[quote]Kilosprinter2 wrote:
Stocks/ETFs such as USO, HESS, IYE, IEO did pretty well over the last year or so. COP and XOM, at second look, not too bad either.
Unfortunetly, I think now is a bad time to invest long term in these. If you do go in now, make sure you trail it very closely. The way oil prices are shooting up, I see them coming back down even harder. That’s not to say oil will ever be cheap, but you could get caught out if you buy in at these highs.[/quote]
The stocks might not be growing all that much, but they are paying out $billions in dividends. And oil is not going down until A) China gets hit with a tsunami that wipes out all of Shanghai and B) the dollar gets out of the crapper.
I don’t do anything to get around gas prices. Public transportation is awful around here, so it’s not like I have an alternative.
[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
Disagree with this. These prices are a natural result of supply and demand with a bit of speculation and market manipulation thrown in.[/quote]
And you don’t think the chaos the two “arseholes” created in the second most oil-rich country has something to do with the increase? How about the incessant belligerence from Washington towards Tehran and Caracas?
In any case, the increase in oil correlates perfectly with the bloody (in the literal sense) war.
[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
You guys don’t drive as far as we do. America is pretty spread out.[/quote]
Damn suburbs. I am predicting a resurgence in city dwelling. Home prices are starting to drop a little bit so the younger crowd will start moving in any minute mow.
I only have a four mile drive to work and some days I even get to work from home. The good thing about living in a small city is that in my neighborhood I have all the necessities within a few blocks so walking or driving is a non-issue. I fill my 10 gallon tank only once a month.
[quote]lixy wrote:
And you don’t think the chaos the two “arseholes” created in the second most oil-rich country has something to do with the increase? How about the incessant belligerence from Washington towards Tehran and Caracas?
[/quote]
No doubt, the price of oil is also carrying a premium on all the turmoil going on in the oil drilling regions. Oil prices are a prediction of future supply and demand and it is only going to get higher in terms of US dollars due to inflation (which the state employed economists ensure us is not happening) and an increasing demand from Asia.
I heard it hit $135/bl today on the People’s Radio. Despite the price panic at the pump this is a good thing in terms of supply in the long run.
[quote]lixy wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
Disagree with this. These prices are a natural result of supply and demand with a bit of speculation and market manipulation thrown in.
And you don’t think the chaos the two “arseholes” created in the second most oil-rich country has something to do with the increase? How about the incessant belligerence from Washington towards Tehran and Caracas?
In any case, the increase in oil correlates perfectly with the bloody (in the literal sense) war.[/quote]
Once again correlation does not equal causation. But nice way to pretend Iran and Venezuela were friendly before the war. Just like how you pretend Iraq was a paradise before the nasty Americans kicked Saddam out.
Oil is pushed up due to a major jump in demand as a result of India and China growing.
Then the supply was reduced because nobody was looking for the stuff in the 90’s.
As long as IRAQ is in the news, and terrorism is a problem, there will an added $15 “terror premium” added to the price.
There is also the reduced value of the dollar. which is hitting the price from 2 different directions. (People jump into commodities as a hedge against inflation.)
But none of this really justifies the price. This is a bubble pure and simple. The only question is when will it burst?
I recently read that oil output growth has seriously outpaced demand growth over the past 2 years.
Here is a quite interesting article from BusinessWeek:
I drove and loved driving my Toyota Tundra but these prices were getting to painful and I commute a fair distance to work. I bought a used Ford Focus a week ago and I am getting over 30 mpg on the hwy. It was nice cruising that smooth Tundra on the hwy, but I have no problem zipping around now in my little Focus. Also, the feeling is so much better filling that tank and seeing the price. I still have my Tundra for the weekends and mountains to fill that ego tank.
[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
But nice way to pretend Iran and Venezuela were friendly before the war.
[/quote]
For crying out loud! Need we rehash the MI-5 and CIA’s role in the overthrowing of a democratically elected Iranian government and its replacement by a tyrannical Washington-friendly despot? Need I remind you that the prick who overthrew Chavez in 2002 is a regular at the White House and that Washington was the first country to acknowledge his coup as legitimate (however short-lived).
[quote]Kilosprinter2 wrote:
I mentioned using a bike as transportation sometimes and someone suggested I hand in my man card.
[/quote]
I’m heavily considering riding a bicycle to work this summer - 25 miles round trip, sidewalks all the way. No mass transportation available in the burbs. It might be a good way to lose a couple pounds as well. Training days will suck though.
[quote]Chris82362 wrote:
I get 11.6mpg in my LT1 Formula. [/quote]
You are doing better than me…I’m like 9mpg on my 97LT1 6spd…but that’s city only. The rare time I’m on the highway it’s much better. 1900RPM @80mph in 6th is nice.
It’s a tough call for me as I paid cash for my car, ins is cheap and it runs great. If I go newer, it’ll cost me more to buy the car and insure it, and if I go too much older, than you start dealing with breakdowns etc.
[quote]lixy wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
But nice way to pretend Iran and Venezuela were friendly before the war.
For crying out loud! Need we rehash the MI-5 and CIA’s role in the overthrowing of a democratically elected Iranian government and its replacement by a tyrannical Washington-friendly despot? Need I remind you that the prick who overthrew Chavez in 2002 is a regular at the White House and that Washington was the first country to acknowledge his coup as legitimate (however short-lived).
[quote]Chris82362 wrote:
I get 11.6mpg in my LT1 Formula. I’ve decided to start biking the 3 miles to school, seeing how I can bike to school faster than drive (with off-campus parking and walking to the school).
What’s unmanly about biking? I constantly have people tell me I’m crazy when I used to longboard skateboard to school, and some people think biking that much is crazy, too. But if you’re going to bike, bike as fast as you can. Anything less and you’ll look like a pussy.[/quote]
Well right now I live 23 miles from my university, so if I bike it, I’ll end up being all nasty and sweaty. Plus I would want to wear my bike clothes, and that would just be a hassle changing twice a day.
I already bike about 200 miles a week for fun/sport. I personally think what I do is more manly than anyone else on the road, but I know people disagree.
Remember the 40 yr old virgin? He got ranked on for biking to work. Even I thought he was a dork when he couldn’t pick up his date though, lol. Maybe when gas goes over $10/gal it won’t be uncool to use a bike as transportation.
Would anyone here dare be seen on a motorized bike? (Benefits over a motorcycle - no reg, insur, taxes, a lot less maintance, better mpg, bike-handling, a lot cheaper)
They sell bike engine kits for under $200 on ebay.
Just do your part to consume less. Even if you drive a truck or suv, try to get the most out of each tank. Accelerate at whatever pace is best for fuel economy, coast when possible, and avoid tearing away at red lights. I get 25-30mpg city with my 4L ford ranger.
[quote]lixy wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
But nice way to pretend Iran and Venezuela were friendly before the war.
For crying out loud! Need we rehash the MI-5 and CIA’s role in the overthrowing of a democratically elected Iranian government and its replacement by a tyrannical Washington-friendly despot? Need I remind you that the prick who overthrew Chavez in 2002 is a regular at the White House and that Washington was the first country to acknowledge his coup as legitimate (however short-lived).
Grow up already![/quote]
For those who don’t frequent the political forum Lixy is a troll who answered the call for a Cyber Jihad against the US in early 2007. For some strange reason he chose T-Nation to spread spread the drivel.
Most of the veterans have dismissed him so it looks like he is creeping into the other forums. He’s fun for comic refief now and then.
Seems to me this’ll be the way to go. If you don’t consider the initial cost of the hardware, I think the production is about $1.25 a gallon, although you’ll spend the weekend producing about 40 gallons.
