So Why Is Gas So Expensive?

[Ice]

It's certainly better than plans to raise the gas tax.

Assume the average family burns 40-gallons a week. Raising the 18-cent federal gas tax another dime would cost the average family around 15-20 dollars a month.

I'm not seeing a huge issue here. The 18 cents federal gas tax isn't putative, imho. A 28 cent tax wouldn't bother me.

[Xiahou]

I'm not seeing a huge issue here. The 18 cents federal gas tax isn't putative, imho. A 28 cent tax wouldn't bother me.

I'm glad that a 60% tax hike doesn't bother you. Although, I never had you pegged as being in the "give til it hurts" school of thought when it comes to taxes.

But, we all know they need it judging by how miserly they've been with spending those funds in the past. I mean, it's absolutely critical to our nation's economic infrastructure that the parking lot of my local arena be paved using half a million in federal highway funds.

[LittleGrizzly]

18 cents a gallon is very cheap but when theres already a price hike that some people are struggling with it might not be a good idea, 10 cents a gallon extra really doesn't sound like a lot though....

[Ice]

I'm glad that a 60% tax hike doesn't bother you.

It doesn't bother me when the tax being raised is such a minimal amount. That's like saying "taxes went up 200%, what an outrage"

" what were they and what are they now"

"1 cent to 3 cents"

"uh, ok"

Although, I never had you pegged as being in the "give til it hurts" school of thought when it comes to taxes.

I'm not usually, but a tax on gasoline is used for a very specific purpose; road maintenance, or so I believe. I'd rather pay a minimal 10 cent more a gallon on gas than neglect the nation's highway system.

But, we all know they need it judging by how miserly they've been with spending those funds in the past. I mean, it's absolutely critical to our nation's economic infrastructure that the parking lot of my local arena be paved using half a million in federal highway funds.

Who said there wouldn't be pork? I'd be willing to bet the majority of funds go to worthy projects.

This stems back to the realistic vs idealistic thread. You refusing to pay an extra 10 cents a gallon on gasoline isn't going to make the government spend it funds more efficiently. That would take a major overall. The roads here in Michigan are enough, I'm not going to gamble on something so idiotic as paying a mere 10 cents per gallon more.

18 cents a gallon is very cheap but when theres already a price hike that some people are struggling with it might not be a good idea, 10 cents a gallon extra really doesn't sound like a lot though....

It isn't a lot at all. If it is, good. Sometimes I'd wish they would tax gasoline as much as you Euros do. You would hardly see any SUVS on the road and the could be used to better the road system and build more public transportation.

Wow I'm turning more to center every day here.

[Kralizec]

This stems back to the realistic vs idealistic thread. You refusing to pay an extra 10 cents a gallon on gasoline isn't going to make the government spend it funds more efficiently. That would take a major overall. The roads here in Michigan are enough, I'm not going to gamble on something so idiotic as paying a mere 10 cents per gallon more.



It isn't a lot at all. If it is, good. Sometimes I'd wish they would tax gasoline as much as you Euros do. You would hardly see any SUVS on the road and the could be used to better the road system and build more public transportation.

Wow I'm turning more to center every day here.

I know squat about how much our state spends on infrastructure, but it's bogus that they use every penny collected through gas and verhicle tax on it. Government transparency, gah

[yesdachi]

It is BS to have the government try and regulate the amount of anything being bought or sold by raising taxes. Let the rules of capitalism apply, unless the gov is going to subsidize or take over ownership. The free market will right itself given some time and reduced governmental interference (something our gov on all levels is poor at).

I did some quick math, if there are 5 million drivers (10mm total population) in MI and each would pay an additional 20$ a month that is 1.2 billion in extra cash per year right? I would actually be ok with that tax increase if it meant that the next year we used that money on a alternate fuel source to reduce my gas bill by 20$ per month. But I am afraid it is more likely that arenas across the state would have newly repaved parking lots and I would still be paying extra taxes on gas so I can drive to work to pay more taxes.

[Hosakawa Tito]

What some people seem to not realize is that the rising costs of fuel affects every single aspect of a consumer's budget. All consumer goods, necessities & luxuries, are transported, most by truck somewhere along the chain. So it's just not that extra $20-30 to gas up the car; the cost for everything you buy also rises. Meanwhile wages for most have either stagnated or lost buying power.

[atheotes]

What some people seem to not realize is that the rising costs of fuel affects every single aspect of a consumer's budget. All consumer goods, necessities & luxuries, are transported, most by truck somewhere along the chain. So it's just not that extra $20-30 to gas up the car; the cost for everything you buy also rises. Meanwhile wages for most have either stagnated or lost buying power.

Exactly... a lot of people i come across ignore this aspect when it comes to fuel prices... and see increasing fuel prices as a separate issue limited to how much fuel they use

[Craterus]

I'm not sure how wise it is to quote Jeremy Clarkson but I think he raised an interesting point on this.

What he basically said was that, considering the process and transport involved in oil, it's quite good that we can still get it for £1.10 a litre or whatever it is now.

Not sure if the point's already been made but it's only relatively expensive. And it's definitely still affordable. So stop whining.

[yesdachi]

Not sure if the point's already been made but it's only relatively expensive. And it's definitely still affordable. So stop whining.

So it would be better to wait until it is extremely expensive to start “whining”?