RV Fuel Issues & Prices - Post 'Em Here!

macira wrote:
Strawfoot.. Supply and demand are neat words to use..But thingss are are worth what they cost to produce plus a reasonable profit. Oil at it's current price does not fit that scenario. If you want to substitute "charge what you can get" for supply and demand, I'll buy your story.
If you check around a bit you will find there still is production above demand.
It may not continue to be so but at the moment it is. Price now is based on betting on what you can sell for. Price control is not needed but gambling control is needed. I think the ante for the bet should be increased dramatically.

"Charge what you can get" is supply and demand, when demand is high and supply is low. Show me where production is above demand. A source of your claim.

Of course the prices are reflecting the future, and it's projected costs, based on what everyone knows; the demand will quickly double in the next decade and the supply will drop from the current 84 million barrels a day. So what will the pump price be when the world demands 150-200 million barrels a day and production is at 75 million barrels a day? That's right, somewhere between $300-$400 a barrel. But it's not the cost that will be the big shock to people. Just listen to our fellow RVers. They will pay whatever it takes to get them down the road. The shock will be when the U.S. can no longer find 13-15 million barrels a day of crude oil to supplement the 8 million barrels of domesticly produced oil. Those people who invest for a living that are getting wealthy buying futures at $140 a barrel, have done their homework. They are actually buying cheap compared to where we're headed. They will double their money. The rest of us will be seeing shortages of supply, higher (much higher) fuel prices, lines at pumps, and inevitably we will ask/beg the next President and Congress to step in and save us. They will step in, all right. They will make arbitrary decisions about how many gallons each American family can get by on and issue ration coupons, or some other WWII type system, while attempting to protect the trucking industry and other essential services.

I'm a bit sad, since we recently purchased our first fifth wheel camper. Like most here, we'll use it locally and enjoy it until it becomes ridiculously expensive, or when gas is rationed. Then my fall-back plan is to use my bike and my own two feet to get around.


Strawfoot