Voices of reason

by Esther J. Cepeda

"Pregunta del Dia" translates to Question of the Day and today’s comes from several different readers who keep asking:

Q. Can you believe these gas prices?! It’s highway robbery.

A. Yes I can. No it’s not. Gas prices are not that bad. Heck, I remember whining about it in 1997 when it bumped up to $1.25 – I stopped complaining long ago.

In summer of 2003 I took average gas price data from 1970 to 2003 and adjusted it for inflation and found that compared to cars, chicken wings, and other items in a basket of goods, gas was still really cheap. (Don’t ask why, I’m weird like that and I love statistics.)

Fast forward five years to the week before Memorial Day weekend 2008 and people are gnashing their teeth and weeping about gas prices. Though I keep telling people that not only is the rise in gas prices not that bad – it’s a natural market correction that’s going a long way toward weaning us off our dependence on a non-renewable resource – no one ever believes me.

So thank you, Energy Tribune. Robert Bryce, this publication’s managing editor just wrote a lovely piece on slate.com about the reality of today’s gas prices, which he says are dirt cheap compared to prices in many other countries. I quote:

"When measured on an inflation-adjusted basis, the current price of gasoline is only slightly higher — about 20 percent — than it was in 1922. According to the Energy Information Administration, in 1922, gasoline cost the current-day equivalent of $3.11."

"Today, gasoline is selling for about $3.77 per gallon. Given the ever-increasing global demand for oil products — during the first three months of this year, China’s oil consumption jumped 16.5 percent — and the increasing costs associated with finding, producing and refining crude oil, it makes sense that today’s motorists are paying more for their motor fuel than their grandparents and great-grandparents did."

I couldn’t have said it better myself. Thanks Bob!

Esther J. Cepeda writes the “600 Words” & “Pregunta del Dia” columns, and is also a Director at the Chicago-based United Neighborhood Organization. Her reporting and opinions do not necessarily reflect those of UNO. “600 words” is a registered trademark of EeJayCee, Inc., Copyright 2008. May be reprinted with permission, contact eejaycee@600words.com

Comments

[Lois]

I'm way behind in reading, so just catching up. I thought I'd add my 2 cents about rising gas prices. I'm so old that I remember when it was less than $1 a gallon. But everything's gone up. When my little brother and I walked to the corner store to get fixings for our sandwiches, he got 10 cents worth of summer sausage, and I got 10 cents worth of American cheese. We got enough for a couple sandwiches each. That was back in the very early 1940s.

Today a lot of folks don't realize how things have gone up. That's because of the sneakiness of the makers of these products. The formerly one lb. container of margarine is now 15 oz. Many years ago Kraft changed the shape of the Cheez Whiz jar - yep it didn't hold as much as the old jar. Coffee used to come in 1, 2 and 3 lb. cans. They don't tell you this. I wish they would keep the old weights and charge more if they have to. The coffee bit got a lot of church ladies in trouble. They had a formula for making the large urns of coffee, such as a certain size can to make a certain full pot. Then they got accused of making weak coffee. Can't fool us old broads anymore.