel is going for $3 a gal. in California where I live,

higher than even premium. It's the same with every gasoline brand. Some free market where there's no competition to bring down the price and where every distributor cuts back production.

Small diesels like the new Volkswagen Bug (when you can find one) are the most fuel-efficient cars on the road after hybrids. And they go on and on forever, accumulating 300,000 to 400,000 miles before a major engine overhaul. I don't understand why the rest of the world loves small diesel cars but America doesn't and why diesel owners are treated the way they are by the gas refiners.

[nickinSTL]

2. right...

I'm going to BIKE 15 miles ONE WAY, to and from work...sure :eyes:

Not to say that we shouldn't do SOMETHING...QUICKLY about the burgeoning oil crisis, but bicycles aren't the answer for most people.

(oh, and public transport in my city SUCKS, btw)

[TheFarseer]

7. I probably could take a bike if you only consider distance

but I'd have to ride it for 4 miles down highway 6 which is probably not a good idea if I want to, you know, live.

[rkc3]

3. Not to be a dick, but there are a lot of folks who have commutes that are

not bike friendly.

Mine is 30 miles each way. Definitely not bike friendly and not even mass transit friendly.

I've been thinking of moving closer to work, but with an expected drop in housing prices (my expectations), I don't think a move makes sense any time soon.

[Clark2008]

17. And it's even tougher on us females.

I have to dress nicely at work - it's a requirement.

I somehow don't see myself riding a bike in a dress and coming into work with sweat pooring down my face and my hair all standing on end and planning to KEEP this job.

I really don't know what the answer is. Public transportation sucks big time in my city, too.

[maxsolomon]

18. AMERICA is not bike-friendly.

for the last 50 years, the entire country has been built up so that we have 30 mile commutes, roads without sidewalks, highways you'd be crazy to ride a bike on.

so you are basically fucked. for those that CAN start biking, most of us can also take the bus. i'm extra lucky; my firm built a shower & locker room specifically for bike commuters. we lead seattle in the bike to work challenge every year.

think very hard about moving in towards your job. things aren't going to go back to the way they were.

[ChaoticSilly]

19. I only live 5 miles from work

but it would be suicide to try to ride a bike - got a half mile stretch of heavily traveled, 2 lane road with ditches on both sides. Not exactly safe for bikes in good conditions. In rush hour traffic, it would only be a matter of time before I got run over by an suv.

[rkc3]

20. By one SUV, you might be part of the pavement before any one

realized you were hit.

I can't remember the city, but about 2 years ago a cyclist got knocked from an overpass and was run over by several cars. Only one car stopped and that was after his femur punctured their tire.

Sounds like fun to me.

[AtLiberty]

5. And of course, the rise in gas affects the rise in everything...

The pump isn't the only place we're going to pay higher prices.

Although I firmly believe in conservation and that oil is running out fast, I cannot help but believe we're being Enronized...

[JDPriestly]

6. It's just speculation

When very rich people get more money than they know what to do with, they start looking for ways to "invest" it. The very greedy among them try to make the most money possible. They say they are investing. In fact they end up speculating, buying the dream of huge returns on their money. Sooner or later they get caught in a bubble. Each of them thinks he or she is smarter than the rest and will be able to get his or her money out before the bubble bursts. But a certain percentage of them get caught. Either they can't find the exit fast enough, they get trampled by the rush of those exiting behind them or they miss the warning signs just before the bubble is about to burst and lose big time. This is what happened in 1929. A big bubble burst exposing all the Ponzi schemes and shady investment deals that had caused the bubble in the first place.

There are rational reasons for some of the oil price rise -- drastically increased demand and decreased supply -- peak oil. But part of the increase is sheer speculation. The market will correct. It will go down sharply at first maybe then rise somewhat. It will not stay down as far as it previously was. I say this based on my experience. Because of my job at the time, I was watching the oil market very closely in 1973-1974 during the first oil crisis.

What we need is a progressive tax structure. Bush's tax cuts for the rich are all wrong and will result in economic disaster. A progressive tax structure doesn't just help the poor and middle class. It promotes a healthy economy. When too much of the money is concentrated in the hands of very few people, the economy fails. So few wealthy people cannot create the demand for goods and services that keep an economy healthy, that keep people working and developing new products and services. The few rich inevitably turn to gambling in one form or another. What else are they going to do with their windfall? They can't eat it. They can't have massages and pedicures 24 hours a day. Meanwhile, as the poor and middle classes have less money, they create less demand for goods and services.

The right-wing economic philosophy inevitably leads to ruin. And we liberal/progressives inevitably have to clean up the messes the conservatives make with their unrealistic theories. We've been here before. You'd think those guys would learn sooner or later. But -- no. It's just a matter of time. We liberals/progressives will get back into power. This time we need to make sure we don't do anything stupid that gives conservatives an opportunity to wreak their havoc ever again.

[sendero]

12. I agree with you....

... the long term trend for oil is definitely up, but it doesn't look to me like the fundamentals (supply, demand) are currently driving the price increases.

I'm no expert to be sure, but I think we'll see lots of froth in the coming months and years.

But for sure, the longer term trend has to be up.

[rman]

13. So you think prices will come down or stabelize? Want to place a bet?

I say $70/barrel in 2005, $90/barrel in 2006. Oil prices will only continue to rise - not only in the very long run, but in year-to-year average.

That's based on the $20/barrel increase we've had over the past year, and the 'informed assumtion' that we are at or very close to global production peak. It may be that the worst is yet to come; that price growth will increase.

[sendero]

22. I'm talking about shorter term..

.... than you. There is no question that 2 years from now oil will be higher, 3 higher still.

But a couple months from now, I wouldn't bet on that.

[rman]

23. What would you bet on? $65, three months from now?

I say $70 in november.

And i would not be surprised if it'll be more.

[sendero]

24. Let's just see....

... I've never had a crystal ball, but I agree with the post I responded to - the price rises we are seeing TODAY are not based on anything other than herd mentatity - which all markets exhibit from time to time.

In any event, Im in a business that is based on the idea of prices going up, and my wife and I recently both traded our vehicles for ones that do much better on gas - so I'm prepared :)

[Ezlivin]

9. Bicycles? Are there any American manufacturers left?

Sorry for the ignorance. The last bike I owned was a Fuji S-12S Limited 18-speed back in 1980. I owned it for two weeks before somebody ran me off the road and into a telephone pole. I've not ridden (or walked, for that matter) since then. :shrug:

So who makes an American bicycle?

[IrateCitizen]

11. Cannondale does...

At least they did about 6 years ago when I got my new mountain bike. Handcrafted in the USA.

Actually, most of the higher-end bike companies (Cannondale, Trek, etc.) still make most of their bikes in the US.

[Javaman]

15. Trek

[bearfan454]

10. It's about $2.40 here for mid grade unleaded

Then of course everything else goes up because it all gets trucked in.

[corker]

14. I love riding my bike

I own many bikes and peddle 20 miles everyday. Not bad for a 51 year old.

[bridgit]

16. Exxon Mobil production rises slightly, profits boom...

Exxon Mobil Corp., the most profitable U.S. company this year and last, said third-quarter net income rose 56 percent as oil prices surged and chemicals earnings quadrupled. http://www.energybulletin.net/2883.html

it's a great life if your company, or your donor list, is comprised of people profiting from the wars & civil strife around the world x( but americans are too conceited, our jobs too often too far flung to be riding bicycles to get there just yet. maybe to the store, or to the bar; but not as a practical matter imo

[Cronus Protagonist]

21. Iran's about to be attacked - oil will be even more scarce

Of course, it's great for the stock market and great for the BFEE and great for Bush, and as for the rest of us, for some it will be death, others maimings and crippling, many a very short life, and the rest of us can jail the bastids for fucking it all up. Even a best case scenario is not nice.

http://brainbuttons.com/home.asp?stashid=13
Buttons for brainy people - educate your local freepers today!

[Dave Reynolds]

25. My current commute is 50 miles each way,

I have a bike, but it won't help much.