Oil Price Fun

[wombat2u2004]

What on earth are all of you people griping about ???? I'm pretty sure that the intention of Marigold1's post was NOT to say that people shouldn't drive larger vehicles if they had a need for them !!!!
I for one can totally agree with her, as I can see from her post exactly where she is coming from. The real fact of the matter is that there are many people out there who do not live on a farm, do not have 50 kids and 70 dogs, do not deliver construction materials as a form of employment, and therefore do NOT need bloody great vehicles that require a scaffold system to get into. It is so commonplace to see one of these super huge vehicles that park outside of a preschool as a mother drops off her toddler for the day, then promptly returns home to park that vehicle in a garage where the said vehicle spends 99% of it's time. Status symbol to some people ???
You betcha.....it's all around us.
Wombat

[DJFyrewolf36]

*pokes toe carefully into hot water*

I see a need for some people to drive gas hogging cars. I also see that the people who CHOOSE to drive gas hogging cars (regardless of reason) go into it knowing the concequences of their actions. I don't agree that people need to be punished for the car they drive, as it just ends up forking the REST of us anyhow. Yes my car gets 50 mpg (confirmed and calculated ) but I still feel the sting of paying over 3.50 a gallon. This price goes up with demand, and as the human infastructure grows, sadly we are going to require more resources to fuel it. Yeah ok so everyone uses public transportation but that doesnt build a road or fly an airplane or ship something via rail or truck. The point is we NEED fuel of some type and all fuel takes resources wether building an electric battery or making gas.

It isnt SUVs faults really...they are just easy to blame. Look around you on an average day on the highway, how many big haulers or other industrial trucks do you see?

Humans are needful creatures, we've developed into this over centuries and I dont think any ammount of well wishing or "tree hugging" is going to change it anytime remotely soon. This requires a change of the entire human race, how long is that realistically going to take?

*steps back gently out of hot water*

[wombat2u2004]

[QUOTE=DJFyrewolf36
*steps back gently out of hot water*[/QUOTE]

Bathrobe ????

[Marigold2]

I agree many people need larger cars or trucks, my sister drives a Jeep because she needs one for her work. I am talking about all the Dr's wives and young mom's who drive Hummers and huge SUV. They don't have huge dogs they have huge bank accounts and lots of shopping to do here at Prada, Tiffany, Coach and Macy's. And even though I shop at these stores as well I don't do so on a daily basis. It's a status symbol for them not a necessity. I too had three kids who were in baseball, soccer, basketball, swimming, guitar, boyscouts, girlscouts, keyclub, skiclub, bowling, and a host of other things. And yes I carpooled and had parties and activities and just thinking about it all makes me tired, however I didn't need a Hummer to put everything in. I put four kids in the car and all their stuff fit in the trunk and off we went. Cars here are a status symbol in and around our area. Just like a big home or the big parties everyone is trying to top their neighbor. If they made something bigger or uglier then a Hummer I am sure someone would be dumb enough to buy it regardless of how big their paycheck is.
A Hummer weighs 8000 lbs. The average car weighs 3000. Would you like to be hit by a Hummer? Think about 8000 lbs coming at you. Hummer drivers should have special truck drivers license and training.

[cmayer31]

I hate to take this thread even more off topic, but I don't think it's just drivers of large trucks that need a special license; I think everyone should be held to a higher standard. One reason that I do not own a street bike is because I am terrified of the drivers in tiny cars, medium cars, big cars, small trucks, big trucks, semi trucks, SUVs, ect.. I see more and more people driving their cars around like go carts with a death wish. Like I've said before, I drive a big truck and have always owned a truck due to my lifestyle. I've been hit 4 times and all of them 100% the other drivers fault and all of them were cars. One was a new driver that managed to total both my truck and her car; another was a lady putting on lipstick, the cop saw the lipstick mark up to her forehead; another was a lady who admitted to watching her kids in the back seat and didn't see me; the last was just a crazy driver and she had no excuse for side swiping me on the freeway.

I think broad statements should really be thought over a few times before posting them. If we want to keep using broad statements here are a few from my experiences ; please take these with a grain of salt because they are meant to be sarcastic.

Women drivers should have special drivers license and training.

Everyone should ride a scooter or a motorcycle because they are way more fuel efficient and environmentally friendly; cost less too.

Everyone who lives in the city should only ride public transportation or walk/ride a bike.

Everyone who lives in the country can only use their big trucks, with special driver’s license, for work.

Everyone can make broad statements with no facts and hurt the feelings of many people.

[cassiesmom]

I paid $3.29 a gallon for regular unleaded on my way home from work yesterday. Today, same filling station, it is up to $3.44. Gasoline went up and electricity also went up because a 10-year rate freeze ended. Between those two I find myself being more careful about turning switches on, off and where I do or don't go. With the price of gasoline I just wonder where it is going to end. There are people in my wealthy county who drive big cars and SUVs just because they can, not because of need. Lots of little cars like mine on the road too. The whole situation stinks.

[cmayer31]

Yes, I admit, I'd much rather be filling the car up in this cartoon.



I found some more. Sad but true.

[K9soul]

LOL That first one is hilarious. Thrs-T on the license plate

[Puckstop31]

Thank you all for a interesting discussion so far...

A couple of tidbits to keep things moving, some more of my personal opinion on the matter.

- As I understand it, from looking at information available from a variety of sources, the currently rising price of gasoline is due mainly to the fact that we do not have enough oil refineries in the US. A new one has not been constructed since the late 70's. Why? As I understand it, overly (some say insanely so) tough environmental laws make it financially impossible to build a new one. As such, the oil companies just maintain the old and run down ones we have now. Because there are so few of them, when they have to change from winter to summer blends and stop making heating oil, the supply of gasoline goes down.

- Hillary Clinton proposed taking all of the oil companies profits and using it for some reserve fund or something. That really dumb and self defeating, this IS America after all. Why stay in business if you cannot turn a profit? PLUS that would make the entire economy take a major downturn. Almost everything in our lives depends on the oil industry, for better or worse. However, along these lines I would support some kind of legislation (as much as I hate MORE laws) that would require the oil companies to spend a % of their profits on either DOMESTIC exploration, new refineries (if the laws making it so difficult to do so can be changed) or alternative fuel research.

I have a few more, but I gotta get back to work.

Cheers!

[sparks19]

*. Yes my car gets 50 mpg (confirmed and calculated ) but I still feel the sting of paying over 3.50 a gallon.

what do you drive? 50 MPG is amazing.

I read in the paper the other day that a local gas station was forced to raise his gas prices even though he didn't want to.... because it was unfair to the other gas stations I guess

Who knew this thread would get so many panties in a wad. People are really sensitive about what they drive?

Of course... there is NO practical use for a Hummer. NO ONE needs a vehicle THAT big no matter how many kids, dogs, or things you haul. It isn't even BUILT for that.

As for me.... I dont' drive.... I dont' WANT to drive..... I hate driving... but I know I will have to some day. I will have to drive the smallest possible vehicle I can.... for easy parking purposes lol. So many people around here drive those little scooters..... VERy fuel efficient but you will never catch me on anything with only two wheels that isn't pedalled by ME lol.

But I figure.... if they can make certain vehicles run on vegetable oil.... they can certainly find somethign other than oil to run cars..... the trick is finding something to EFFICIENTLY run cars. That and the government gets so much tax money from these high gas prices they won't ever be in a big hurry to get rid of it.

[wombat2u2004]

That and the government gets so much tax money from these high gas prices they won't ever be in a big hurry to get rid of it.

Well that's the bottom line isn't it ??? (And it was to.....LOL).
The Govt here does absolutely nothing about petrol prices because they make so much money from it. So complaints fall on deaf ears.
It was interesting to see tho.....that when prices of petrol started to go up and up in leaps and bounds, the newspapers were full of advertisements from people trying to unload these big petrol gobbling vehicles they own.
I have to laugh tho at some people....we have builders here in this town who are driving the latest model pickups with all of the embellishments, and I see them monitoring someone putting a bag of cement in the back tray with eagle eyes, making sure that it is placed down softly....lol. Me on the other hand drive an old Ford ute that I regularly throw roof tiles into from great heights....lol. It does me fine....I'm a builder...I build, and use my vehicles accordingly.....and I make sure they have got good petrol/mileage.
Wom

[sparks19]

Well that's the bottom line isn't it ??? (And it was to.....LOL).
The Govt here does absolutely nothing about petrol prices because they make so much money from it. So complaints fall on deaf ears.
It was interesting to see tho.....that when prices of petrol started to go up and up in leaps and bounds, the newspapers were full of advertisements from people trying to unload these big petrol gobbling vehicles they own.
I have to laugh tho at some people....we have builders here in this town who are driving the latest model pickups with all of the embellishments, and I see them monitoring someone putting a bag of cement in the back tray with eagle eyes, making sure that it is placed down softly....lol. Me on the other hand drive an old Ford ute that I regularly throw roof tiles into from great heights....lol. It does me fine....I'm a builder...I build, and use my vehicles accordingly.....and I make sure they have got good petrol/mileage.
Wom

LOL it reminds me of a Jeff Foxworthy joke.

"If you empty the back of your pick up truck by driving backwards really fast and then slamming on the breaks.... you might be a redneck" haha

[wombat2u2004]

LOL it reminds me of a Jeff Foxworthy joke.

"If you empty the back of your pick up truck by driving backwards really fast and then slamming on the breaks.... you might be a redneck" haha

Damn !!!! I must be a redneck then....thats the way i empty my truck...
Wom