22 May 2008

You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet...
We finally hit the "magic" number. FOUR DOLLARS A GALLON for gasoline. Take a few moments to let that sink in as you sip your coffee. FOUR DOLLARS. Say it a few times out loud. It's OK to get pissed over this. I know I sure as hell am.
I grow weary of people (in power) telling ME to cut back, drive frugally, and consider alternative forms of transportation like bikes and buses.
Been there, done that...and at a time when it wasn't "in vogue".
Enough is truly enough. Now...it's MY time. I've been as frugal as I'm going to be, and it got me NOWHERE, as I'm sure many of you also have seen as you did likewise.
It's OUR time then.
It's time to stop hugging trees, and get those drills tapping the vast reserves under OUR territory for more oil, until this nation wakes the hell up gets serious and does something about another fuel source (and between you...me, and the fencepost...ETHANOL ain't gonna cut it, and certainly NOT for under $3 a gallon). We're not going to "ruin" our environment...not by a long shot. And we're not going to kill of species, destroy our natural resources, or increase global warming. Other nations are doing that much FOR US. And no one seems to bother THEM about it.
The American oil companies are before our lawgivers now in D.C. and the "grilling" they're being exposed to is so limp-wristed it's not funny. MY parent scolded me worse than this to get to the truth.
Let ME ask them some POINT-BLANK questions, and toss a few colorful metaphors, laced with expletives at them, and then we can ALL watch them sweat.
Personally, I'd love to see the government take control of these companies, but it's not going to happen...these mega-firms are too damn powerful, already run the government, have too many people in their hip pockets, and have been at their game for too damn long.
Meanwhile...back at the ranch...we, the consumer have to deal with the fallout from their huge profits. How's $36 BILLION in 3 months grab 'ya?
Be nice if a LOT more of that went into opening NEW refineries (none have been built in close to 30 years), enlarging current ones, and making life tolerable for those on the brink of financial collapse, due to fuel costing more for people to travel to and from work than they're being paid on the damn job.
Predictions say we might very well see FIVE DOLLARS A GALLON gas by summer's end. Amazing how this occurs PRECISELY when we look forward to getting away from it all for a spell, isn't it?
I've belabored this point here to no end. This nation needs to do something...and quickly. If we were to drill for oil in NEW locations today...right now....we still wouldn't see the net results for months, if not years, but at least we'd be moving in a positive direction, instead of having the oil company moguls sitting on their grossly fat asses, smoking $50 cigars, dining on caviar on their yachts.
This is worse that the rail barons of another millennium in SO many ways.
Still...we can do better than this as a nation.
We should.
We must.
And now...let's switch gears...
Missed It By One.
I reported here this past Monday that the new INDIANA JONES film was to premiere this FRIDAY. Thanks to the "overwhelming responses" I received (yeah, I'm being sarcastic here) I found out I was in error. Yeah, I know this RARELY happens, if ever, but I want to be correct whenever I bring you truth in news and information that's worthy of publication here.
INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL starts TODAY (Thursday) at theaters near you. But if you still want to go tomorrow, that's fine too.
This did take me by surprise, as I'm used to some blockbuster opening on FRIDAY (as did IRON MAN), or even on a WEDNESDAY (as did the very first STAR WARS movie did on 25 May 1977...a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away), but this Thursday thing threw me off my game, and I apologize for any confusion this may have caused.
Tell you one thing...Harrison Ford does pretty good for someone reaching retirement age. He's 65, and to see him once again as our favorite action hero/archaeologist/professor, you'd never think it, or know it. Even though, at one point in the movie, he mentions (during one harrowing ordeal) "This used to be a lot easier".
He's got that right.
Life itself used to be a "lot easier" and I mean that.
If there is ONE THING I have gleaned from all the years I've attended the cinema, it's that no matter WHAT goes on OUTSIDE the theater, given the right movie...the right actors, and the right plot, we CAN forget about the trials and tribulations that will await us after the next two hours are up.
We need to forget some things...for a little while.
We have earned that right.
So for an all too brief time, we won't have a care in the world, as we pass the popcorn.
It's nice to know that.
(We now return you to your regularly-scheduled lives)

8 comments:

Jana said...

Actually, I think some of the politicians grilling the Oil Barons (as I call them) are giving some of them a pretty good reaming. I like how the Oil Barons keep trying to change tactics, saying that it's "supply and demand" making prices rise and that the oil companies are "using the net gains to use in the future" (for whatever reasons).

I know one Senator asked them what they make per year and I was disgusted that one of them makes over $12 million A YEAR. Yeah, you know HE doesn't worry about gas being so high.

I'm tempted to talk to David today about going out and see about us getting a hybrid. Our Ford Taurus gets pretty good gas mileage, but all the hybrids I've been looking at get 40-60 mpg and I can't pass that up!

Dave also is wanting to get one of those smart cars. They may be on the small side, but it's not as if we need a mini-van!

*growling in anger right along with ya*

~jana

Bob G. said...

I'm sorry, but when a LARGE part of our populace is making (perhaps) TWICE minimum wage (if that), I find it VERY difficult to justify ANYONE making that kind of money (and NOT being a GOOD actor or an outstanding athlete).

Maybe these oil barons ARE acting, because they're SURE as hell NOT playing in some NBA playoff tourney!
They'll never get a "People's Choice Award" vote from ME, that's for damn sure!

Good luck with hybridizing.

;)

B.G.

Jana said...

Hybridizing...

LOL!!

Actually, we did some research and found that the smart car is the way to go. There is a dealership in Atlanta that we are corresponding with regarding financing and what-not (don't want to drive almost three hours there then find out that we can't get the car!).

;)

I hope that something can be done regarding the price of oil, like taxing the net profits like they did in the 70s (if my memory regarding this part of history is wrong, please feel free to correct me. I think that's what they did, right?).

~jana

Bob G. said...

Jana:
Tell 'ya what...if you already BOUGHT a locking gas cap...your car is WAY smarter than most!!!

There is SO much that can be done to get the USA more oil...trouble is, all the tree-huggers screwed the lot of us in the process.

I guess drugs really are bad...m'kay? M'kay!

;)

B.G.

Jana said...

Ugh, don't get me started on environmentalists!

I wish we had more nuclear (clean) energy. France has a lot of it and they're doing just fine (GAH! Did I just give France a compliment?! Hell hath frozen over!). There are risks for everything and I'm sure that none of those environmentalists are riding bicycles to work!

>:(

All that we can do now is scrape by (as usual) and hope for the best.

We haven't gotten a gas-cap lock thingie yet, but we will soon. We live in a very safe neighborhood (lots of Army soldiers AND a deputy sheriff live here) but I guess you can never be too safe, right?

~jana

Bob G. said...

Desperate times will make normal people do things they would never consider under any other circumstance.

B.G.

Robert Enders said...

If you think oil companies are making too much, buy stock in an oil company. If enough ordinary folk buy oil stock, we can vote in a new board of directors. If that doesn't work, at least you'll get your share of the windfall.

Bob G. said...

By George...I think you've GOT IT!
YES - Leave it to the Libertarians to come up with THE way to deal with this!
Brilliant solution!
Either way...a "win-win"!

B.G.
(anyone know the going-rate for BP stocks?)