By Joshua Resnek [email protected]
Gasoline costs continue their upward trajectory, much like the rising temperatures. Yesterday, I filled up at Premier Petrol on Broadway in Chelsea and was charged $4.27 per gallon for mid-grade gasoline. The price would have been $4.15 a gallon had I paid with cash. Over on Everett Avenue at the Gibbs Station, mid-grade gasoline was slightly cheaper but still hovering around $4.00 per gallon. Compared to this same time last year, prices have climbed nearly $2.00 per gallon. As hours pass, prices continue their ascent with no apparent ceiling in sight.
Across the country, the narrative remains consistent. Oil speculators are pushing barrel prices higher while our national leadership insists their hands are tied. President Obama, following the pattern of his predecessors dating back to Jimmy Carter, announced he was directing the attorney general to investigate potential price gouging and illegal speculation, with severe penalties for violators. Yet Americans continue filling their tanks at $4.00 per gallon without resistance. Should consumers actually push back against this exploitation, they would likely storm four or five gas stations in protest. Such a display of public outrage might finally prompt government officials—perhaps even some Republicans under the House speaker’s leadership—to take action.
With summer just two months away and fuel consumption set to increase, we absorbed an .18-cent per gallon spike last week. No gasoline shortages exist anywhere in the United States or Europe. Inventory declines are not significant in either location. Supply disruptions have not occurred despite Iraq producing only a fraction of its former output and Libya’s production being cut by 2/3. The reality is straightforward: oil speculators have artificially inflated barrel prices, leaving American consumers to absorb the costs. Remove speculation from the equation and oil would plummet to $70 a barrel overnight. Speculation is what enables such dramatic price increases.
Oil pricing and regulation should mirror how the government controls electrical utility rates. Rather than being traded as a commodity, oil should function as a utility. Yet who listens to such arguments, or to Americans voicing their complaints? Who in government demonstrates concern that American consumers are being exploited? Virtually nobody. From the president downward, the answer is no one. We are told nothing can be done. But who genuinely accepts such nonsense?