Date:         Thu, 19 Oct 2000 09:52:38 -0400
Reply-To:     "Karl F. Bloss" <bloss@ENTER.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         "Karl F. Bloss" <bloss@ENTER.NET>
Subject:      Re: gas over $2 !
In-Reply-To:  <39EEF557.7DDE6A43@earthlink.net>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII

This is all probably OT, but the prices in the gas we buy in the US does not
include the money we spend on the military to make sure those lines stay open.
Do you think the US gives a rat's butt about keeping Saudi Arabia and Kuwait
democratic for humanitarian reasons?  I don't think so.

Aside from that, take a look some time what gas costs you as a percentage of

a) total vehicle maintenance and
b) your overall budget

For several months, I kept track of every penny I spent and categorized it.
For me, at least, (b) tells me that if the price of gas doubles to $4, my
driving habits will probably not change significantly.

As they say, your mileage may vary.  :-)

-Karl

> What makes you say that our prices are the artificial ones? The
> companies buy the oil at world market prices and refine it into gas and
> sell it at a profit. It is most of the rest of the world that has the
> more artificial gas prices due to higher taxes placed on the product by
> government entities. Why assume that taxes which add 200-400 percent to
> the manufacturing cost are somehow "natural"? You would not accept this
> if it was applied to other products that you buy.
>
> Mark
>
> Andrew Grebneff wrote:
> >
> > >Well, I remember being shocked when I blew a $20 bill filling my tank...
> > >
> > >Yesterday it cost me $40 to fill up!! ... middle grade at $2.15 in
> > >California...
> > >
> > >Ouch!
> >
> > Count your luck! The US has artificially-low fuel prices. Most other places
> > pay at least twice that (abeit with a slightly larger gallon).
> >
> > Andrew Grebneff
> > Dunedin, New Zealand
> > VW & mollusc nut
> > 1984 Caravelle (currently SVX engine waiting for a trans)
> > 1985 Mitsubishi Galant Sigma 2.0 (FWD)
> > 1986 CE80 Toyota Corolla 1.8DX diesel
> > 1989 CE96 Toyota Corolla 1.8DX van/wagon
> > 1989 CT170 Toyota Corona Select 2.0 diesel
>


Karl & Kristina Bloss, Trexlertown, PA
'00 Wannabusser "Julia"
'87 Weekender "Bev" - 201K Miles
'85 Westy Camper "Fred" - 39K Miles
http://www.enter.net/~bloss/vw - vanagon@makarov.com
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