Gas

"Our addiction to oil is a matter of national security concern."

-George W. Bush (April 24, 2006)

Here is the result of the Poll I ran here on Ellipsis this past week. I think the results, while few in number, is still a fairly accurate representation of how we all feel about what the true cause of the current oil price inflation. I guess the next question is, how we will deal with the prices as they are now, and how the will be in the future?

More and more it has become clear that the Bush administration plans to do very little to ease prices at the pumps. Oh they have a plan alright, in fact according to the White House, Mr. Bush has a 4 point plan...

1. Make sure consumers and taxpayers (voters) are treated fairly.

2. Promote greater fuel efficiency.

3. Boost U.S. gasoline supply by delaying summer deposits to the national reserve. (Most experts agree this will do very little to help)

4. Invest aggressively in gasoline alternatives.

And lets not forget the plan to rollback E.P.A. standards for the processing of oil products.

So, while prices per barrel have actually come down in the last week or so, we, the consumer, will see very little relief at the pumps. According to a recent AP-Ipsos poll, most Americans have already pitched in to do their part, by taking fewer vacations, cutting back on heating and air-conditioning and yet the prices continue to rise.

This is a situation that doesn't just affect whether or not we will be able to take an extended vacation, this problem affects every industry that relies on gasoline for any part of it's supply and demand. A stark example of this terrible state of affairs came when I decided to order an ice-cream pie recently from a nationally known ice-cream shop. I had purchased one about a year ago from the same place and paid approximately $11.00. Last week when I visited the same store, and was preparing to purchase the same pie, I found it would now cost me $18.00. YIKES! It's roughly half-a-gallon of softened ice-cream poured into a graham cracker crust.

While it might be nice to be able to have it made out of some wonderfully, gooey, special flavor...frankly I can make it myself. So, instead of a pie made out of white chocolate raspberry ice-cream, it was made out of homemade cantaloupe honey ice-cream. It was quite good and I had fun coming up with the recipe...but the over all thought is still rather disturbing. The thought that most families in America, can no longer afford simple luxury of a trip to the ice-cream parlor. We in America are working harder, and harder, and getting less and less for it...yet we demand nothing of our representatives...why is that? I don't know about you, but in November I will remember which one of my representatives did what, I have no more patience with politicians who let Bush and company get away with anything and everything, but who display nothing but their CONTINUED outrage at his souless and condescending ways. Bush, the president who keeps America...barefoot and pregnant.

-OndineMonet