Who gets the gas face?
May 12, 2008 by Tisa Silver
Filed under Finance
On my most recent trips to the gas station I have made it a point to turn away from the pump. I have no desire to watch the price meter run up to $55 for a tank of low-grade gas. Turning away from the pump has allowed me to look at what other motorists are doing. Much to my chagrin, they are looking back at me!
We trade smiles through what I like to call “the gas face.” It is a somewhat stressed look of displeasure induced by the pumping of expensive gas. I have seen a lot of gas faces and they are not pretty!
This face is somewhat new to me but, the name was actually coined by a rap group called 3rd Bass. Way back in 1989, “The Gas Face” was released. The basic concept behind the song is that anyone who says or does something dumb “gets the gas face.”
So, who is responsible for this face that I have to see once, sometimes twice, a week? Is it the oil companies, oil producing nations, gas station owners, our government (federal and/or local)…or should consumers be blamed for buying gas guzzling SUVs instead of hybrids?
Leave a comment and cast your vote for “Who gets the gas face” now!
The nominees are…
OPEC
The U.S. government
Gas station owners
Oil companies
Each day this week, Talk Stock Trading will examine the role of these major stakeholders in the oil and gas market. “The Gas Face” winner will be crowned on Friday, May 16, 2008.
Find out who will join the list of esteemed past recipients of “The Gas Face” (as awarded by 3rd Bass) such as MC Hammer, Vanilla Ice and Bill O’Reilly. :)
i think bush gets the gas face…and anyone who voted for him (doesn’t matter which time- 1st or 2nd!) should get a double gas face!
The government and the oil companies get the major GAS FACE!!! This is absolutely ridiculous. I feel like I’m being robbed everytime I fill up:( Boo hiss!
I make the gas face at the U.S. Gov’t every time I fill up. This is ridiculous…
I give Congress the gas face for allowing things to get this far… Notwithstanding all of our other poor decisions involving Iraq, we have a virtually nonexistent energy policy and cater to big oil. Ick.
It is the energy speculators, that buy oil futures that get the gas face. Because of a lack of regulation they are literally “playing with house money” because they are only required to have 10% of the money they need when the buy futures contracts. These future contracts set the price for the big oil companies so they can stay profitable.
I think Bush and the government get the gas face! They let this go to far. We all work to hard to get to this point. Mr. Bush owns oil and he is getting some of this money too. They are jacking us with no ski mask. I think Bill O”Reilly should get the Lifetime Gas Face Achievement award.
I give the gas face to the owners of gas combo gas station/restaurant owners, who keep the coffee cold and the milk warm, while charging very high prices for gas. I don’t blame them for the high prices, and think they could actually be even MORE expensive if there was less of a government subsidy on gasoline.
Definitely the oil companies get the “Gas Face.” I wonder where all the big oil execs get their gas? I’d like to stand by them at the pump and give them “The Gas Face.”
Bill Clinton, for his 1993 veto – we would be pumping over a million more gallons per day in this country if it weren’t for him.
Also everyone who opposed the building of a refinery in this country gets one too – it will be done somewhere, and at least here the companies have people watching them and can’t cheat much.
The US Government. They are filling the strategic oil reserve and taking a lot of supply off the market, have them stop and prices will surely drop.
you guys are lucky. in the uk a tank full of gas costs roughly $120.
The “gas face” is due to basic economics. Anytime demand increases and supply remains the same, prices will increase. There hasn’t been a refinery built since 1976 because no one wants one in their backyard which causes supply to stay relatively the same. Increased international demand from China and other emerging and developing nations as well as our own all contribute to those increase prices you and I pay at the pump. It’s sad to say, but unless supply can be increased or demand somehowe drops off (highly unlikely) we will continue to pay high prices.
The gas face goes to Congress and the Bush Administration for continuing to give profitable oil companies subsidies, and doing practically nothing to encourage technology that would get us independent of oil (while putting off less pollution).
Gas face also goes to those who would spend billions of dollars and years of time trying to drill ANWR. By the time ANWR is ready to pump, all of that time and money could have gone to American ingenuity in developing technologies that are in their infancy now and helping us toward true independence from oil.
Gas face to everyone who still wants to use the fuel of the 20th Century as we move into the 21st Century!
Just take a look in the mirror and give the gas face to yourself!!! Believe me…I am talking to myself as well. What we need to start doing is turning away from the pumps…if we took just ONE step to boycott the gas stations for just ONE day…who knows what that could do.
we tried that in the uk. it didnt work. they took about 20 cents of the price of our gas. in a week it was back on.
I could stand to drive less, but unless the change is collective and long-term, prices will not move. Unfortunately a one day boycott won’t do the trick nor will boycotting a certain company. Check tonight’s blog on oil companies and I’ll explain why.
The government gets the gas face. They soooo get the gas face…gas is ridiculous and climbing every day. I have heard that boycotting gas stations do not work either. Personally, I feel we should be moving towards a more environmentally friendly source, perhaps solar power instead of using corn because now the prices of corn and other vegetables are on the rise. My two cents…
The sheiks in the middle of the dessert get the gas face. It is absurd to see their people live in poverty while we bleed out our wallets to get to work and they get to add another 5000 sq ft. edition to their enormous palace. I’d like to give them a few more gestures than just a gas face.
everyones has the gas face which is why im trying to work close to where i live this summer so i can longboard or walk there.
I agree….I find it really frustrating when people try to concoct these schemes to somehow affect big oil. There is no way to ever get full participation with these. Even if everyone did participate the big companies would just find another source somewhere else who is demanding oil….there are plenty.
I do agree with your analysis of the one day boycott. Another way to view this is that even if exxon did lower its prices people would flood exxon and they would rasie thier prices, so even if we were to see a price decrease it would be short lived. I agree that the only way to reduce prices at the pump is to decrease consumption.
I recently came to the conclusion that high gas prices are a good thing for all of us. It sounds crazy, but if gas prices were kept low (by who ever is at fault for them being high) then we as a society and consumers will continue on the same unsustainable path that we have been on. No matter what, we will have to face the reality that the gas supply will run out and this continuous strain will eventually cause gas prices to increase. I feel this is the exact wake up call that we need to start looking for new sources of energy. I know that if gas prices keep rising, my next car will definitely be a hybrid and consumer demand is often what drives innovation.
I agree with Brendan, American’s simply have lived beyond their means. Oil, housing and American’s problem with obesity all revolve around the fact that we as a society have a problem with over consumption. No regulation or boycott will change the sentiment of the American people, which is the core of the problem. On the other hand, suffering through what we as a society has created just might open up our eyes.
The major player in the oil market is OPEC and Speculators in the futures market. OPEC is the biggest players in the supply of oil. Since they are such a large exporter, they are going to have the largest swing. Although one of the more interesting players these days, which have not been mentioned are Speculators entering in future contracts to make a pretty penny. Since the dollar has been plummeting against the Euro, many foreign investors are taking advantage of this bargain and driving up our oil prices. Also, experts have seen that investors in US markets are taking their money out of the stock market and placing into this ridiculous bull run on oil. None of them seem to realize that they are just hurting themselves, their families, their neighbors, and the rest of the country.
What about car manufacturers? They should get a share of the gas face as well. With all the technological advances we have today (still no flying cars!), the fuel efficiency of automobiles is a big joke. It is also important to note that most internal combustion engines operate at 25-30% efficiency; that is to say that close to 75% of the energy created, is lost. Let’s not forget the now infamous EV1, a car that ran on pure electricity but was pulled from the market under some strange circumstances. Car makers should get the gas face.
I think everyone is getting a good taste of the gas face now and will become even more immune to the situation. Because people will continue to drive non-hybrid cars and continue to complain about gas prices but until the change is made by the people the “Big Oil” companies will continue to enjoy large first quarter revenues…
The U.S. government gets the gas face for two reasons. First, they have allowed the dollar to be devalued, which is a problem because oil is priced in dollars. As long as oil is priced in U.S. dollars, the price of oil will have to adjust for the loss in value of the U.S. dollar against other currencies. Oil companies are taking dollars as payment, but the dollar is worth less, so the oil that used to sell for one price must now be sold for a higher price. Oil companies want more dollars for the same amount of oil because the dollar is now worth less. In addition, the U.S. government has allowed consumption to dramatically increase while supply continues to deplete. Oil reserves around the world are declining while consumption is increasing, so oil is becoming more valuable as a result of simple supply and demand factors, and the government is doing nothing to help.
Unfortunately the general public will continue to buy gas guzzling cars and gas as long as they are given the option, especially the upper class. The only real option is for manufacturers to increase the production of alternative energy cars, until cars which run on gasoline are obsolete.