Gas prices

[PLD 14]

FWIW, I paid $2.71 in Atlanta this morning, $2.89 at noon, and $3.29 at days end. There are confirmed reports here of $4.50, $5.50, and $6.00/gallon at various locations. This afternoon, the governor showed that he favored votes over free-enterprise and declared a state of emergency to impose a freeze at price current levels. In the same speech, he made these statements.

<SP> Georgians should not panic. There is not going to be a gas shortage. The rise in gas prices is merely a product of public hysteria. We [Ga] get a great deal of our gas via tanker ship. The Colonial pipeline which represents 80% of our gas supply should be back online this weekend. </SP>

Will someone please explain to me how 20% = a "great deal" of our supply? Or how 80% of our supply being down for 5-7 days is not a problem?

Or why he declared a state of emergency if the problem is all in our heads?

Or why my local station was out of gas at 5pm and told me that tomorrows truck is a "maybe".

Seems to me that supply (reportedly not a problem) and demand (quelled by high prices) would rectify this situation pretty quickly. That is unless either supply is/gets constrained, or demand increases further. And I can tell you from the lines that demand can't get any higher...

His doublespeak and rhetoric made me so mad that I smashed out the window at a local retailer or two and took what I wanted. :(

[PressurePros 249]

Oh my Gosh, I haven't filled my 35 gallon tank since Sunday. It was $75 then....

[Dave O 15]

that's it I'm getting rid of all my equipment and buying electric powerwashers and riding a bike to my jobs. Now I wonder if they turn a surface cleaner or make a turbo nozzle for them. Hmmmmm Wait I will ask the guy cleaning the gas station down the street for 40.00 if they do. I will return LOL

Oh yeah and sorry kids I need the wagon back that we bought you girls for christmas. Also your mothers garden wagon with the rubber tires.

[Pams Pressure & Clean 64]

Philip..

did you see on the late news the Shell station that went to $8.00 last night?

The dude actually volunteered to go on camera camly explaining, through a rather sterotypical 7-11 type accent, how people were only byuing gas. No Lotto, no cigarettes, no beer, no nothing. So he had to make money somehow.....

The camera panned around the lot and guess what...not a car in sight...he had brought the price down to around $4.00 but by then the sales damage was done...:):)

All this over some stupid e-mail rumor...

[newlook 265]

It is only going to get worse before it gets better.

[FullBlast 14]

Just wondering does anybody else put a fuel charge on the invoice to the custumer? I do for the commercial jobs, but then again everybody don't travel as far as I do. Man at these prices you about got to do something.

[RyanH 14]

It's refreshing to read from the logical people here. I get soooo frustrated reading some of the posts made by people who live in my county (we have a local utility-sponsored message board). There may be 1 in 20 people on there who share my beliefs that a free market society is best and will prosper. The others may claim to be conservative or intelligent or whatever else, but when it gets down to brass tacks they advocate socialist issues (i.e., stamp out "price gouging," businesses should forfeit profits for the sake of helping others, etc.). Actually, I don't even think this is considered socialism. What is the term when the majority of a society adopts apathetic views and wants to give up reason for "enlightenment?" My fear is that our country will ultimately fall to the same demise as the Roman Empire; at the height of their prosperity just before the fall, their people became solely occupied with spreading arts and entertainment and social enlightenment and held less regard for reason and responsibility.

[squirtgun 122]

I don't have a problem with anyone making a profit.

I do have a problem with people who take advantage of their fellow man in a bad situation.

Raising hotel room prices by double or triple during a mandantory evacuation is taking advantage.Raising gas price to compensate for not selling beer and lotto tickets is taking advantage.

Put yourself in the situation the people fleeing the storm are in.Would you want to pay $199 a night for a week or maybe more for a hotel room that normally costs $65 a night?Now top that off with some moron who isn't selling as much in beer and lotto tickets than usual,so they raise their gas prices to $8 a gallon to compensate(don't forget they didn't pay $8 a gallon for it).Now add in food costs to feed the wife and kids.Oh, and let us not forget when you get back to where you came from,your home is gone and likely your employer is not going to be in business either.How would like you like to be price gouged?

If you worked a job making $9 an hr could you afford to be price gouged?Face facts not a lot of people can continue to make ends meet without a pay increase and their employers aren't going to do that.Minimum wage in Ga. is $5.15 hr and there are more people working in those positions than the $15 to $20 hr jobs.

If we raised our prices by 50% because of gas prices people would quit calling.

We had a price increase at the beginning of the month(1st in 2yrs) of 15% due to higher costs for supplies,parts and gas.Not something I wanted to do,but since we skipped the normal 5%+ increase that most businesses make every year we needed to.

Right is right and wrong is wrong.Profit and free enterprise have nothing to do with greedy scumbags.

[Celeste 341]

At present we're not forcing any increases - we're trying to plan better routes...folks who want estimates completely understand that we're not going to drive 30 miles for nothing to do them right away, however, if they will wait for a couple days when we're scheduled to be closer, we'll be happy to give them their free estimate. We are making phone calls before we pull out to confirm that there has been no delay on a site being ready on other type jobs so we don't waste gas.

The biggest tragedy to this is that with the natural disaster that happened, when folks feel the heartfelt urge to give to those who were physically harmed, this other BS happens and prevents us from doing so - because we literally can't afford to spare anything.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Saw it here for $3.25 today.

[Russ Johnson 141]

The Indiana Attorney General was on the tv (while the news was showing a station marked at $5.86) talking about price gouging...he ain't puttin' up with it.

[One Tough Pressure 580]

$3.35 a gallon for diesel, up from $2.95 yesterday, and that is the cheap station. Gas is $2.99 a gallon up from $2.71, also at the cheap station. The brand name places are even higher.

[acidburn 14]

Florence, South Carolina:

$2.39 Tuesday

$2.79 Wednesday

$3.49 Today

What really gets me is that yesterday, some of our local stores were changing prices every couple of hours.....I'm SORRY....but this IS price gouging. That is the SAME gas in their tank at 5pm that was there at 3pm.....which they have already paid for, or at least been invoiced for. The distributor is NOT going to call them up and say....."hey, ya know that gas we brought you last night, well you owe us $xxx MORE for it today!"....i mean c'mon.....the prices should DEFINITELY NOT change no more frequently than they get a gas delivery.....only THEN does their costs for that gas change. I mean....it would be like Walmart knocking on your door and saying..." hey a**hole....you know that milk you bought yesterday, well we've decided you owe us another 60 cents, so pay up!!"

And on that note....last week a gallon of milk at my local grocery store was $2.99....yesterday, it was $3.59!!! 60 cents in a week!!! Yes, I know....it's because of the higher gas prices.....geesh.

[FullBlast 14]

Yea I copy you on the phone call before you go to the job just to make sure it is ready to go. I have that happen every now and then. That sure cuts the profit if it is your mistake and not theirs. If their mistake you can get money if not its out of my pocket. Hate when that happens!!! My guys said they paid $2.99 at the Flying-J in VA this morn. and that is always the cheapest place on I-81. They come back thru there tomorrow night we see what the price is then. Surcharge got to go up!! Good Luck!!!!!!

That is diesel prices. sorry.

[CCPC 26]

Florence, South Carolina:

$2.39 Tuesday

$2.79 Wednesday

$3.49 Today

What really gets me is that yesterday, some of our local stores were changing prices every couple of hours.....I'm SORRY....but this IS price gouging. That is the SAME gas in their tank at 5pm that was there at 3pm.....which they have already paid for, or at least been invoiced for. The distributor is NOT going to call them up and say....."hey, ya know that gas we brought you last night, well you owe us $xxx MORE for it today!"....i mean c'mon.....the prices should DEFINITELY NOT change no more frequently than they get a gas delivery.....only THEN does their costs for that gas change. I mean....it would be like Walmart knocking on your door and saying..." hey a**hole....you know that milk you bought yesterday, well we've decided you owe us another 60 cents, so pay up!!"

And on that note....last week a gallon of milk at my local grocery store was $2.99....yesterday, it was $3.59!!! 60 cents in a week!!! Yes, I know....it's because of the higher gas prices.....geesh.

Yeah, now that you mention it, my expenses are gonna go up in the upcoming months, so I think I need to call a few of my customers from last month and tell them they still owe me. I'd say 20% extra should do just fine.

[FullBlast 14]

Hey I like the sound of that!!! I may just try that!!! LOL!!!!

[PressurePros 249]

If my supplier called me and raised the price on my next shipment I would raise the price. Maybe not that second, but I would watch my competition and if someone raised three times per day, so would I. There is very little margin in gas, a chance to make some extra money on it is not a wicked thing. The owner of the quickie mart was a straight up a$$hole. What goes around comes around...

Rising gas prices are not an indicator of recession or excessive inflation. It's root economics. If you want to put an end to this crush, you have to contribute to lowering the demand. This will be a good thing in the long run. It will push the advent of more plentiful fuel sources. It will make car manufacturers squeze every last drop of economy from their engines. I'm still not sure why we cannot build more refineries but hey I'm just a powerwasher, what do I know.

PS: Someone complaining that their SUV is costing them a fortune in gas just cracks me up. Get a clue.

[John Doherty 126]

The reason the stations jack up the price of what's in the ground already is so they can have the cash flow to pay the new price for what they will need. It's not right but that's why they do it.

I've seen this boycott stuff and it's foolish, not buying for one day will not work if consumtion stays the same. Now a day when everyone doesn't drive would work!!

If you really want to hurt these guys it's easier then you think, buy only gas (or diesel) from them. Anything you buy in their store is a bonus for them, gas only would be a real pinch for them, think about it!

JD

[PLD 14]

did you see on the late news the Shell station that went to $8.00 last night?

The dude actually volunteered to go on camera camly explaining, through a rather sterotypical 7-11 type accent, how people were only byuing gas. No Lotto, no cigarettes, no beer, no nothing. So he had to make money somehow.....

More power to him! He took a risk with his own money and deserves to profit (or not) from his actions.

The camera panned around the lot and guess what...not a car in sight...he had brought the price down to around $4.00 but by then the sales damage was done. All this over some stupid e-mail rumor...

I'm not buying the "email rumor" as the source of all evil. I think that's alot of spin by the authorities to slow buying and prevent hoarding/ artificial shortages. But the fact that supplies are marginal is a fact. My local station (that knows us on a first name basis) called yesterday and let me know that they would (and did) sell out of regular by 5pm. Their today truck was iffy and although it did show up, it was not till after 5pm...

[tidyjet 14]

Hey Full Blast!

What brings you down this way? You're going right by my door.

Yea I copy you on the phone call before you go to the job just to make sure it is ready to go. I have that happen every now and then. That sure cuts the profit if it is your mistake and not theirs. If their mistake you can get money if not its out of my pocket. Hate when that happens!!! My guys said they paid $2.99 at the Flying-J in VA this morn. and that is always the cheapest place on I-81. They come back thru there tomorrow night we see what the price is then. Surcharge got to go up!! Good Luck!!!!!!

That is diesel prices. sorry.

[tidyjet 14]

[quote name= I'm still not sure why we cannot build more refineries but hey I'm just a powerwasher' date=' what do I know.

[/quote]

I was wondering about that the other day - Wuz up w/that? You'd think that some saavy commercial building consortium would pick up on that - get some gov't subsidy or whatever and build out refineries and gas distribution lines. Like OK, there's a shortage of this stuff and duh, like maybe more could be built? Perhaps big market here!

Sorry, "what do I know, I'm just a powerwasher".

[PLD 14]

I don't have a problem with anyone making a profit.

I do have a problem with people who take advantage of their fellow man in a bad situation.

Raising hotel room prices by double or triple during a mandantory evacuation is taking advantage.Raising gas price to compensate for not selling beer and lotto tickets is taking advantage.

You and I could not disagree more. Supply and demand do not respond well when tampered with. My family owns property in on the Florida coast. And during last years hurricanes plywood was running $100/sheet. Word of the prices had speculators loading up trailers and driving down to Florida to take a shot at making a profit. The state put a halt to that and was arresting "profiteers". The end result was that you couldn't find plywood anywhere at any price.

Squeeze the balloon one place and it swells elsewhere. The gas attendant has to make a buck, play the employees, and feed his family. If 50% of his sales is smokes and beer and that goes to zero, then gas goes up.

Triple rates during that once a decade event help pay for vacant rooms after a post-911 type travel environment. It also help pay for staff that end up working 48 hours straight, their additional costs for fuel, supplies, etc. If that business owner doesn't operate as profitably as possible, he may close. And if he closes, where will those evacuees stay then?

"Price gouging" sucks, but it is a fact of life in a free captialist society. It costs alot more money to get a glass of water on the moon than it does by the seaside. Those who risk their money and time in an effort to make a profit off of selling water on the moon deserve to reap the rewards for tehir efforts.

And lest anyone forget, I am being "gouged" to the tune of $3.50 a gallon as I write this.

[PLD 14]

The distributor is NOT going to call them up and say....."hey, ya know that gas we brought you last night, well you owe us $xxx MORE for it today!"

Many (perhaps most) stations do not own the gas. The "name" on teh sign owns it and tells them what to charge. They are paid a percentage that fluctuates with sales volume.

As far as daily price changes, you should read a bit about commodities trading. Yes, today they are selling yesterdays gas. But tomorrow, they will be selling todays gas. Overall, a long term profits are determined by predicting the trends and not by day-to-day fluctuations.

[squirtgun 122]

We found gas this evening for $2.61/89 octane(they ran out of regular,$2.51 a gallon,at 9pm) the stations owner says he won't take advantage of people and will abide by the state of Ga. gouging law.He says he has a consistant supply and that there are no long term shortages and would have regular again at 5am.The gouging law in Ga. enacted today will not allow stations to sell gas for more of a profit per gallon than they did last week.

The state of Ga. has inspectors and sheriffs Dept's out checking stations and they are writing citations.I think I read it's $2000 per offense(i.e. 30 cars filling up at a higher profit than the station made last week means a $60,000 fine).

[PLD 14]

[re: New refineries] I was wondering about that the other day - Wuz up w/that?

EPA, Greenpeace, DNC, Anwar, Florida coast... Shall I name a few more?

[Don Phelps 85]

It's interesting to watch the collateral effect of the situation. I'm sure this will erck some of the hardcore right-wingers, but where's Uncle Sam??? Gonna blame it on the media? All of those that think the country is so wonderful, think back to the 1500's. That's when terrorism really started in America, and your ancestors weren't the ones being attacked. The problem can usually be found in the mirror. It's just another sign of the times for all of the hypocrites.

Sorry, it's just my opinion, and I needed a good rant.....lol.

I'm done!