My route to work usually takes me through a bad part of town. Not a really big deal at 6:30 in the morning because no one's around that time of the day except for a lot of commuters. As long as you're not in this part of Baltimore from dusk to dawn, you should be fine. I get to drive by the Pimlico racetrack every day on the way to work. For those that don't know, that's where the Preakness is held each year. It's also known as the second leg of the Triple Crown. It's actually pretty neat to drive by it in the morning. The horses and their riders are usually out very early in the morning getting some exercise on the track. I can only imagine how early they got up in order to get the horses saddled and out on the track by 6:30 in the morning. This year's Preakness is just around the corner (May 20th). You won't believe the photos I get from that day.After I pass the race track, I head down into a commercial area that has 3 gas stations at the same intersection. Great place to buy gasoline for two main reasons. The first is obviously that there are three gas stations right there, so they all are constantly trying to get a pricing edge on the other two stations. Second, the gas stations are located in a poorer part of town. For those that don't know, gas companies often alter the prices at gas stations in certain areas based on the median income of that area. So a neighborhood that has a median income of $150,000 would have to pay 10-15 cents more per gallon for the same gas that would be sold for cheaper in a neighborhood with a median income of $50,000. Basically, it's set up similar to the U.S. tax system in that they charge a higher price for those who can afford the extra few pennies per gallon and then pass on the savings to the neighborhoods who can't afford to part with those extra pennies. It's an accepted practice that none of the gasoline/oil companies will ever admit they are actually doing.
So I drive by the intersection this morning looking to see what the three gas stations are charging for gasoline.
$3.05
$3.05
$3.06
WHAT?!?!?!?!
This has got way out of control. I'm even willing to side with ***gasp*** the Democrats on this issue that the gas prices are simply insane. The obvious problem is that the Democrats can promise the sun, moon, and the stars as far as lower gas prices go, but until drastic changes are made, nothing will change. We could have a Democratic president and Democratic majority in the House and Senate and nothing would be different.
It doesn't matter who's in charge. 3 things have to be done to make a difference:
1. Drastic increase in hybrid vehicle production. The technology is there, but the U.S. auto makers are too dumb to follow Honda and Toyota's lead. Also, the hybrid vehicles that are produced are not manufactured in high enough quantity. The leadership of the U.S. auto industries is ridiculously slow to act to any changes in demand, mainly because they are so entrenched in certain production based on union contracts that they cannot adapt quickly enough.
2. The government officials get far too many kickbacks to admit it, but there is a restriction on the oil market that basically makes it a form of monopoly or oligopoly. A few companies have the entire market under wraps. There's no way that anyone can start up a new company and compete with the companies already in place. With those kinds of restriction to entry into the market, it's tough to get a fair market established with any form of competition. The companies that are there find a nice price point where everyone can get along and all make a tidy (or enormous) profit.
3. Drilling in Alaska must be allowed. The eco-friendly groups have gotten way out of control on this issue. They are taking such an extreme stance at this point that no progress can be made at all. A drilling site in the Alaskan wilderness would take up roughly 1/3 of a mile square. The technology is now in place where that site can be totally dismantled, the well can be capped and all equipment can be removed leaving no trace of the well when drilling is complete. Yet the eco groups will tell you that the habitat of thousands of wildlife species will suffer irreperable harm. Seriously, can a polar bear not walk 1/3 of a mile out of the way? Will a bird die by flying over a well site? Can these animals not find a home in the millions of square miles of undisturbed habitat in the Alaskan wilderness? Listen, I've been to Canada before. Outside of the city limits of the few large towns, I find it tough to believe that an animal couldn't find a home amongst all of that wealth of space. Also, assuming the government and auto makers do their job, the drilling in Alaska would mainly be a bridge of resources to allow the U.S. to get to the point 10-15 years from now when more fuel-efficient cars are common-place.
As I said, this isn't a party issue. I just find it amusing that both sides seem to find the other side is at fault. The solutions are quite easy. The reality is that both sides receive large kickbacks from oil companies and are slow to do anything other than keep the status quo. Everyone wins in that situation........except the general citizens of the country. Honestly makes me want to run for government office. At least I'd have some opportunity to try to break the status quo.
