Brace yourself. Up to $6.00 per gallon gasoline.

Ike's Gulf of Mexico romp has thrown a monkey wrench into things.
With the evacuation of Gulf oil rigs gas prices are approaching $6.00 per gallon in Lansing, Grand Rapids, and downstate Michigan. I just filled up here in Big Rapids (first time in a many months), but the lines are getting long as word spreads ($3.95 per gallon). Several stations in town are already pushing the $5.50 per gallon level. Word has it that this is not going to be a short-term situation.

Question: Will this have a political effect? If so, which candidate does this benefit?

I'll put my money on Obama's 2012 energy independence, but I don't know if John and Mary NASCAR-fan will see it that way. They may see that drilling, drilling, drilling is the solution.

:rofl:

Seriously, I hope you're right. But the American people are, frankly, stupid on this issue. And the Republicans have managed to exploit this very well.

:rofl:

x(

I'm in the Midwest, not in the hurricane path. However, I've been reading
about gas prices rising, and they'll probably be through the roof in the overnight
hours.

My husband took my bank card to work today and I have no cash, so I haven't been
able to fill up our shamemobile--which is totally on "E" with the fuel light on!

He gets home at 8:15, and I'm tearing off to the gas station then! :crazy:

offshore drilling AS A SOLUTION to our gas price woes. We know that's not true. Even Bush's energy people said it would have no effect for YEARS, yet the Reps give that impression, and the people are believing it.

lines at stations - some smaller rural stations gone empty - word is it will be raised to $5 by tomorrow AM, hence, I suppose, the run on gas today.

Was running almost empty this afternoon and had to stop for gas - waited an hour in line to fill up.

I hope it redounds to McCain's detriment and highlights the failure of the Bush Oil Company's policies.

me thinks there's some gouging going on more than a trickle-on effect from Ike

That is exactly what is happening, as gasoline stocks were really good. This is wholesalers attempting to make up their losses from hedging and speculation in the markets.

I'm not sure what people were reading or watching to prompt this (other than Ike, of course...I mean what specifically they heard), but I got a call from a friend, whose family owns a service station, telling me to be sure to get gas right then, not to wait. Sure enough, there were lines everywhere, prices jumped at least a dollar a gallon since this morning. They're saying when it runs out here, we may not have any gas tankers coming our way for another week.

:shrug:

The reason why prices in Virginia, North Carolina, and surrounding states are rising so fast is that we get our gasoline from refineries in, you guessed it, the gulf. While there is a small refinery in eastern Virginia, there are no pipelines coming west. The gasoline refined there is piped to DC, Maryland, and north.

I filled up yesterday at $3.49/gal, and today topped off at a local station at $3.79. There were no lines where I live, but it's rural here. There were lines going around the block at most gas stations when I left work in Lynchburg today.

Reminded me, and not in a good way, of the 70's.

I think a CBC article said gas was climbing 16 cents a liter last night, so I ran down and got it done (normally I do it always before things like this...its obvious to tell when a hike is coming).

Gas is already $5.25 a gallon here in BC. I didn't see what it hiked up to today.

The problem is NOT the rigs in the Gulf. The problem is the REFINERIES in Houston. In my hometown, Baytown, you have the largest Exxon refinery in the United States. It's one of the largest refineries in the world. In the Houston area, you have a ton of other refineries.

...to keep the costs down. And Indy cars are run on ethanol, and they brag about it. A lot of Gran Tourismo series cars are running on diesel these days. Oh, and John and Mary NASCAR fans pay a lot to bring their campers to the races these days, and are complaining about it. Bush and Cheney went to a NASCAR race once... they never came back. Perhaps if Biden showed up at Dover on 9/21, he might help the cause, and bring in some of those voters.

x(

took a friend to the bus station in FTW and half the filling stations were out of fuel and the other half was sporting medium to long lines. Fuel prices jumped 20¢ here overnight.

well West at the moment then went north to relatives in Tulsa.

Some are still holding in the mid $4.00 range, but there's a vast number already in the $5.00 range. Most stations are completely out of gas but they are still raising prices in case they receive one of the few shipments that are supposedly on their way.

This will destroy the economy here - and elsewhere. People are livid and wanting answers. Many businesses are implementing tele-commuting protocols for some staff and trying to put together transportation plans in place to keep manufacturing and service industries going. My own company is doing this just in case the predictions here on the ground come true.

Can you spell P R I C E G O U G I N G

The rises in gasoline is definitely price gouging!

..... but typically $3.90-$4 a gallon.

My boyfriend just reported.

WTF?

Even so, I think I'll go run a fast errand and top off my tank (filled up day before yesterday, down about two gallons) now.

Though I'm sure we'll get screwed even if none of our gas probably flows through Texas.