Pump prices have been lower for quite a while now, so this might not be extremely interesting, but I’ll post it anyways.

I remember that at the height of gas prices there was a TON of complaining. It was Bush’s fault, the government should do something, the oil companies are evil, etc. Once you see the following though, you will be a better informed citizen, and when you hear people say stupid things, you can then correct them.

Gasoline prices are directly related to the price of oil. The price of oil gets set in a fashion similar to the stock market. That’s not something the government controls, or George Bush (or now Obama), or the evil oil companies. It’s set on the open market, and take a look at the graph below. The price of oil and the price of a gallon of gas are perfectly aligned. In the future, the next time you see Congress summon the heads of the major oil companies to see if they are in collusion, now you will know what a bunch of idiots they are.

To make your own chart go here.

I would like to thank George W. Bush for the recent downturn in gas prices, a trend that will most certainly continue as the price of a barrel of oil fell to $92!

You might think it odd to attribute this to George W. Bush, but it makes perfect sense. It was obviously his fault when gas prices went up, so the correlation must follow that prices are now going down because of him.

In case you’ve never heard me complain about it before, the state of California has decided that despite requiring a Bachelor’s Degree and a Credential to teach (6 years of schooling), they also think beginning teachers need extra “support” that their 6 years of college didn’t provide. This used to be completed by taking college courses but has since been replaced by a district led program. For the last two years I have suffered through mounds of paperwork and extra meetings, but as of today that is finally over! The only positives of the program are that I will get college credit at cheap prices which push me over on the pay scale, and I got to do the program with some other great teachers, but overall the whole program is a waste. It’s a waste of everyone’s time, and it’s a huge waste of money. This is a prime example of government organizations creating unnecessary bureaucracies.

Second I’d like to complain about people that complain about gas prices. Is gas more expensive than it used to be? Yes, but please don’t blame it on oil companies. For all the people that don’t know how to think critically and think oil companies are somehow manipulating prices, please read this article. If you’re too lazy to read it, here is my favorite part:

ExxonMobil, the nation’s largest oil company, profited 10 cents for every dollar it brought in revenue in 2007. That puts its profit margin in the middle of other Fortune 500 companies, including Bank of America (18-percent profit margin) (NYSE: BAC), AT&T (11.8 percent) (NYSE: T) and Proctor & Gamble (13.1 percent).

Just because oil companies make a lot of profits, their profit margins are nothing out of the ordinary. Not to mention that an American company making money is a GOOD thing! It’s not like there is one guy sitting around in a gold bath tub drinking margaritas and taking all the money. Companies like Exxon are corporations, and when they do well their investors are rewarded. Instead of complaining about the amount of profits that oil companies make, maybe people should buy some Exxon stock instead.

The last couple days I’ve been reading up on CARS! I love my Celica and I would drive it until it died, but it’s not family friendly. Let me clarify. That means I am thinking about the future, and since I intend to buy a car and drive it for 10-15 years, it will need a backseat big enough for a car seat. That isn’t possible in the Celica.

I’ve started looking and I have some ideas, but I thought I would poll my small group of friends online for advice. Until recently I had vowed to only buy a Toyota, but I’ve always considered Honda to be of a similar quality. Feel free to suggest car options outside of those two makers, but it’s unlikely you’ll change my mind.

Here are some of my priorities in a new car, in order of importance:

1) Backseat – Must have one. Doesn’t have to be enormous, but big enough for a carseat.

2) MPG – I pulled in a pathetic 18 mpg last fill up. Gas prices increasing without end, and this is important.

3) Price – Cheaper is better, but I’m not talking a Kia. Under $25,000 would be preferrable.

4) Utility – It would be nice if it was different from the wife’s Jetta (or future Camry), but the previously mentioned priorities have pushed utility down on the list. A truck bed or sport utility of some sort would give the family more options, but it’s not as important as it once was.

There are the priorities. I’m officially old and boring. My car likes/dislikes are being shaped by practical reasons, not cool factor. Any suggestions?

Gas prices are heading south, but I don’t hear anyone giving George Bush credit for that. After all, if people want to blame him when they go up, they should praise him when they go down. If that sounds retarded to you, it’s because it is.

As gas prices go down, I would like to point out that OPEC doesn’t like that. In an effort to make the price go back up they are cutting supply. Gasp! "You mean gas prices aren’t up to the Dick Cheney and all the evil Republicans?" I get sick and tired of the idiocy of the general public that attributes anything negative to the people in charge.

Aside from gas prices, the economy is another great example of how dumb people are. The ENTIRE time Bush has been in office I’ve had to listen to people complain that the economy is in a recession (when it’s not) and that everything sucks. I found an interesting poll over at Reuters that seems to contradict itself.

On October 18th, 47% of people think the job market is worse than three years ago, and 38% think it’s better. On October 16th, 76% thought the country was on the wrong track, and only 22% on the right track. Both of these make it sound like people think the country is in the toilet. The economy is worse, and everything is on the wrong track…right? Only 2 weeks earlier on October 2nd, 53% of people have a higher salary than 4 years ago, only 22% make less, and 25% make the same. Why doesn’t the fact that people individually are doing better translate into the economy doing better?

According to this poll, people that don’t like Bush are confused….

On your Household Financial Situation…among those saying they approve of the way Bush is handling his job, 99% say excellent, very good, or good. Among those saying they disapprove of the way Bush is handling his job, 53% say excellent, very good, or good and 46% say bad, very bad, or terrible.

-People that don’t like Bush think their personal financial situation is about 50 positive/50 negative.

On the National Economy…among those saying they approve of the way Bush is handling his job, 96% say excellent, very good, or good and 3% say bad, very bad, or terrible. Among those saying they disapprove of  the way Bush is handling his job, 89% say bad, very bad, or terrible and 10% say excellent, very good, or good.

-Whoa! People that don’t like Bush (who were 50/50 on their personal situation), almost 90% of them say the economy is bad!?!?

Yah statistics are boring, but they can sure tell a lot. Apparently to some, success in your own life has no effect on the economy. As long as George W. Bush is in charge the economy will suck. People, get your head out of the sand and stop blaming others.

I’m tired but feel like posting something. Here’s a small sample of the idiocy of late:

• Rosie O’Donnell thinks "radical Christianity" is just as dangerous as "radical Islam." Nevermind that six Muslim nations officially carry the death penalty for homosexuals. Even more saddening is the reaction from the crowd. What the crap are you clapping for idiots? I have failed to notice the Christian suicide bombers around the world threatening to kill anyone who does not convert.

• The Pope points out the violent nature of Islam, to which many Muslims get violent about. Could he have been more right?

• Gas prices go up: life is bad. Gas prices go down: life is good. Consumers too idiotic to objectively judge their current happiness: par for the course.

• On the new Survivor contestants are split by race, and some feel the need to "represent" their race. I don’t care what color you are, you don’t represent anyone but yourself. Just shut up with the awareness for miniorities BS and get past the color of your skin. When you say "I’m proud to be a minority" and constantly invoke the color of your skin, eventually you will become the racist, not the people willing to accept you for your qualities as a human being.

• Arnold seems confused lately. First he raises the minimum wage to $8 by 2008. Minimum wage should be outlawed you socialist! Has he never been to the Subway at Florence and Paramount? The people there are way overpaid, thus proving why minimum wage is such a stupid idea (not to mention the economic forces like incentives that people don’t need when they get paid more just for being idiots). Now he’s signed a bill that makes using a cell phone in the car illegal. Why is this stupid you might ask? I think it’s a good idea, but the dumb bill doesn’t go into effect until 2008 (uhh, how about now?), and even then the first offense fine is only $20! It goes up to $50 after that, but who on earth is going to be deterred by a $20 fine? It’s not even worth the police officer’s time to pull someone over for a $20 fine. Some smart moves Arnold.

• Finally, if you haven’t heard, church let John go this last week. If it’s not public knowledge it will be in a couple days. I’m confused by this move, as if the music is the greatest concern church leadership feels needed to be dealt with. There is so much more I’d like to say about this, but I will bite my tongue.

Thank you for letting me vent about all the idiocy going on lately. I’m sure there is more, but that’s all I have for now. So now it’s your turn. Anyone want to get pissed at me for not liking minimum wage, sticking up for a Catholic, calling Arnold a socialist (and making it sound bad, because it is), insulting the intelligence of the average citizen, pointing out that minority status does not make you immune to being a racist, or finally for bashing church leadership?

Today Dodgerblues was talking about this new promotion by GMC. When you buy or lease an eligible vehicle you won’t have to pay more than $1.99 a gallon for one year. I glanced at the particulars of how you get reimbursed, and while it looks complicated, let’s assume for now that it’s as simple as only paying $1.99 a gallon for a year. So, is it a good deal, or crap?

If I put 12,000 miles with my zipcode for an H3, it says I would save $1250. Not too bad, but is that really what I’d save? Nowhere in their calculation do they say the price per gallon they use. They only say they are using the "State Average Price for Premium Gasoline." An H3 gets 16 mpg city, and 20 mpg highway. I averaged that to 18 mpg for the calculation.

City/Highway (18 mpg):

12,000/18 = 666.7 gallons (miles/mpg = gallons used)
666.7*$2.00= $1333.3 (gallons used*cheap price=total cost of gas under program)
$1333.3+$1250=$2583.3 (total cost+savings = cost without program)
$2583.3/666.7=$3.88 (cost without program/gallons used = assumed $ per gallon)

Assuming my math is right, they are assuming a regular price per gallon of $3.88! The average price of gas around here is only $3.30 right now for cheap gas. That overestimates my savings by almost $400, lowering it to about $865. Now obviously part of this promotion relies on consumer fear of rising gas prices, but their calculated savings is only a best case scenario. They overinflate the savings by using premium prices, which I’m sure not all the eligible cars require (car enthusiasts, feel free to correct me).

So I think the deal is crap, and here’s why. Unless you drive a TON (more than the national average) your savings aren’t huge (probably less than $1000). I don’t know if they’re combining this with other deals, but there are usually cashback deals which offer more in savings, and those are guaranteed. The other reason I think it’s a joke is because it’s only for one year. The crummy mpg of an H3 is going to kill your pocketbook over the long run, not just the first year. After a year of nice gas prices you’re suddenly stuck with a gas guzzler.

So what do you think, deal or crap?