Headlines IV

U.S., OPEC: Get used to higher oil costs
Projections show higer crude prices into 2014

So.... this is news? And how do these supposed experts know what is going to occur between now and eight years? This L.A. Times story goes into the current situation, and one part states that perhaps we would see $3.00 per gallon (in the U.S.) sometime in the next 18 months. The best we can hope for is an "erratic uptrend rather than a spiky uptrend." says Stephen Leeb, author of Oil Factor.

Let's see - next year, we could have another hurricane disrupt supplies. We could see OPEC producers over produce, even though they plan on cutting production next year. (They wouldn't want us having cheap oil now that we are "getting used to" paying $2.25 per gallon.)

We all know that it is impossible to predict these things with any degree of certainty. It does seem plausible that higher prices are here to stay if we believe the whole extra demand from Asia reasoning - and certainly more demand worldwide would seem to mean higher prices.

So, we are paying slightly less than what we should be paying for oil when we compare it to other goods prices over time. So really, it isn't a big deal. We just got away with paying unusually cheap gas prices for many years.

The good thing about this whole thing is that perhaps demand for the gas guzzlers and those idiotic Hummer's will diminish, and other forms of energy will actually start to be explored seriously so we can end having our gonads tightly in the hands of the middle east. Anybody see $4.00 per gallon? I predict $4.00 per gallon by 2014. How's that? Then again, maybe it will be $1.50 by 2014.

I was just hoping that it might just get down below $2.00 by the end of the year - it was down to $2.09 at the local discount gas station a couple weeks ago - just 10 cents from the golden $1.99 - but then it jumped back up to $2.19 last week. Bummer. Hybrid here I come.