Oil hits $78/barrel 10

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1. 

   JMG Posted 2:24 am
   14 Jul 2006

   Why ouch?  At $84/bbl, oil is $2/gallon, or $0.50 per quart, far cheaper than bottled water, soda pop, or any number of other liquids far less useful.  
     The more expensive oil is, the more gas will cost, which is the sine qua non of conservation--Americans have shown time and time again that nothing impels them to conserve other than price signals.
     The more oil costs, the less we'll use, and the more likely we are to break through the "consensus trance" belief that energy is infinitely available and can be used like, well, water.
     Given the centrality of energy to our society--and the fact that we're now at the peak in oil supply and soon to face a decline in availabilty of 2-5% per year (if we're lucky and it's not 8%), then anything that forces people to stop wasting it is all to the good.

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2. 

   sunflower Posted 2:54 am
   14 Jul 2006

   Prophecy of OilNot anything.  With or without war, oil is on her death bed.  There is no good reason to kill people.
   I read the Koran online to better understand the message from the East and the fear in Israel.
   I also met with some of the Believers.  Their plan is to sell cheap oil to deplete world oil supply rapidly (and to suppress energy alternatives) and then to wait until the West is no longer capable of protecting Israel.  Under this plan, time is not a friend of Israel.  Believers believe the fate of nation-states has already been determined by God.
   BTW, There is no interest in the USA, that land has never been holy land.  The Koran is very specific about peace and the need to fight in the way of Allah to expel nonbelievers from the homes of believers.

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3. 

   amazingdrx Posted 4:15 am
   14 Jul 2006

   Exxon mob dancingAh the glee, the sheer oily ecstasy.  Can 100 be far ahead?
   As oil goes up oil consumption drops, that's the good news.
   
   http://amazngdrx.blogharbor.com/blog

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4. 

   LegumeSam Posted 4:20 am
   14 Jul 2006

   Dunno...As oil goes up oil consumption drops, that's the good news. How meaningful is the drop in oil consumption caused by high prices?
   To what extent is oil consumption "locked in" by an infrastructure dependent upon automobiles?  If I have to drive to work, if the alternative is not having a job, I will still have to buy gasoline regardless of the price.
   
   http://ecosocialism.blogspot.com/

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5. 

   kmp Posted 4:31 am
   14 Jul 2006

   I have to agree......with Sam.  I believe that people will start exercising some conservation and efficiency as prices go up, but there clearly is not a 1:1 relationship.  Gas prices have nearly doubled in the last year or so, but consumption certainly has not been cut in half.
   I think increasing oil/gas prices will lower consumption until it hits a certain plateau; most people have no choice but to heat their homes, drive to work, purchase food that has been shipped from far away (and wrapped in plastic).... unfortunately I don't think alternative energy systems will be put into place quickly enough to avoid hitting the oil/gas consumption plateau.

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6. 

   sunflower Posted 4:32 am
   14 Jul 2006

   EfficiencyThe alternative is to car pool.

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7. 

   amazingdrx Posted 4:35 am
   14 Jul 2006

   Half of driven miles a waste?A lot of discretionary gasoline use will be curtailed sam.  Maybe half of miles driven are unecessary?
   Think of what carpooling to work, making spoiled kids ride the bus to school, and only 2 shopping trips per week would do for instance.
   at 4 to 5 bucks serious conservation of driven miles will ramp up.  At 7 bucks?  Wheeew.  What a squeeze.
   Consumer spending will drop too as shopping is less frequent.  Say hello to our little eco friend, stagflation.  Bushenomics in action.  Gonna get trickled on again by the ruling class of the divine right of capital.
   Will Walmart and Exxonmob be the only bizz left standing after this recession?  Maybe a few more will thrive, Halliburton for one.
   
   http://amazngdrx.blogharbor.com/blog

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8. 

   robertmacelvain Posted 8:05 am
   16 Jul 2006

   SLOW MOTION HYDROGEN BOMB! REBUT IT, IF YOU CAN.Start watching for headlines that are more optimistic, such as these:
   GLOBAL WARMING REVERSED!
   
   DIASTER AVERTED... EARTH SAVED!
   
   MAN-MADE CLIMATE CHANGES... PERMANENTLY NULLIFIED!
   Albert Einstein provided the perfect scientific answer to Global Warming in 1905 with his paradigm, mass-to-energy equation, which is the key to unlocking all of the clean, cheap, environmentally friendly energy the inhabitants of Earth will ever need, without any pollution or waste stream, and with no carbon dioxide or other greenhouse emissions.
   Even the super-powerful Energy Cartel will be unable to prevent millions of individuals around the World from freely switching to this abundant and everlasting Einsteinian cornucopia of "home-made energy," which will automatically reestablish Mother Nature as the exclusive controller of climate change.  
   http://slow-motion-Thermonuclear.blogspot.com/2006/06/invention-for-sale-slow...

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9. 

   ffletcher Posted 4:27 pm
   16 Jul 2006

   Cost of OilIn real terms, that being consumer buying power, this appears to be the highest price for oil ever.  When I used the 3 month average price, a figure I believe reflects the cost experienced as a refiner who hedges its requirements rather than buying all of its needs on the spot market, and a CPI of 80 for 1980 and 200 for today I get a price more like $72 to $75 dollars.
   This is historic.

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10. 

    ffletcher Posted 4:30 pm
    16 Jul 2006

    MathI got the above $72 to $75 by multipling the last oil peak prices of the 1979/1980 era by the consumer price index increase.

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