Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Should we support the May 2nd Gas Strike?


It seems that a new Gas Strike Day has been planned for May 2nd, 2008.

While I understand the move, I think we are looking at the wrong fix. A one day strike is more of a hindrance to we the people than to Big-Oil.
Shouldn't we instead focus on finding alternate energy sources?
Shouldn't we act more responsibly and favor smaller cars over SUVs and other Tank-like vehicles?
Shouldn't we stop wasting our resources and change our life styles instead?

It all seems to me like pandering rather than a willful stance for change. I think I will certainly meet the strikers at the pump, the day before or the day after the strike.

What do you think?

41 comments:

Anonymous said...

fucking morons, if my gas light is on may 2nd and I need to get to work, im gettin gas

Anonymous said...

Like the article says. We need change. A one day gas strike wont fix the problem. We must get at the root of the real issue and thats finding a renewable, cheaper, environment-friendly source of fuel. A gas strike will solve nothing.

Josh said...

A STRIKE WILL WAKE UP OIL COMPANIES!!! IF WE CAN ARRANGE MORE THAN ONE DAY TO STRIKE OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS THEY WILL HAVE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!!!

Anonymous said...

You know what... who cares... WE CHOULS ALL COME TOGETHER AS A NATION.... WHY DONT YOU GET YOUR GAS THE DAY BEFORE... so your fucking light doesn’t come on......
We have people over seas fighting for us and losing their life.... so what it won’t solve the PROBLEM... but WE THE PEOPLE will be standing as one... it will be obvious if we do this TOGETHER.......

GET WITH IT!! Invest in our country and in this war.....
Show some fucking patriotism

Geronde said...

Well,

Wouldn't it be more patriotic to car-pool for a week or two and shut off the Central Air Conditioning?

Being Patriotic is not about one hour of chanting and waiving banners... It's a lifestyle.

Anonymous said...

People...stop the stupidity....I agree get gas the day before or the day after...Stay the fuck home if you dont have gas on May 2nd..

If we the Americans supplied the gas, the price would not be as high in other countries..Lets stop them now from shitting on us later!

Anonymous said...

its a great idea to strike on may 2against gas... its also a grand idea to change our lifestyles, for me to stop drivin my suv and turn my central air off... but wouldnt it be just as grand for the fuckin yahoos ,that r sittin back enjoyin driving "their" suvs to the gas pumps on may 2nd and goin back home to "their" large homes with central air, to stop stickin it to me with these gas prices...its all about money and greed... and there is nothin any of us can do about that combo... all the workin class can do is continue to do the very best we can until its our turn to take a break from gettin stuck!!!

Anonymous said...

A large scale gas strike will interupt the flow of fuel to the stations. They will have to cancel a delivery one day because the underground tanks will be full...then the following day when people return to fill up the tanks will be depleted and stations will have to have an emergency shipment made. Anything to upset the scheduled delivery of fuel will impact them. Tankers can't/wont roll half full/empty it either all or nothing! It's not like a car where to can load a half a tank.

Anonymous said...

YES GO STRIKE!!!!!!!!!

Unknown said...

STRIKE STRIKE STRIKE STRIKE STRIKE

Anonymous said...

I say what the hell, it's worth a try! It is better to at least make an effort than to lay down and get raped on gas prices! I have been hearing this alot and to an extent I agree. (Quote from first post) "Shouldn't we act more responsibly and favor smaller cars over SUVs and other Tank-like vehicles?" My wife and I have a Jeep Cherokee (SUV) and it is our only vehicle for us and our 2 twin daughters! Have you ever tried to put a 2 kids in a car and a double stroller!? I doesnt work! And instead of fighting with the people to purchase smaller vehicles, we should be targeting the motor companies to lower prices on their HYBRID vehicles! For example : Brand new Toyota Prius is around $20,000, give or take on options. Mid-sized SUV with double the room (not new of course, '04) for half the price! When they build a more family oriented HYBRID vehicle that will comfortably and safely accommodate my family at an easier price to afford than I would purchase one! Until then quit bitching about SUV's that are in demand for families.

Geronde said...

I understand you point about SUVs; However, I will have to disagree with you on the fact that we buy these cars for the interior space they provide.

If you take European cars as an example, you will notice how they maximize space and efficiency while minimizing car sizes.
This is due to a few reasons, one of which is that gas prices average $8.00 to $10.00 a gallon in Europe.
The day there is no demand for SUV's car makers will be faced with a much smarter consumer market, with efficiency being the main concern over the current ones: * Pseudo-Sense of Security and Standing.

* Pseudo-Sense of Security: The absurdity of the argument stems from the fact that most people buy SUVs to meet SUV-laden traffic with confidence. If a majority of the vehicles roaming the roads are SUVs then all things being equal we will be just as safe as we were when we were all driving small to mid-size vehicles.

Anonymous said...

People need to take a stand *somewhere*. This is a start.

Fuck globalism, fuck corporatism - both of which have drained this country of jobs and withered our quality of life.

Drewza McNasty said...

yes. Why lets all strike for the sake of striking! Really, what good would 24 hours of only slightly reduced revenue do to big oil companies? nothing. I say go for it, but when it comes down to it, if someone wants to go to the mall they will not hesitate to go to the gas station and buy gas, because really, when someone wants something for themselves, fuck the world. People think their own wants and needs are more important than the economic well-being of their nation or world or what have you. So yes, all of you please don't buy gas friday. Forget your jobs and all other obligations. Actually, maybe we should just throw barrels of it into a harbor while dressed up like indians.

Anonymous said...

OK, really people this will not work. We would be more out to hit the "big oil co's" harder by saying we will not drive for a day. We will simply purchase gas either before or after the strike, possibly at our own expense. Do you think the tax incentive is to boost the economy or cover up the goverments desire to increase the oil reserves, and shut us up. The true answer to this thing is to demand the goverment to release the oil stock reserves. Not all, but a portion. Oh yeah, its time to elect a president..............Lets put that on the table.

Anonymous said...

Many great changes in history happened as a result of unity. When a million different people have a million different ways to curse the govt and bitch about gas, no one's plea becomes audible. Why? because it is chaos! but when a million people come together with the same message and an organized way of getting it across, i will be damned if those idiots can squish their index fingers into their ears and block out the beautiful harmonies of protest and unity from the american people. please, for the sake of getting our message across, even if it doesnt bring major change, STAND UP FOR YOURSELF AND YOUR FELLOW AMERICANS AND LET THE GOVT KNOW THAT WE THE FUCKING PEOPLE MAKE THEM WHO THEY ARE! WE GIVE THEM THEIR POWER! AND WE WILL NOT SETTLE!

Anonymous said...

PUT IT THIS WAY we THE MIDDLE CLASS are FUCKED as a whole.. why because the rich mr. president doesnt favor us...he loves THE RICH people WHY WELL....they have pimped out HUMMERS, CADI's, ESCALADES, F150's-350's...they drive these vehicles..no they are not vehicles these monsters and eat, sleep, drink, and pee gas...there is no need for these things..I own a FIT and i am happy with the room and space i have in it...i have more than enough room in it...well thats my 2cents..i will be doing this striker only becuase i still have 1/2 a tank of gas when i filled up last weekend..and i drive about 50miles a day :D

Anonymous said...

Well.... for all those people that don't want to strike... just look at it this way.

it doesn't matter whether or not you think it will hurt the "BIG OIL" it only matters that we are trying to send the message that people are having a very hard time dealing with the fact that gas prices are becoming ridiculous, and that they really do need to do something to give a little relief. its not to say that we need them to break into the oil reserves. just that if you follow deductive logic, and it continues to follow the same patetrn we have been seeing for a long time now, we truly will be F*^ked eventually. sooner than most of us think...... when half your check is going to be needed for the fuel to get your ass to work then you will want to try to make a stand right.... WHY wait untill that happens at least try to make a difference or let them know something needs to change. lets give it a shot I for one am very interested to see what the result will be... I just don't think enough people know about this for it to work.

P.S. I am in 6th grade so who cares about what I think anyway right.

Anonymous said...

I received a text message that said.... gas pump are installing porn... so you can watch someone get fucked just like you.... LOL

Yes, as middle class we are getting screwed....
Bush will not be president forever, as soon as he’s outta office, gas will drop. Oil has not raised 1 cent.... understand... ITS ALL BUSH! in the NY TIMES he said... im going to finish what my father started 12 years ago. He doesn’t care about our country.

The gas strike does not mean NOT DRIVE.... HUMMERS, SUVS, BUSES.. What the hell ever.... JUST DONT GET GAS ON MAY 2ND... Drive cross fuckin country, idk... Just don’t get gas on May 2nd...

We can’t change the whole fuckin world in a day.....

Yes, being patriotic is a lifestyle.... but you jus cant adopt a lifestyle... it takes time... and we can start with one day.... this whole fuckin nation boycotting gas.. What do you think that will do... gas rises everyday.... those few cents will make a difference.... Bush has his hand in the gas and all he wants is the money... let’s piss him off.....



UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL

jkham said...

"not buying gas" for a day is not the way, it is about "not using gas" for a day that makes the difference. So people, if you guys want to show something to oil companies, clear the downtown Los Angeles for a day, use only public transportations to work. "but I dont wanna use p.t. becuz it is not so convienient and I just wanna get things without trying and blah blah" Want to achieve something without showing the REAL effort is not going to work. so people, dont demand sth without the sacrifices, it just makes me sick looking at gangs of people asking for favors without any effort.

Anonymous said...

well most gasstations do lose alot of buisness but whats gonna stop people from buying gas the day before or the day after its stupid and the getting smaller cars thing is stupid also people should have the choise on what that want to buy and also sometimes there isnt a choice there is a need for larger vehicles one because of family size or in my case a family member is imobilized and room is need for a wheelchair and other medical equipment.

Anonymous said...

I agree with sending a message but people should stop buying gas from ExxonMobile altogether. This will cause them to bring prices down to compete. Just continue to not buy from them until prices are reasonable.

Anonymous said...

STRIKE! Living 30 miles from a city and no chance of selling my house.. STRIKE! $3.75 per gallon because this are has lots of tourist... STRIKE! Tax incentive to be used on higher price of gas and food.. STRIKE!
3 STRIKES YOUR OUT...
I say there is power in numbers, and HELL YES STRIKE!

Anonymous said...

Doing nothing is dumb, even if financially it doesn't do anything. you cant just sit on your a**

Anonymous said...

That freaking idiot is to stupid to put gas the day before.Fucken retard!!

Anonymous said...

I don't have a choice but to support the gas strike. I can't afford to put gas in my tank and eat too.
I wish something could be done about gas prices. One day strike won't work. If people would pull together and strike for a week that would get them thinking. It would have to be EVERYONE doing the strike.

Unknown said...

Wow - scary. This strike idea is moronic. I must be the only person here who has ever had a class on economics. When the price of something goes up, is it the "evil corporations" or is it supply & demand? Centuries of economic history and study tell us that, 95% of the time, it's supply and demand, not some seller randomly raising prices because he's a bad person. Grow up. So, what's happening? DEMAND IS GOING UP! Remember those photos you used to see in National Geographic magazine of billions of Chinese and Indian people riding their bikes to work because they didn't have cars? Guess what -- THEY OWN CARS NOW AND ARE BUYING MORE AND MORE AT A RAPID PACE. Their economies are growing faster than ours. China is going around the world buying up all of the oil production they can to satisfy their country's future demands. Guess what happens to prices when a product is in such high demand? IT GOES WAY UP. And, try to remember, who the president is at the time has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with the price of oil!! I cringe everytime I hear someone say "the price of oil" is a key factor for them in the upcoming presidential election. NEWSFLASH: any presidential candidate who says that he or she is going to "do something" about the price of all IS LYING TO YOU. There's nothing they can do, period. Presidents don't set the price of oil. They don't set the price of anything. Supply and demand sets the price of oil. I also have another question: how much money did any of you invest in oil exploration? Oil production? Oil refining? Anything? Ever? No? If not, why the hell do you begrudge the people who DID invest all that money and time and risk in that industry making a fair profit (and, yes, it's fair -- people in Europe pay US$8-12 per gallon, so no one's crying about our paltry $3.50/gal.) Plenty of people (including George Bush) lost a ton of money in the oil industry. Many went bankrupt. The ones who survived are now making profit. Their millions of employees and shareholders are now making profit. That is the essence of American capitalism -- not whining that someone else took a risk you weren't willing to take, worked hard and made some money. And if you're also one of those people who oppose drilling for oil in Alaska or off of our coastlines, then DON'T BITCH ABOUT THE PRICE OF GAS -- YOU are a big part of the reason why gas is expensive. If you RESTRICT SUPPLY, the price of what IS available goes up. Same goes if you opposed nuclear power plants -- you are FORCING us to use as much oil as possible, thus increasing demand, lowering supply and raising prices. Wake up people -- as oil disappears from the planet, it is only going to get more expensive. The price of gas today is the CHEAPEST you will ever see it again. As the SUPPLY disappears from the planet and the DEMAND skyrockets from developing countries, gas will become more and more expensive forever until it is gone. There is no arguing with that fact. Nobody owes you cheap gas. Get used to it and start making adustments. And stop blaming it on people who have nothing to do with it.

Geronde said...

Sir,
I certainly mean no disrespect, but you have it really wrong.

First and foremost, you are certainly talking to individuals with different backgrounds on economics, but make no mistake, we are mostly an educated crowd.
I believe you are referring to Adam Smith and the theory of the invisible hand (Keynesian Economics). Having majored in economics, you are definitely not alone talking this jargon here.

Secondly, the price of oil has actually little if anything to do with supply and demand. Need proof?

The price of a barrel of oil has increased almost 400% against the dollar since 2000, 250% against the Euro, and most beautiful, about 0% against Gold. Yes, dear Sir, you read me well.

What does that tell you?
Yes, Sir, it starts here at home with taking a serious look at our monetary policy... but let us leave this discussion to another day.

Now obviously, certain companies benefit from inflation and a weak dollar. How much money was made this quarter by Exxon-Mobil? It cannot be less than horrifying.

Unknown said...

I hope you didn't pay much for your economics degree. If supply and demand has nothing to do with the price of oil, then it is the ONLY product on the free market that defies that fundamental rule. Needless to say, the price IS dependent on supply and demand. Also, any real economics major would know that, when measuring price fluctuations of any product or commodity, you MUST use the same currency in your comparison, otherwise you are NOT measuring price but, rather, a mixture of price and currency exchange rates which, combined like that, tell you nothing. You must isolate each factor in order to make any valid conclusions. Yes, currency exchange rates do affect the price of oil, but nowhere near as much as you imply. Oil contracts, for nearly every country in the world, are negotiated in U.S. dollar-denominated transactions -- everyone has to deal with prices which are set in U.S. dollars. So, to correctly determine the price fluctuations of oil, you must ignore exchange rates, use the US dollar as your yardstick and look at the price of a barrel of crude over time. It has skyrocketed. Contrary to your assertion that the price of gas is RISING because of monetary policy games, the exact OPPOSITE is actually true: the inevitable rise in the price of gas has been artificially delayed by US monetary policy (and general domination of the global market) in the past. The price has been kept artificially LOW; it's not that it is now artificially high. It is now being forced to reflect economic reality. Only now, as the US's domination of the global economy has diminished and the US dollar has weakened, has the price of oil in the US finally started to reflect the real cost of exploring, drilling, shipping, refining, etc. It has happened to other countries already, and it is now happening to us. In the end, there is no escaping it -- supply is down and is going down and will one day reach zero; demand is up by orders of magnitude(you cannot contest that fact); thus price is rising. It will continue to do so for now on. There will be no $1 or $2 or even $3/gal. as anymore. The sooner people can accept that fact, the sooner they can stop participating in meaningless strikes and start taking rational action.

Geronde said...

Sir, again,
No one argues here that oil, like all resources, are limited.
I urge you to read my post again. It's actually short and not deprived of proper punctuation.
If supply and demand had a play in the current crisis, how then do you explain that supply meets demand at the same price point today as it did 8 years ago in regards to gold?

I wrongly believed my previous post would give you food for thought, and would certainly hope my current emphasis will at least bring you to reason and stop your baseless insults.

Anonymous said...

whoever refuses to DO something about the gas problem, fine. Sit your fat ass down and eat your chips.

I'm so sick and tired of all the war shit, I'm sick and tired of all the economy going down the drain. At least. AT LEAST the best thing would be a little raise for us to actually live. The land is HUGE. Some areas in the country are NOT GOOD WITH THE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, which we are forced to drive around.

I'm sick and tired of this shit. I'm sick and tired of sighing on the gas price everytime it goes up. It's about TIME we do something.

Anonymous said...

well i have a tiny car that burns a shit load of gas and as much as i'd like something economically cheaper i can't afford! i think the strike is silly because while the oil companies may suffer oneday... everyone who doesn't get their gas tomorrow is going to get it on the second or probably filled up today! so whatever they lose tommorow the boom in gas yesterday and on the 3rd will no doubt level everything out for them!! high gas prices! thats life

Anonymous said...

HELLO!! does anyone read the paper or news or even watch the news. OK whatever the demand on gas is going up and maybe the gas strike wont work. But Exxon profit for the quarter was over 10 BILLION!!!!!! Oh yeah and they expected that it would be more. So that means they will raise the gas again so they can meet there goals for next quarter. There stocks are one of the highest. So who is the idiot that says he/she knows about economie. You know nothing your high class Edumacation sucks and you should tell your parents to get there money back. Middle class people are not idiots they have all the common sence and understand how to screw in a light balb and you can't pull the wool over there eyes.

I am for it go gas strike!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

everybody who dont support the gas strike an have there college degrees puttin there 2 since in must not know what it like to strugle! Greety bastards I bet theyll go by gas jus for spite! I dont understand why they jus dont wanna stand up an be heard and make a difference, and people that say get a smaller car plz jus shit me out the money to go get me one!!

plz everyone do somethin it costs me 20 dollars to go back an forth t school do somethin!!It starts here if it ever dose!

Anonymous said...

Go to a random station and push the emergency gas shutoff, calmly walk away. Tell no one what you did. Just walk through, do it, then go quietly.

Anonymous said...

I can not afford a fuel alternative at the present alternative prices, Our problem is everybody is always trying to screw their fellow american and this is just another example, I would be willing to ride my bike to where I go and use my electric golf cart for a 2 week strike but not everyone has an electric golf cart and others will think that they are only a few that are saying "well if I am the only one driving durring the strike then it will not make a difference" but actually the number of them people would be enough to get the oil companies by durring the strike.

Anonymous said...

Sorry to say I will be driving my fat SUV to work as usual. Now I think we need to quit depending on foreign oil and investing in alternative fuels. But for now, life goes on and I need to get to work every day. If anyone wishes to donate me a hybrid I'll gladly park my SUV.

Hey if people wanted real change they'd vote Ron Paul. No one would expect him to win at this point so it would be a shock to the masses and in truth, he couldn't possibly do any worse then the current 3 big candidates would.

Anonymous said...

pbm - You retard!

Latest News (CNN Source):
Earlier on Friday, oil had risen more than $3 a barrel as Saudi Arabia rejected President Bush's call to increase production, saying there wasn't enough demand from its customers.

nbuster does deserve any and all his degrees! You, however, should go back to school!

Anonymous said...

a one day strike will not do that much. gas is now 450? wtf?? this is rediculous. here is how u solve the problom. you boycot one gas company, (such as MOBIL), and let them go out of business. it will show the other companies that they could be next. we need to spred the word and choose a gas station. gas is not only being raised up, but groseries too because of the cost of desil to transport the goods. i vote we take out mobil first.

Anonymous said...

I think this would be a good plan. The gas strike would go all over the world and soon the gas companies will hear about it ... or we could just all write rude letters to the gas companies??

Anonymous said...

What they are doing - they are making the prices higher and higher and because we're so desperate we buy it and that's just what they want. I think the strike will be good!