A few governors ago, Minnesota had the problem of businesses on the border not being able to compete because of sales taxes, and certain enterprise zones were created to help. Nothing new.
I noticed yesterday the price of regular jumped 19 cents in one day to $4.44. I filled up the day before.
The CEO of Pilot Truck stops was explaining why their diesel is so high. He said they had been ordered by BNSF railroad to reduce their freight by 20% and suggested it could go to 50%. Then there was a railroad hearing I think last month discussing rail efficiency issues. I’m not into current railroad traffic issues but wonder what is going on? A fertilizer supplier a month or so ago also said they were irdered to reduce their use of the rails.
What can’t be sent on the lower cost rails, has to be trucked at increased priced that is reflected for the end users.
As far as new cars being shipped on rails, from what I am hearing they will not ship the cars until the whole train is full. So, they can sit at the railway for weeks or more until they are shipped,
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I’ll see your $4.44 and raise … lol … seriously, the tv news last night said a gas station in downtown LA had just posted a gas price over $8. That’s about $2 higher than the average price in Calif I think.
The most expensive gasoline in Calif is usually the main gas station at Death Valley, Furnace Creek. It takes a lot of effort to get gasoline to that hard to reach spot. And only only one station, no competition.
National Park Recommendation. If you’ve never been to Death Valley, it’s a pretty interesting place for a visit. Family friendly too. Best to avoid mid-summer though, Furnace Creek is called that for a reason, spring and fall the best times.
I used to watch “Death Valley days” so feel like I’ve been there.
I still use Boraxo 20 mule team to clean my hands. does that count? 
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Only to 20, and then you rinse.
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Wife refused to go to Death Valley, but we did go to the Borax open pit mine. Employee there drove us to the bottom of the pit, got us a piece of “TV crystal” and a large chunk of borax. The borax is hydroscopic so did not last when we returned to FL high humidity. I have the model of the 20 Mule team and wagons, kitty litter used as ore.
I enjoyed driving in the desert, but still watched my speed though law enforcement was scarce.
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Best to fill up at Beatty NV before dropping down into Death Valley. Much cheaper there. Also Stovepipe Wells is always a bit cheaper than Furnace Creek.
I live in Sacramento and yesterday, the price of premium at the Shell station near my house was $6.999. Haven’t looked today…
Odd but WI has a higher gas tax than IL, but WI price per gallon is lower, go figure!
Gas went up another 20 cents today. So that’s 20 on Wed. and 20 on Thursday to $4.64. I hope this is not a daily event.
Or, the state could hire a guy like me who can take ordinary expenses and bury them as capital expenses or vice versa😉.
There are supply chain issues everywhere. Ukraine supplies most of the wiring harnesses for automobiles. That’s a big problem for brands that buy those looms. Ukrainian grain is also having a hard time getting out of the country. Grain can’t go through Belorus to Lithuania because of embargoes. It can’t go through Poland easily because of different rail gauges in Ukraine, Poland, and other stops on the way to Lithuania. Grain can’t go through Ukrainian ports because Ukraine mined the harbor entrances to keep Russian naval vessels out. The usual African customers are starving. The US could provide grain, but that will drive up costs here with new, large customers in Africa. Oh, and don’t forget about China shutting down a lot of commerce as a result of their zero COVID-19 tolerance. Supply chain issues are a world wide issue.
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OK, we’re all chafing under gas/diesel prices which are all pinching our wallets but let’s pause for a moment and understand the reasons for the increase.
- The Prices increased $1.75/gallon since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. So at what price is an invasion and destruction of a peaceful country acceptable?
2 “The Government” doesn’t manufacture baby formula or gasoline and God help us if it starts so who’s actually responsible for the price increase?
- Over the years we’ve spent billions in taxpayer dollars in supporting repressive regimes in the cause of cheap oil and ignoring our domestic industries but when push comes to shove and values, where are they? Imagine the result if we’d spent that money on EV development or Appilancian/Pennsylvania gas pipelines and shipping ports
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Um prices went up before the war and the FDA shut down the formula plant for somewhat unusual issues. 20% of fertilizer for those grain fields in the US comes from Russia, and there is much evidence that the war could have been prevented. As Barr said, one dang thing after another.
Not disputing the fact, but it seems very odd for American car company management to allow themselves to be single-sourced to Ukrainian vendors for such critical car parts as wiring harnesses.
Maybe there are multiple sources for wiriing harnesses, but only the Ukrainian vendors had been getting the contracts?
Looms are a low cost, low profit item best suited for manufacture in Eastern Europe or maybe South/Southeast Asia. The article subject was automated domestic manufacture of EV harnesses and how the loss of the world’s major supplier could accelerate EV manufacture. Chevrolet announced last week that they are lowering the base price of the new base Bolt to $25k and some change. Whether they can build them for less isn’t important to any of us. The price we pay is the important thing.
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To make one thing clear, we didn’t decide on a war, the Russians did and for God knows why.
Our choice is to whether or not to stand on our convictions. The Boston Tea Party wasn’t fought about cheaper tea and infact after a brief adjustment the US found that that American coffee was a much better substitute. (And how may of you prefer a “morining tea” to a coffee and donout").
Likewise, in this time we need to make decisions,. Make the product Domestically, pay a lttle bit more and support Domestic jobs or continue to support questionable Ally’s or Advisaries?
Would I be happy to pay an additional $1/ gallon for gas, heck no!
But would I pay a buck a gallon to support American jobs and my children’s and grand childrens’s future, hell yes! And frankly I see this as an in investment in our non-oil dependent future.
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Well two years ago we were oil and gas independent and didn’t have to go crying to Ven or the Saudies.
I don’t at all excuse what Putin is doing, however at least since WW II they have been very concerned about protecting their borders. When they agreed to unify Germany, the understanding was that NATO would not move farther east. But we initiated a coup in 2014, threatening NATO. Then again in 21 suggested we would support Ukraine joining NATO. Then he invaded. To say we had no part in it is naive. All Ukraine had to do was say they would not join. Maybe it would have cost part of the east but they would have avoided the whole place being rubble.