By Bill Chameides

Just how expensive is expensive?

A gallon of gasoline. Folks are unhappy it's gotten so expensive. It's even become a presidential campaign issue.

In the past few days, gas has gotten cheaper, but it's not cheap enough for most Americans.

But just how expensive is gasoline?

Consider the price of some other liquids we American consumers are
wont to buy.
   

Now consider the fact that that gallon of gasoline we're paying $3.40 for was pumped out of the ground, shipped by pipeline or tanker, refined, and eventually trucked to local gas stations with profits made at every step in the process -- and with the major oil companies realizing some of the largest profits ever. (See here and here.)

Also consider that that gallon of gas is cheaper than a bottle of water. Water for which many of us blithely plunk down our hard earned cash -- even though it can be just as easily, cleanly, and more cheaply obtained from our taps -- all the while complaining about the high prices at the pump.

______________________

Notes

Drink prices from Lowes Food and Sheetz in Mebane, North Carolina, June 17, 2012, except for the coffee priced at Joe Van Gogh in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and at Starbucks. Average gas price in Durham, North Carolina, from from FuelEconomy.gov on Friday June 15, 2012. Check out yours at FuelEconomy.gov's interactive map.

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4 Comments

1. 1. gail ra 03:52 PM 6/19/12

   This is a ridiculous and highly charged political comparison meant to make Americans feel guilty for complaining about the high cost of gas. This is, by no rational means, a 'reality check'.
   
   Our gas prices are often compared to gas prices of European countries, however the number of miles traveled to and from work are NEVER listed. I wonder why? Europeans don't travel as many miles to and from work as does the average American, and so go longer between fill-ups.
   
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasoline_and_diesel_usage_and_pricing
   
   Perhaps the globe's food producing nations should raise the price of their food imports and other commodities to the oil producing nations to the same degree as oil producing nations determine gas prices.
   
   Perhaps if we compared our gas prices to the gas prices of Saudi Arabia, and our barley and wheat prices to Saudi Arabia's, then this type comparison would have the slightest bit of credibility. Then, and only then, would this be a 'real' reality check.
   
   I'm willing to bet the cost of food is rather stable and equal throughout the global market.
   
   When politics enters the picture is when things go haywire.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

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2. 2. dadster 06:08 PM 6/19/12

   A more ridiculous article I have never seen in my 77 years of life ! No one drinks milk by the gallon or bottled water . A gallon of milk lasts for days a gallon of petrol is over by the time you travel 30 miles approx which we do in less than half hour . So , if you travel for two hours to and from office you spend on petrol just in two hours what you spend on your entire food in 24 hours. There is no comparison between prices of petrol with that of food items . The price of food items go up with the petrol price rises as petrol is needed to transport food items across the land . Petrol , till now was available for one third the price . It's because of gov aggressive political policies like fighting wars that prices shot
   up. With exercise of diplomacy the price can be brought down . A substantial component of petrol price is administrative . The corporations buy petrol much cheaper than it sells it for making huge profits ,still . The gov permits it to collect taxes from that . It's the common citizen who is made victim . If the gov nationalizes petrol purchase and distribution eliminating the middle men ( private corporations ) , petrol could be made available to the public at much less cost , even now as the gov does not have to pay dividends to shareholders as corporations have to.

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3. 3. jerryd 06:56 PM 6/19/12

   
   I don't use any of the above including gasoline or the overpriced water, drinks. My only use is in products I do buy though that is little and much of what I buy is used but in great shape at $.10 on the $.
   
   My transport is my EV's which get 250 and 600mpg equivalent fueled by RE. These cost $2 and $4/week to run including battery, tag, electricity, etc.
   
   You might think from this I'm an eco-nut but really just cheap.
   
   It's not what you make, but what you spend. I only get $700/mo yet I have far more than most and it's all paid for including my home.

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4. 4. jerryd 06:59 PM 6/19/12

   
   I forgot to mention another gas/oil cost. Why do we protect oil dictators and international oil companies for free?
   
   It should be in the price instead of in our income taxes and it, other costs mean the real price of oil, gasoline is about $5-6/gal.

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