I have been monitoring everything going on and have a notes and information on things I want to post.

I have to start somewhere and today I saw a Letter to the Editor in the April 23, 2008 edition of the Laconia Daily Sun from Sean Holgate of Laconia concerning the prices of fuel and heating oil. The letter is shown below in its entirety.

Now high will the price of gas go before we decide to act?

To the editor,

So gas prices rose three times in one day. I go to work at 6 a.m. and the price for regular unleaded was $3.09.

At 11 a.m. I go to lunch and the price was $3.14. I get off of work and the price was $3.19. This was a couple of weeks ago when gas was cheaper. Now we go past $3.40 a gallon. To fill a average car gas tank (let’s say 16 gallons) it will now cost you $54.40! But if prices keep rising like the trend over the last six years, we will be wishing for cheap gas like we have now.

In July 2003, a gallon of gas was $1.50 in the Boston Area. In July 2005 it was $2.25 a gallon. In June 2007 it was $2.90.

(Check out gasbuddy.com for charts of gas rates over the last 6 years.)

So in four years, gas prices doubled. Now think of this today at $3.40. By April 2012 it will be $6.80 a gallon — $108.80 a tank full.

Now remember everything else will double in price — food, heating oil, utilities, etc. Will you be making double the income you are making right now? I don’t think so. I know I won’t be.

When will it be enough? When will someone stand up and say no more? We need to pass laws to prevent price gouging on a daily basis. We need to open the federal oil reserves and lower the price of fuel so Americans don’t have to figure out how to put food on the tables and heating oil in the tank. How many of you had to put home heating fuel on a credit card this year? I raised my hand. How many of you are going to use your extra money the government is giving you in May to catch up on bills you didn’t have a couple of years ago? Other hand raised. Both hands raised means I surrender!

I have been blessed to be raised in a country that stands up for what it believes in. The Boston Tea Party comes to mind. How far do we need to be pushed before we start to push back? What can we do?

Maybe park the cars for a day. Maybe protest in Washington DC and let the president hear the people of the United States of America! Maybe....maybe.....maybe nothing....maybe the price will hit it’s peak and then it will fall on it’s own.....Right!

If we do nothing, then who’s fault is it when we are paying $10.00 a gallon (around 2015) and only the rich will be able to afford to drive? Hopefully the Hybrid gets 200 mpg by then!

Sean Holgate

Laconia

This is something of great importance that will also indirectly affect our family budgets in the higher costs of the goods (food, medicine, clothing, etc…) and services that we use in our lives everyday.The factors that affect the oil prices are quite complex and I don’t want to take up too much space right now.

I will follow-up with information about how we got to this situation and what I see as viable short term solutions in the next day or two.