Gas prices are cheap right now. Really cheap. Between June and December, gas prices have dropped 56% from a national peak over $4 to $1.79 today. What's going on? The election's been over for almost a month now and prices keep falling. Wasn't the point of the Flying Spaghetti Republican Gas Conspiracy to artifically lower gas prices during ( Read more... )

Remember the Republican Gas Conspiracy? Well it's election season again. Earlier this summer I predicted that gas prices would drop 17% before election day because gas prices always drop 17% between August and early October. This summer, gas peaked at a nationwide price of $4.10 before declining to $2.83 - a 30.9% decrease. Maybe the near- ( Read more... )

Last fall as we approached the 2006 midterm election gas prices dropped 17% - from $3.15 on August 1 to $2.67 on September 22. 42% of Americans thought that this was a Republican-orchestrated price fixing conspiracy. I expressed doubt, saying that among other things cheaper winter blend gas ought to get at least some credit for dropping prices. ( Read more... )

I've been discussing the Republican price manipulation conspiracy theory over in the comments in last week's post. Republican gas price electioneering is an intriguing possibility, but is it possible to find any evidence that this is actually happening? Gasbuddy.com meticulously tracks prices locally and nationwide, which ought to allow us to ( Read more... )

Gas prices have gone down 17% recently, from $3.15 on August 1 to $2.67 today. I've heard and read several opinions that Bush is manipulating gas prices to increase Republican popularity for the midterm election, and supposedly 42% of Americans think Bush controls oil prices.

On one hand I can't rule it out entirely. It's possible, I suppose, ( Read more... )

This morning matrushkaka asked me if biodiesel is "better for the environment" than regular diesel. The answer is "yes and no ( Read more... )

Gas is expensive. Boycotting certain specific gas companies, boycotting on certain days, buying a few gallons of gas at a time, and petitioning President Bush will not bring down gas prices.

Only three things control open market gas prices: supply, demand, and taxes. Our gas taxes are already very low: Federal taxes are 18 cents per gallon, and ( Read more... )