Rant about European Gas Prices Catch Phrase

[jsamuel]

AHHH :rant:

Ok, I am so tired of hearing it, I want to point something out.

In Europe when they "pay 5 or 6 dollars a gallon" as so many people keep saying, MOST OF IT GOES TO TAXES. That means that they get better education, better social programs to help the poor, they have better gas mileage, they get all kinds of goodies out of the taxes that they pay.

Here when we pay almost 3 dollars a gallon, we pay (depending on local taxes) somewhere around 20 or 30 cents in taxes. All the rest of the money doesn't go to education or social programs for the poor, but to the riches companies in the US such as Exxon/Mobil who made more profits last quarter than Wal-Mart.

SO STOP USING THAT AS AN EXCUSE. THAT IS WHAT THEY WANT YOU TO KEEP SAYING.

[bonito]

1. You got that right!

[William769]

2. Also look at thier mass transit compared to ours across America.

[durablend]

3. Quit yer crying already...

The oil companies are on the verge of bankruptcy already--are you trying to push them over?

What kind of anti-American terrorist are you?!?!?

:sarcasm:

[ThomWV]

4. Actually They Pay The Same Thing For Gas As We Do

The price of a barrel of oil is the same no matter who you are and the cost to refine the shit is the same too.

For whatever its worth I file for a refund of taxes paid for road-use (bought at as gas station) fuel in another state (NC). It comes out to just under $0.24 per gallon state tax alone. I do not know what the federal tax on gas is - I want to say 11 cents but I'm pretty sure that is way low - but the underlieing price of gas is what you see at the pump minus those two taxes. No different here than it is in Germany, England, France, Canada, or anywhere else.

[tocqueville]

9. I have to disagree

http://money.howstuffworks.com/gas-price2.htm

In the US

43% for crude
31% in taxes (all kinds)
26% for refinement, transport and marketing

but in Europe the taxes are about 75%

so the final price is much higher

but OK the price of crude is the same

[Egalitariat]

15. You mean you agree. You said the same thing he did****

nm

[tocqueville]

17. we don't pay the same price for gas out of the pump

pay the same price for crude

in the end it's the price AFTER taxes that counts.

but OK we formally agree. There is though a difference of importance : since the taxes are so high in Europe, it's "easy" to lower them and go back that way to a more tolerable price. That means that if we cut off all taxes we could still "go round" with a $200 barrel. OK less benefits for the state and citizens, but industry and transportation would work...

[Egalitariat]

14. And the oil companies make just as much profit per gallon in Europe

as they do in the US.

[BurgherHoldtheLies]

5. DAMN! Someone used that talking point with me today....

wish I would have known that comeback. Is there any link that I can read up on this?

Also, I suspect this person to be a Faux news watcher and wondered if this is one of their talking points.

[NYC]

6. You are correct.

They get something for that money.

[Deja Q]

7. Kicked and nominated.

You are 100% correct.

[TheCentepedeShoes]

8. Europeans (I have heard -

never been there) are much more into walking or cycling, or using their superior mass transit. Not so much into firing up the 'ole SUV to take little Pierre or Giancarlo 3 blocks for his "play date."

[Lydia Leftcoast]

10. Besides which, they tend to live in real neighborhoods, so

little Pierre or Giancarlo probably plays with the kids next door, as normal Americans used to.

[elare]

11. Ok, this makes me chuckle ...

only because I recall reading on this forum, as well as many other places online, after the 2004 election that folks would "like to move to Canada", but were reluctant because "the TAXES are too high".

You can't have it both ways folks; you can't say that in Canada we get social programs, etc. from the taxes on our income and our gas then turn around and say that you couldn't possibly live here because the taxes are too high.

[deadparrot]

12. Absolutely...

for that extra $2-3, they get:

health care
education
*efficient* mass transit
better public health, etc.

Not to mention a slew of other things.

[Neecy]

13. thanks for bringing this up

MSNBC was flogging this hard a couple of days ago, when they could get in a few asides from that big story about a missing girl in Aruba.

Every ten minutes it seemed they'd mention the prices of gasoline in Europe - once after Lester Holts snarled into the camera about people "griping" about high gas prices.

General Electric must be getting nervous that these gas prices are going to hurt their GOP friends in the midterms.

[truebrit71]

16. If the extra money here went to funding free health care..

..better social programmes and a decent bloody mass transit network then i'd be all for it...

What I object to is the price of gas going up, bullshit lies about refining capacity limitations and yet the oil companies are making record-breaking profits...

It's called G-O-U-G-I-N-G and it is sponsored by the thieves in the Oil Administration...

[Pepperbelly]

18. the one I hate is compaing the price of milk to gas ... but ...

I don't have to drink 15 fucking gallons a week to live!

:grr:

These assholes have no shame.

[jsamuel]

19. .

:kick: