Mar

4

I Want Expensive Gas!

March 4, 2008 |

Gas Container(Ironic article, a bit severe…  somewhat fun, somewhat true). 

Yes, that is right, I want expensive Gasoline.  Bring it on!!  But I do not want $3 or $4.  I want $10 per gallon or some other outrageous number.  I want the government to put a greater tax on the gasoline gallon purchased by the consumer.  I want the consumer to feel extreme pain at the pump.  And I want it NOW!

Why I am feeling sadistic today?  (I am actually dressed in black today).  I want consumers to think twice about driving an extra mile to just to browse through the shopping mall and buy stuff they will throw away.  I want consumers to put on a sweater and lower the thermostat a couple of degrees.  I want consumers to start buying hybrids, and stop buying SUVs.  Why do I want all this suffering by the American consumer?

Simple, I want those oil producing companies to starve.  Yes, Chavez you are not my friend.  And although most of those Middle East countries have my admiration, they are not helping me too much either.  I would rather give my money to friendlier people. 

More than being sadistic, I want the economy to be independent from foreign oil.  I want us to be able to be self sustainable.  And I do not think I ask for too much: gas consumption is a vice, and I think that if society puts a higher tax on other vices, it may as well put it on gasoline.  I pay 40 cents out of every gallon of gas in taxes right now in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (at current gas prices this is 13% tax).  If I bought cigarretes, I would pay  $1.51 out of a $5 pack (a 30% rate) — more than double the tax on gasoline.  Now, remember than when gasoline was at 99 cents/gallon in 1998, the tax was still 40 cents per gallon: Gasoline tax has dropped from being 40% to 13%!!!  The state of Massachusetts is actually encouraging more tax consumption now than they used to.  

I would rather give my money to:

  • Uncle Sam - In the way of taxes.  Hey, even myself, the extreme capitalist, preffer to give money to Uncle Sam so that they can give it away in the way of welfare (a deadly sin, in my opinion)… rather than sending it off overseas (a deadlier sin).
  • Mr. Burns - The Simpsons guy who owns the Nuclear power plant.  I want nuclear power, produced in my country not on someone else’s.  Even Iran, with all the oil they have, preffer to use nuclear power themselves: they do not consume their own thing.  Other Alternative Energy vendors will be happy: Wind, GeoThermal, Hydroelectric, Solar, etc.
  • Car Manufacturers - Hybrid cars.  Imagine everyone has to throw away their SUV?  Don’t you think they will go and buy a different car?  I think they would buy a Hybrid if gas where at $10.  Good for those car manufacturers.  Doesn’t matter if they are in the US, Japan, or Germany.  All of those countries have showed me more love than the oil producing countries.  Maybe the Chevy Volt would be released sooner!
  • Telecomuting - Skype, Vonage, WebEx, Cisco.  All of those companies will benefit from people who work all day without leaving their homes.
  • Train Companies: Train is slower, but more efficient.  Maybe we don’t need everything overnight when 2nd day will do.  Look for CSX and Burlington Northern Santa Fe.

Now, if Gasoline was so expensive these companies… many of them local or on friendly countries, will enjoy from consumers pain.  Pain would be temporary.  In the end it will make us all stronger.

Of course, we can continue current strategy and have pain for a long, long time: a few years already since the energy crunch started (which was just before the mortgage crisis that double whammed the economy).

I know what the pundits would say:

  • Don’t make the consumer pay for the mistake of others: the consumer elected those who made the mistakes.  Elected officials are a proxy for consumers/votes desires. 
  • Make Oil Companies Pay: Oil companies pay, but pass the price to the consumer.  I preffer making the consumer pay directly: feeling the pain and knowing who causes it (when they see the tax sticker on the pump).  Pain modifies the behavoir.
  • Higher Gas Taxes Halt the Economy: Yes they do.  But so does the trade inbalance (money going out of the country to buy foreign oil).  Eventually people will find a way of moving their good and services with less oil.

Now…  We must remember this is a bad/terrible day on the stock market.  When I feel pain I start to feel sadistic and want to pass the pain on.  Maybe tomorrow I will be in a better mood and will be more lenient on Gasoline consumers.  But today, bring on the high gas prices!  (I don’t buy too much of the stuff anyway — I use more gas on my snowblower and lawn mower than my car, since I work from home and do not have a commute).

Not too many people talk about this subject (drop me a line if you do).  Check out these other bloggers talking about Gas Taxes:


Comments

3 Comments so far

  1. Lulugal11 on March 7, 2008 12:01 am

    On another note gas costs $12.50 in the Caribbean….but people still use it. :-)

  2. Trees Full of Money on March 9, 2008 10:34 pm

    These are the “benefits” of higher gas prices that the media never talks about. It forces people to conserve energy!

    I wrote an article on my site about how consumers need to demand more fuel efficiency in their cars. Instead increasing the mileage of a car when they develope a more efficient engine, automakers take their fuel efficiency “dividends” and increase the cars performance.

    I don’t wish ill will on people, but I do wish they would be more considerate of their own high energy consumption.

    Ben @ Trees Full of Money

  3. $5 Gas? We Asked For It. | Money And Investing on May 2, 2008 12:02 pm

    […] (Weblog originally posted on the Anes Weblog.  Also related to the post:  I Want Expensive Gas.) […]

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