The World of Layonara

The Layonara Community => Just for Fun => Topic started by: lonnarin on September 08, 2005, 09:54:00 AM

Title: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: lonnarin on September 08, 2005, 09:54:00 AM
When I started college 5 years ago, I could fill my tank for a little over $20 US.  This morning I filled up and it cost me $46... and in less than 2 weeks the prices went up over 40 cents/gallon :(

I was wondering how drastically the gas prices have risen in the international community, or if this is just a crisis entirely localized to the US right now.  If it's been relatively stable for you these past 2-3 years, I may be moving soon after graduation before our economy predictably implodes.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Harlas Ravelkione on September 08, 2005, 10:07:00 AM
In Denmark its around $1.6-1.7 for a liter of gas. There are around 4 liters on a gallon, so... quit complaining about US prices. :)
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: lonnarin on September 08, 2005, 10:35:00 AM
OUCH!  Has it been historically priced around that amount for the past year or so, or are you too finding a huge price increase occuring?
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Harlas Ravelkione on September 08, 2005, 10:38:00 AM
Has increased with 20% or so through the last year I think. There are many reasons for that.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Vincent on September 08, 2005, 11:02:00 AM
Crude Oil was trading at $70/barrel last week, and it's around $65/barrel this week (today).  I'm fairly certain oil prices affect everyone, not just the US.

But I'm also fairly certain the oil companies have been artificially inflating oil prices (profiteering) also (no proof, of course).  Oil used to be $40/barrel (last year), it has risen ~50% to 65/barrel.  Gas prices, on the other hand, used to be $1.50/gallon.  Now it's roughly $3.20/gallon, over 100%.  The gas stations themselves are getting reamed on this too.  Last week a local station (in Chicago) was selling gasoline AT COST for $3.19/gallon.

And regarding the implosion, look for it to happen shortly before/after election time.  That's about how much time I give the housing market before it finally collapses under its own weight, and that's about as long as I see the Bush Administration forcefully holding up the economy before they finally let go (because they won't be able to sustain it) and let their successors (Democrats, most likely) look bad so they can retake the White House in 2012.

I'm no financial analyst, but I'm very bearish on our economy.  Looking at a lot of these economic releases and their calculation methods, right now (to me) it's looking like a poker player with a 2-7 offsuit trying to convince everyone he's got pocket aces.

Note: Also, we're worse off in this country because the automotive and energy industries have so much clout that our public transportation is underdeveloped and our most popular automobiles are gas-guzzling monstrosities like the Hummer and the SUV-class that get like 14 miles/gallon.  Compare that to a typical European Citroen or Polo that gets at least 30 miles/gallon.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Leanthar on September 08, 2005, 11:21:00 AM
Well stated Vincent, couldn't agree more.
  One thing:
  "...Last week a local station (in Chicago) was selling gasoline AT COST for $3.19/gallon..."
  Well... you do know that these gas stations are personally owned by the the oil companies right?  So yeah they can sell at cost because they have already taken our money at the barrel.  They do it this way because the gas stations are the front end to their customers and it is a PR thing. 
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: steverimmer on September 08, 2005, 11:27:00 AM
Near me petrol is selling for about £1.04 per litre which converts to $1.91 per litre if I've got it right.  Prices have risen sharply since the disaster in New Orleans.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Vincent on September 08, 2005, 11:33:00 AM
Quote
Leanthar - 9/8/2005  1:21 PM    Well stated Vincent, couldn't agree more.
  One thing:
  "...Last week a local station (in Chicago) was selling gasoline AT COST for $3.19/gallon..."
  Well... you do know that these gas stations are personally owned by the the oil companies right?  So yeah they can sell at cost because they have already taken our money at the barrel.  They do it this way because the gas stations are the front end to their customers and it is a PR thing.  
[/b][/b]
 I did not know that, but for some reason I'm not really surprised.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Diamondedge on September 08, 2005, 12:12:00 PM
Well. The gas prices up here in good ol' Canada are a jillion times worse than 40 cents a gallon.

Let's say that the Canadian dollar is .75 of the american dollar. Meaning your 40 cents is somewhere... 50 - 60 cents for me. I don't know for sure, I'm lazy.

That's roughly half the price for the gas where I am. Per LITRE. That's like... Unreal. You pay say, 60 cents for a gallon. That's 4 litres.

Last place I was at had it going for about 1.15 for a litre. That means 4.60 plus GST per gallon. I'm lucky to live in Alberta, no PST. Those are, by the way, consumer taxes impressed upon us because of WWI. Yep.

So. GST is 7%. Meaning that 4.60 per gallon becomes 4.922 per gallon. No, if I were to translate that 4.922 canadian back into American we get $3.6915 per gallon.

Imagine that. :D I come from the community that provides probably as much oil to the world as Texas, and I get to pay a crap load to fill my car with it. Huh.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Lord of the Forest on September 08, 2005, 12:27:00 PM
well, here (germany) we have about 1,40 euro for normal fuel per litre; 1,46 euro for 'super' per litre, very expensive here...
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: EdTheKet on September 08, 2005, 02:00:00 PM
However, you all should really feel sorry for me :) as the price in Holland is:
  1.495 euro per liter, which is 5.659 euro per gallon, which at the current exchange rate is $7.39 per gallon.
  And yes, I do tell my American counterparts from our US office to stop whining about their gas prices ;)
  And yes, it has risen about 20 eurocents recently, but it was about 1.20-ish per liter ($5.93-ish a gallon) for about a year already...
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Harlas Ravelkione on September 08, 2005, 02:03:00 PM
Yesterday scientists from my university in Denmark presented an alternative to gas - hydrogen in the form of a pill, and an engine that will run on these. Lets hope our government throws a couple of millios into continued research.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Vincent on September 08, 2005, 02:55:00 PM
Quote
Diamondedge - 9/8/2005  2:12 PM

Well. The gas prices up here in good ol' Canada are a jillion times worse than 40 cents a gallon.


Actually, it's closer to $3.20/gallon, unless you were speaking only about the price increase (which would still be $1.50).  This also sort of strikes me as weird, since Canada actually is a major exporter of oil (to the US) and its currency tends to do well when oil prices go up.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Filatus on September 08, 2005, 07:01:00 PM

BLOODY AMERICANS, stop complaining about your prices, they´re much higher here.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Crunch on September 08, 2005, 07:22:00 PM
I live in Hawaii.  Our prices were actually lower than the mainland prices for the last few months.  Usually our prices have been 20-30 cents per gallon higher than mainland prices.  But .... on September 1st our gas price cap law kicked in, which resulted in about a 50 cent per gallon RISE in gas prices.  Sometimes you've got to wonder about government intervention in markets.  :o
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Talan Va'lash on September 08, 2005, 10:04:00 PM
Prices are (as of 2 days ago) around $3.50 in NY.  Only $2.99 in CO though.

-TV

Edit: US Dollars per gallon
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Rasterick on September 09, 2005, 12:25:00 AM
I had thought of converting my Landrover Defender      to Eco fuel (Frying oil), as it works out considerably cheaper. Thing is, could I bear my vehicle smelling like a fish and chip shop all the time?
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Turnsy on September 09, 2005, 09:40:00 PM
The price in Australia went from just over $1 per litre all the way up to $1.39 per litre in just a matter of 2 weeks (and is predicted to get higher in the coming days). The companies are using the New Orleans events as the excuse for the huge rise in price. Can someone please tell me (as not being from the USA) how much would these tragic events affect the price on oil the world over?
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Vincent on September 10, 2005, 02:10:00 PM
Well since the US and China are the biggest buyers of oil, and New Orleans was home to quite a lot of the US's oil production (I'm not sure exactly how much), that would increase the US's demand on the global market for oil.  Since the US would now need more oil, that would raise prices for everyone else.

I'd expect the same impact on prices in Australia as in the US.  The oil companies will also milk this.  Right now oil prices are being held because Bush released those reserves of his.  I don't expect the release to hold out, however - I only see it stalling the inevitable.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: PsychicToaster on September 10, 2005, 05:42:00 PM
Its not that the prices are higher or lower than overseas, its that prices here are rising faster than the annual inflation rate, significantly faster, which is causing a drag on the economy.  Individuals curtail spending on products because they have less disposeable income, meanwhile those same products' prices are going up because of the rising fuel cost of shipping those products to retailers.  Converting to electric sounds nice in theory, until you realize that these same industry moguls control the source of the electric company's fuel.  Hostility towards and fear of fission power has essentially halted its use as a cheap source of significant amounts of electricity.

The stranglehold on alternative energy politics pointed out above doesn't help this situation in the least.  Its not cheap to develop these new technologies, and that is compounded by skeptical consumers and hostile policy makers.  

So the next time your American counterparts complain about gas prices, cut them some slack.  :P  The majority of Americans aren't represented in the government right now.  (I'm not talking Reps vs Dems, there's a lot of us alienated Republicans out there too)  Which means change isn't exactly on the horizon.



Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Doc-Holiday on September 21, 2005, 11:01:00 AM
Oh good grief... I shouldn't have read this because now I have to respond and I work hard to keep my political leanings hidden. So I will try to keep this as apolitical as possible.

First off... stop complaining fellow Americans. We have it easy, why? Because President Bush has and is negotiating with OPEC for lower prices for America. I may shock you but America is a producer nation... we have oil and we pump it from our own fields so again our prices are lower.

Now for a rant to end all rants and please follow. America used to use only its own oil up to about 50 years ago. With rising pressure from ecologial activists American Policy on oil production was hardened against oil companies, No more oil refineries could be build without SIGNIFICANT amounts of red tape so harsh that no new Oil Refineries have been built in America for nearly 50 years. Our current refineries are running under outdated technology and are beyond their operational years. Why not rebuild them? You can't, Enviornmental Policy is so restrictive it prevents any beneficial upgrades (a company won't upgrade if it will hurt them a great deal more than help).

Now what about those EVIL American oil companies? yeah they suck huh? and the President? yeah he's got SECRETE DEALS WITH THEM YEAH! Oh shut the blankity up. First off the American Oil Companies are Privately Owned in name only. In America our Oil Industry is told Where and When to drill, how much to get, how much to sell it for, who to sell it to, when to sell it, what grades can be made, what additives to put, EVERY state in America has it's own gas ordinances making for 52 diffrent blends of gas, each of wich must pass through one of our hand full of aging refineries. This artificial restriction in supply has raised our gas prices, on top of that our Friends the Democrats LOVE tax hikes... after all taxes solve everything, so we have insane taxes on our gas. Then the additives also have to be refined and added, and taxed.

What about the Government? Well, they raise gas taxes every year to pay for more road work, and so that they can punish the EVIL oil Companies. All by our happy consent, year after year raising those taxes. The companies won't innovate or change what they are doing because it's just prohibitive to do so. After all, the Democrate moto is Government can do it better. Oil companies make their profit NOT on gas but on the millions of OTHER things that are made from crude oil.

Crude Oil? What does it make? Gas, deisel... uh... plastic? Yes, and more. Food, synthetics, platistics, lip balm, Asphalt, car parts, computer parts, clothing, shoes, office supplies, medical supplies, the list litteraly goes on for pages. Well... um, the gas stations are cheating us! yeah... maybe, some probably are. But just a the Oil Industry doesn't make it's money on gas (who could? just look at the rediculous regulations) Gas Stations sell gas with just enough mark up to keep the pumps running, the food and store supplies generate the largest amount of revenue for the Stations, the gas just brings customers.

While were talking about Crude Oil, can anyone tell me what it is? Oh! it's dead dinasour fossils, that's why we call it "Fossil Fuel" Right?... uh.. right? Well... no... maybe.. but, we don't know what Crude Oil is. Now your saying, I read that in a very official looking book! I remember it in school! Yes... right next to the chapter talking about the "Theory" of Evolution as being solid scientific fact. Fact is most people have a "sence of knowing" about Crude Oil and like Evolution , it's just enough of a feeling to keep you from looking at other possibilities. Allow me to elaborate a moment and draw a few conclusions. First, If Cude Oil was realy decomposed animal material, then we could replecate it's production just like diamonds and other biological synthetics. Well, no. To date we have no idea how to Synthesise Crude Oil, in fact the "Fossil Fuel" came from a marketing Campaign some years ago to tie in with the exploding rise in Evolution and dinasour phenomina in our culture.

Now, allow me to make some logical extensions. If we don't know what Crude Oil is, then we don't know where it comes from. We know rightly WHERE it is, but we don't know what causes it. IF Crude Oil is NOT a one time biological mishap then at some time in the past the PRODUCTION of Crude Oil had to begin. It is not impossible to conclude that Crude Oil is a Geological Phenomina with unknown causes and a very KNOWN result. Also if this production happnened in the past it is not impossible to assume that production could very well still be accouring since we DONT know WHAT it is, or WHERE it comes from. You might say But we do! Animals! Dinasours! well... no.. I don't think so. It's a possiblility but a remote one. Consider the amount of fuel pulled already. With only one known accourance of a world wide disaster there was only so much life on earth when it happened... in order for the amount of oil to equal the amount of flesh of animals then we are looking at a world stacked like cord wood. No I think another possibility has been left unconsidered. You may say IT TOOK MILLIONS OF YEARS! yes.. and they would have decompsed LONG before the turned to oil, only the animals that were in the disaster and under certain conditions would have changed. The probability is to remote, the answer lay in something far less fantastic. As it were, we don't know. Also if the phenomina of Crude Oil happened in the past, then it could certaintly being accouring in the present, allow me to shock you. It could very well be a "regenerating" or, continuing to be produced. NO! you say? well... oil fields DO produce more oil. that's why we can pump them for so long. Yes we can tap them to the bottom but there is still more sludge oozing in and in time, you can pump that too. Fields don't collapse... they just slow down in production when they are pumped for a long time.

Why don't we do more looking into it? Well, there are many political factions that would find a change in the accepted view of oil as a negative. Ecological Extreamists would not have the power to raise the funds they do every year by claiming limited resourses and Global Warming. Democrates would not be able to cry disaster EVERY FREAKING FOUR YEARS.

In summation, there are a GREAT deal of misconceptions of the nature of Crude Oil, of the American Government, of the way the world works. We run around knowing just enough to not know we don't know and we spout our unknowing so often. My political leanings you ask? Yes, I am an EVIL republican, yes I think we have a good man in office, no I don't think he's perfect, he's human. However I pay attention to the past and learn from history. There are a faction of people in America who would do well to see America lose it's power, it creates insecurity and causes the masses to clamour to them for protection.

Well my boss is in the room and he hates Republican's so I have to go and use my Mind Control on him and then go do my Evil Republican work to destroy the envornment, make ozone holes to fry the Canadians, raise the sea level to drown the British, cause "instibility" in the east to make the French and Germans look bad, an suppress women and minorities. If you think I am joking... listen to American polotics every fourth year... it will amaze you.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Sylance on September 22, 2005, 09:34:00 AM
There were some prices in kansas at 6.50 a gallon! (after hurrican katrina)  The prices where i am at topped off at 3.80 a gallon.  *sighs* I remember when gas was .90 a gallon......does anyone else remember that?  The good ol'days...
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: ZeroVega on September 22, 2005, 09:40:00 AM
 Gas was around $2 here a year ago when I first moved here. It's all about the business though and how people can make more money.
   First moved here Charlotte had a population of about 500'000 people, now it's up to about 900'000. Gas stations have a higher demand for gas so they raise their prices. (Gone up from $2 to an average of about $2.50.
   After hurricaine Katrina went up to about $3.20-3.40. People pannic when they hear something bad about gas, so they rush out to stock up, which the gas stations take advantage of and use to drive up the prices.
   Over the past week gas prices have gone down because people realised that we have the oil/gas, and America's not running out. The refineries and transportation of that oil though has slowed. Once people figured that out, no more pannic, and gas stations once again had to rely on good prices for competitive business.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: NEXUS7 on September 22, 2005, 09:50:00 AM
Or you could get a
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: IDii on September 22, 2005, 10:00:00 AM
Seems the gas prices are going up again... with this new hurricane.

Gah. And they're not even here...

I think Finland should invade Iraq. Then we could have cheap gas for a while. :)
Oh wait... that means I'd have to go there myself. Err... nevermind.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Lord of the Forest on September 22, 2005, 10:05:00 AM
heh, let us all go to iraq then, you know, we could make the Layonara Con in iraq, by the way we'll take as much as we can carry ;) or just buying an oil-field there ;)
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: PsychicToaster on September 22, 2005, 04:41:00 PM
One pithy remark sparked a typical RadCon response.  Ok here goes.

Quote
Doc-Holiday - 9/21/2005  1:01 PM
Now for a rant to end all rants and please follow. America used to use only its own oil up to about 50 years ago. With rising pressure from ecologial activists American Policy on oil production was hardened against oil companies, No more oil refineries could be build without SIGNIFICANT amounts of red tape so harsh that no new Oil Refineries have been built in America for nearly 50 years. Our current refineries are running under outdated technology and are beyond their operational years. Why not rebuild them? You can't, Enviornmental Policy is so restrictive it prevents any beneficial upgrades (a company won't upgrade if it will hurt them a great deal more than help).

Now what about those EVIL American oil companies? yeah they suck huh? and the President? yeah he's got SECRETE DEALS WITH THEM YEAH! Oh shut the blankity up.


So that's why he appointed  a former ChevronTexaco Lawyer to head the FTC (http://www.thehill.com/news/072104/ftc.aspx), a credential her official bio (http://www.ftc.gov/bios/commissioners.htm) neglects to mention, and then conveniently enough in the wake of suspected price gouging its her job to investigate the situation. (http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory?id=1145805)  It is her responsibility in this situation to recuse herself from this investigation.  Public trust in the government requires avoiding even the appearance of corruption.  That doesn't mean asking people to close their eyes and look the other way.

Quote
This artificial restriction in supply has raised our gas prices, on top of that our Friends the Democrats LOVE tax hikes... after all taxes solve everything, so we have insane taxes on our gas. Then the additives also have to be refined and added, and taxed.
What about the Government? Well, they raise gas taxes every year to pay for more road work, and so that they can punish the EVIL oil Companies. All by our happy consent, year after year raising those taxes. The companies won't innovate or change what they are doing because it's just prohibitive to do so. After all, the Democrate moto is Government can do it better. Oil companies make their profit NOT on gas but on the millions of OTHER things that are made from crude oil.


Nobody loves tax hikes and it is plain wrong of you to demonize a large portion of the nation with such an ad hominem defense of your position.  Instead of reasonably considering why public revenue policy is required to pay for public services you are ascribing to them a patently false emotional attatchment to taxes.  They won't inovate or change because they have a vested interest in preserving the status quo, so do the politicians that defend them.

Quote
Crude Oil? What does it make? Gas, deisel... uh... plastic? Yes, and more. Food, synthetics, platistics, lip balm, Asphalt, car parts, computer parts, clothing, shoes, office supplies, medical supplies, the list litteraly goes on for pages. Well... um, the gas stations are cheating us! yeah... maybe, some probably are. But just a the Oil Industry doesn't make it's money on gas (who could? just look at the rediculous regulations) Gas Stations sell gas with just enough mark up to keep the pumps running, the food and store supplies generate the largest amount of revenue for the Stations, the gas just brings customers.


Production and distribution are not the same thing.  Gas stations purchase their supply at radically inflated prices from the producers(these are the people doing the gouging, not the gas stations), even when they are under the same umbrella corporation it is not freely supplied to individual stations.  The fact of the matter is OPEC is a cartel whose survival depends upon the cooperation of all involved, and so far everyone is cooperating to pad their own pockets.  The price you pay at the pump has more to do with the producer than the gas station.

Quote

While were talking about Crude Oil, can anyone tell me what it is? Oh! it's dead dinasour fossils, that's why we call it "Fossil Fuel" Right?... uh.. right? Well... no... maybe.. but, we don't know what Crude Oil is. Now your saying, I read that in a very official looking book! I remember it in school! Yes... right next to the chapter talking about the "Theory" of Evolution as being solid scientific fact.


There is no such thing as scientific fact.  Theory is just that.  It does not need your implied irony.  Do not attempt to exploit the uncertainty inherent in science simply to make a point.  Conclusion is reached by consensus, the same way it is reached in a courtroom.  There is a body of evidence, theories that take into account and reasonably explain the processes given the available data, and the most cogent, testable, repeatable, and applicable of these becomes accepted.  The scientific method is an ongoing process, not a means to some omniscient wisdom.  Conventional wisdom does not constitute scientific consensus.  

Quote

Fact is most people have a "sence of knowing" about Crude Oil and like Evolution , it's just enough of a feeling to keep you from looking at other possibilities. Allow me to elaborate a moment and draw a few conclusions. First, If Cude Oil was realy decomposed animal material, then we could replecate it's production just like diamonds and other biological synthetics. Well, no. To date we have no idea how to Synthesise Crude Oil, in fact the "Fossil Fuel" came from a marketing Campaign some years ago to tie in with the exploding rise in Evolution and dinasour phenomina in our culture.


Again, conventional wisdom does not constitute a scientific consensus.  That sense of knowing you describe is called confirmation bias.  In both biogenic and abiogenic petroleum production theories there is a tendancy to interpret data in only a favorable way.  Likewise, because the only testable way to disprove abiogenic petroleum production is to drill in places that are not guaranteed to be sources of crude oil, companies flat out refuse to drill.  

Second, it is a logical fallacy to assume that because we can reproduce one geologic process that we can reproduce another that very probably has a biochemical element to it.  Carbon into diamonds requires no biological reagents or catalysts.  It is a far simpler process by comparison to catagenesis.

Third, you are right, fossil fuel is a misnomer.  Fossils by definition were not subjected to catagenesis.  

Quote

Now, allow me to make some logical extensions. If we don't know what Crude Oil is, then we don't know where it comes from. We know rightly WHERE it is, but we don't know what causes it. IF Crude Oil is NOT a one time biological mishap then at some time in the past the PRODUCTION of Crude Oil had to begin. It is not impossible to conclude that Crude Oil is a Geological Phenomina with unknown causes and a very KNOWN result. Also if this production happnened in the past it is not impossible to assume that production could very well still be accouring since we DONT know WHAT it is, or WHERE it comes from. You might say But we do! Animals! Dinasours! well... no.. I don't think so. It's a possiblility but a remote one. Consider the amount of fuel pulled already. With only one known accourance of a world wide disaster there was only so much life on earth when it happened... in order for the amount of oil to equal the amount of flesh of animals then we are looking at a world stacked like cord wood. No I think another possibility has been left unconsidered. You may say IT TOOK MILLIONS OF YEARS! yes.. and they would have decompsed LONG before the turned to oil, only the animals that were in the disaster and under certain conditions would have changed. The probability is to remote, the answer lay in something far less fantastic. As it were, we don't know. Also if the phenomina of Crude Oil happened in the past, then it could certaintly being accouring in the present, allow me to shock you. It could very well be a "regenerating" or, continuing to be produced. NO! you say? well... oil fields DO produce more oil. that's why we can pump them for so long. Yes we can tap them to the bottom but there is still more sludge oozing in and in time, you can pump that too. Fields don't collapse... they just slow down in production when they are pumped for a long time.


Petroleum did not come from dinosaurs, or their extinction.  Deposits date from Cambrian to Cretatceous periods, the very beginning of the dionsaurs.  Most are underwater and if biogenic theory is followed, came from plants and other microorgansims (most likely extreophiles) not animal tissue.  If abiogenic theory holds, the presence of oil in those layers suggests it rose to that depth from far deeper in the crust and that the petroleum is in fact far older than the surrounding rock.  As for it being a continuing process, that is possible but unlikely.  The concentration of hydrocarbons in lower layers is far lower than at the time of formation of the Earth.  Even if it is regenerating it is not nearly outpacing our pumping capability.

Quote

Why don't we do more looking into it? Well, there are many political factions that would find a change in the accepted view of oil as a negative. Ecological Extreamists would not have the power to raise the funds they do every year by claiming limited resourses and Global Warming. Democrates would not be able to cry disaster EVERY FREAKING FOUR YEARS.


If you're refering to 9/11 and Katrina being 4 years apart, that has nothing to do with political affiliation.  Those were legitimate disasters for America and the aftermath saw permanent rises in oil prices.  Global warming is gaining widespread acceptance in scientific circles around the globe.  Our biosphere is not invulnerable and a growing number of scientists and politicians in many countries are beginning to see that.  They are not ecological extremists, and again you are coloring the debate by painting legitimate scientists as such.

Quote

In summation, there are a GREAT deal of misconceptions of the nature of Crude Oil, of the American Government, of the way the world works. We run around knowing just enough to not know we don't know and we spout our unknowing so often. My political leanings you ask? Yes, I am an EVIL republican, yes I think we have a good man in office, no I don't think he's perfect, he's human. However I pay attention to the past and learn from history. There are a faction of people in America who would do well to see America lose it's power, it creates insecurity and causes the masses to clamour to them for protection.


Nobody said Republicans are evil, at least not that I have seen.  Likewise no one is calling for America to "lose its power."  However, there are many calling for positive patriotism in which criticism and democratic principles are encouraged rather than stifled with "with us or against us" rhetoric.  Complete security cannot be provided by anyone or any government.  Government administrates the collective resources of the people it governs for mutual benefit but it cannot provide everything for everyone.  It can insulate from many threats, but not all of them, which is why we have the 2nd ammendment (likewise we have the second ammentment to protect us from soldiers being used against civilians).  

There is an economics principle at work with regard to the environment.  It is called the tragedy of the commons.  When something is freely available (air for instance) it is not taken into account cost/benefit anaylsis, so production is greater than ideal and price is lower than ideal.  By forcing companies to remain accountable for damage they do to the environment production and market price shift closer to the ideal mark.  Yes, this means lower production and higher cost.  That is not anti-corporate any more than requiring a driver's liscence is anti-citizen.

Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: minerva on September 22, 2005, 05:40:00 PM
http://www.layonaraonline.com/forums/photos/show-album.asp?albumid=155&photoid=4298 (http://www.layonaraonline.com/forums/photos/show-album.asp?albumid=155&photoid=4298)
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Variable on September 22, 2005, 09:32:00 PM
Hehe thats a great image,
  but luckily here in CO gas is only $2.82 per gallon, it shot up to around 3.20 after Katrina but came back down. I expect that it'll be back up there soon with Rita coming...
  Well i'm glad i don't live on the gulf coast.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Doc-Holiday on September 22, 2005, 09:42:00 PM
Oh heck yeah... they get pounded by storms every year, year after year... I couldn't do it. I saw my house burn once and I hope to never relive that moment. But to think that every year you could be building a new home.... more than once... is just more than I think I could take.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Kapitän Awesome on September 23, 2005, 03:45:00 AM
It makes you think, "Why don't they move?"

Also, correct me if i'm wrong, but i was talking to my friends' dad, who keeps up with stuff like this, and he said that scientists are trying to find a chemical compound called H3 to substitute for gas. It's extremely efficient, and does a lot less to the atmosphere (releases less CO2, i believe). And--the part i wasn't so sure about--there are some samples on the moon that they're trying to collect.

Also, they're working on creating nuclear power plants that have hydrogen as waste, instead of whatever it usually is. They're thinking about using this for fuel, too, if the H3 thing doesn't work out.

If I'm wrong, correct me please...I don't like bein in the dark about these things  ;)
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: steverimmer on September 23, 2005, 03:57:00 AM
I was watching a program extolling the virtues of using hydrogen as a fuel for car's in the future instead of petrol but the problem with engines which run on hydrogen is that they produce water as a waste product, just as fossil fuel internal combustion engines produce CO2.  This sounds great doesn't it?  After all theres nothing wrong with water as a waste product is there?

Actually though the water it produces is in the form of a gas not water vapour or liquid water, and there is one big problem with this.  Water in the form of a gas is around about 100 times better at trapping heat than CO2.  So if everyone switched to a Hydrogen powered engine then the Greenhouse effect would almost certainly get a lot worse.
Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: NEXUS7 on September 23, 2005, 04:41:00 AM
Meeting car and Oil companys notes

Oil-
look Guys the oils going to run out sorry but that the way it is and we are going to have to charge more cuz there less.
Car-
A wait up there you do that and we will take a hit cuz well sell less cas, if you do that we ill have to make small cars that use
less oil
Oil-
Hay wait up there fellers you do that and the driver will use less oil and well take a hit. Now just hear us out here we have an ider
your going to love to make loads of cash for all of us OK.
Car-
well this better be good or its chap Hygrgen or electic cars all the way guy and that you bussness dwon that pan.
Oil-
Ok heres how it gos, you dont make monny and chap small cars right, so how about we keep the cost of oil down for a bit say $35 a barell
Then you sell BIG cars and we mean big Huge oil drinnking monsters, Hell why cas at all well call them HOME TRUCKS.
You put all you have into selling them Adds say how safe they are, adds showing open roads even open land with there huge Home trucks
diveing all over the place. PUSH PUSH PUSH the big car/truck, make it a matter of pride that your car dos less miles to the galon
than any other.HEll even make it UN-American to small girly guy car.
Car-
But why, ok we get rich for a time selling big cars but once the oil price gos up where screwed
Oil-
O no you not thinking, once every one has got a home oil drinking truck, we hike the oil price, send the oil price throw the roof,
then and only then will you custimer relise that there Home Trucks are out of date, what they need now is a small car one that uses
small amount of oil, we will be ok becouse by then oil pirce will be so high we make our cash, and get this YOU GET TO SELL EVERY OWNER
OF A HOME TRUCK A BRAND NEW LOW OIL USE CAR. thats right 1,000,000s of smucks will have to shill out to get a car that dos the same thing
as befor but with a hole he agenda and as its "new" low oil tecknolagey you can charge the earth cuz hay its chaeper than the oild drinking
truck out back. Small is the new big and not galens per mile but miles per galon. Get it.
Car-
O thats good we get to sell the same car twice to the same custimer, I like it, but theres only one problem goverment they
will see right throw this and make us go green.
Oil-
Dont you worry about that, thats all covered

End of meeting notes


Title: RE: Europeans: How are your gas prices?
Post by: Kapitän Awesome on September 23, 2005, 02:04:00 PM
@ steve

Maybe we can make the car a bit bigger, and have a little cylinder made especially for the gas. The water gets stuck, you heat it up a bit (or cool it, i'm not in school and forgot the process), and then dump the water out every once in a while

This might get irritating, but it would really help the environment (if it catches on), or perhaps make it empty itself on the road, after it hits a certain point
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