The Price of Gas

Once again, gas prices are rising (every day for the past 18 days) and the predictions are for it only to continue into the summer until unleaded regular is over $4.00 if not $5.00 a gallon here in Iowa. (It’s already that in some places in Florida and California.) And of course the Republican candidates running for president are blaming Obama. The average price is $3.60+ right now, despite that the U.S. is exporting more than it has in years, that refineries are in full-mode production, and that demand is down. If the old supply-and-demand saw were in play, you’d think prices would be falling. But the blame is spread among (besides Obama) the Iranians, the Middle East in general, speculators, our not opening every inch of the country, land and sea, to drilling, the Keystone Pipeline, and for all I know, the Kardashians.

Maybe you have to be old enough (like me) to remember the rising gas prices and lines of cars blocks long waiting for gas that wasn’t there back in the late '70s to understand that this is a problem that’s been around for 40 years and no politician – president, senator, representative, mayor, or justice of the peace – has been able to do anything about it. Like so much else today, the price of oil and gas is complicated. It’s a world, not a national, problem. Every president since Nixon (Ford, Carter, Reagan, H.W. Bush, Clinton, W. Bush, and Obama) has made overtures – and even some flaying attempts – to alleviate the problem. But the problem persists. It’s ingrained in the world economy. And it’s ingrained in Americans’ addiction to fossil fuels. Actually, if you’re looking for a silver bullet (which Obama rightly points out doesn’t exist), that would be the place to start: Raise the tax on gas by $4.00 a gallon. Place a tax or surcharge on trucks and SUVs. Provide tax credits to hybrids and electric cars. Etc. But that’s not going to happen because we live in a democracy and in a democracy – especially our current democracy – politicians work only to get re-elected, and they don’t get re-elected by doing what the electorate doesn’t want them to do – never mind that it would be best for the country in the long-run  – and what the electorate wants to do is burn fossil fuels to their hearts’ content. Democracy is fueled by the will of the people, not the knowledge of the people, the self-interest, not the commonwealth. Is this a cynical view? Very well. But it’s one that’s based on watching our country’s “oil problem” fester for the past 40-plus years without any sign of alleviation or resolution. That’s probably a pretty solid basis for cynicism.