American Petroleum Institute Urges Americans Not To Top Off Gas Tanks.

[VolcanoJen]

Hmmm...

Rita to seriously disrupt oil supply: API

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A total of 21 U.S. oil refineries that together account for 27.5 percent of the nation's refining capacity lie in the potential path of Hurricane Rita, the American Petroleum Institute said Thursday.

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The storm, now packing 150 mile-an-hour winds as it takes aim at Texas, is likely to cause "serious" disruptions to U.S. crude oil and refined product pipelines, said the API, a trade group representing the largest U.S. energy companies.

Ports in Houston and Port Arthur, Texas, are also in the path of Rita, which means about 10 to 15 percent of U.S. oil imports could be disrupted by the storm, the group said.

The API urged American consumers to refrain from topping off their gasoline tanks to save fuel.

[FloridaPat]

1. Just remember, conservation doens't work. Cheney said so himself.

I never did hear what his opinion of alternative energy systems was.

[trogdor]

2. Too late.

Topped off yesterday.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

3. That's right-- if you top off now, how can you take advantage of

the higher prices to come? Jeez! Wait for the gougers to agree on the pricing curve, and hit it at its height!

Duh... :evilgrin:

[MidwestTransplant]

6. Bingo!

[Cocoa]

19. how dare you!

I hope you will refrain from further impugning the American Petroleum Institute's integrity, and their tireless advocacy on behalf of consumers. :-)

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

22. I'm a ba-a-a-a-a-a-d boy!

[VolcanoJen]

23. That's the hardest I've laughed in days!!

LMFAO!!

Thank you, Prisoner. :D

[MindPilot]

4. Exactly how does not topping off my gas tank save fuel?

What they really meant to say was "please refrain from buying gas until we jack the price up again."

edited: typ9os

[VolcanoJen]

5. Aren't they cute, when they wanna be?

Awwwww API!!! You're adorable!

[Skink]

7. I don't top off I half it up..

This the first time I've had more than 10 dollars in my tank in awhile.

[phylny]

10. Well, in all honesty, in many areas of the country, prices rose because

the gasoline was in people's tanks, not in the storage tanks or at the gas station. The situation may have been better if, in areas where there wasn't a shortage, people kept to normal patterns of consumption.

Gas station owners jacked up prices so they didn't run dry, thus pissing people off more.

I'm not defending, just posing another thought.

[LSK]

12. technically, less gas = less weight to move

The lighter your vehicle is, the better mpg you will get. But were talking around 5-10 gallons which really wont make that much difference.

And I just topped off at lunch. :)

[ProfessorGAC]

8. The Professor Urges The API To Just Shut Up

The Professor

[LeftHander]

9. INstead wait and buy when it's $4.50 next week....nt

[nonconformist]

11. My thoughts exactly.

Fuck that, I'm putting in as much as my tank will hold.

[Tracer]

13. You, and a whole lot of other people.

I don't drive much (work at home), but actually needed some gas for a trip to the doctor this morning.

I went downtown and the first gas station I saw had $2.77 regular. (Which is .60 cents cheaper than it was LAST WEEK!)

There were at least a dozen cars waiting in line to fill up.

And that's here in Massachusetts.

[BloodyWilliam]

14. I thought Supply and Demand ALWAYS works!

Topping off the gas tank is just an increase in demand! The supply will follow through! And the price will balance out! THAT'S HOW THE SHITHEADS ALWAYS DESCRIBE ECONOMICS!

Of course, there are always the pesky details of reality to spit in the face of utopian extremist capitalism (every bit as utopian as communism; neither system makes any allowance for human folly.

[phylny]

17. Admittedly, I got a D in economics, but I always thought that

greater demand meant price increases, slack demand meant price decreases, increased supply meant lower prices, but decreased supply meant higher prices.

Of course, I got a "D".

[Roxy66]

15. Oh, ok......I'll run out and wait until it costs $5.00 a gal..I say

FILL ER'UP

[highplainsdem]

16. This is going to be partly a real supply problem. CNN just reported

that the main pipeline to the Midwest has been shut off (sorry, can't recall the name of the pipeline).

But I'd topped off a few hours earlier...

[phylny]

18. Colonial? Badger? n/t

[highplainsdem]

20. Someone on CNN just said Explorer.

Carries diesel, jet fuel and gasoline to St. Louis and Chicago.

Editing to add that they had a statement from the DOE saying there'll be disruptions in supply for 1-3 weeks.

[lectrobyte]

21. I've never quite understood the "topping off wastes fuel". Now, if

you were topping off, then going home and siphoning it into a big tank or something, then I could see a problem. But topping off, you are still only going to buy as much gas as you burn in the long run. Your car might use a bit more gas from hauling the weight of a full tank, but that's probably not that noticeable.