F%&king Gas/Fuel Prices......

[DDBowdoin]

I'm looking to pick up a lightly used Caddilac CTS but I take public trans to and from work... I just want something nice and reliable for nights and weekends

I have no idea what gas prices are going to do but I'm young and would rather spend more on gas to have a nice car than drive a corolla and have zero style

[Lemay427]

Their salaries have ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with the price of gas. They fail to cite in that article that their salaries albeit higher than before have only increased 3.65% from 2 years ago. That is fairly standard among many fortune 50 CEOs.

I never did say that the current gas prices are a result of the salaries, it was just a comment. The US economy is going on a downward trend, while the oil companies, and their executives, are making record profits. Its the open market that is forcing the prices higher and higher with oil.

[joshtpa]

I wasnt saying you were making that statement. Just that the article implied it. The economy is on a downward trend. But lets not forget that when we were in a huge upswing a few years ago, the oil execs salaries and those of many many other fortune 500 companies were not making record numbers. In fact 5 years ago, many of those execs got 0% increases. I work in the salary industry and many people want to jump on those making lots of money (not saying you do), but its not fair. If gas was .99 a gallon, nobody would care about their salaries at all. Yet at that point they should be skyrocketing because "they have kept costs low", but in reality, their salaries went down when oil prices were low.

[Lemay427]

Your right in the fact that I would not give two sh%ts about their pay if the gas prices were low. But, since gas prices have such a massive effect on the economy, I think its a point (profits & salary) that needs to be brought up. I am by no means condeming people that make a lot of money. I believe you should be paid for your worth. My favorite golfer is Tiger. His salary and pay make those oil execs look poor, but he brings in massive amounts for Nike and his sponsors. If golfing went downhill, it would not effect everyone, like the oil industry is doing.

It also could be a blessing for the country as maybe some new, cleaner advancements could be made that will allow america to "get off" oil. I am a project engineer and work in construction so I can see how oil prices have changed construction. I am seeing a lot more products and construction techniques that are using less oil.

How long does the US allow the oil industry to hurt the economy? That is my main question. At what point will they step in or will they let it go and encourage companies and designers to make alt. fuel products?

[redi630]

I switched to a car from an SUV. My wife still has an SUV though, Trailblazer. It's an extra $160 a month to keep it gased up, and she doesn't drive as much as I do, but we need at least one big car in my family with a kid, another on the way and a dog.

[CosmosMpower]

It doesn't affect me too much. Both of my cars are small sports car with 4 cylinders that get decent mpg. I can fill up the Miata for about 30 bucks and drive it 250 miles and the Elise for about 25 and drive that 220 miles (I drive it hard on the weekends, it's my toy).

During the week driving the Miata I can easily go 1.5-2 weeks on a single tank as my commute is only 10 miles round trip a day including going home for lunch plus driving to go run errands, play basketball, play golf etc. So realistically my gas cost a month are 60-80 for commuting and another 60 for weekend racing/cruising. At worst it's not even $150 a month which is less than single fill up on a Suburban these days.

If I had a family or needed a bigger car to haul stuff around in I would probably get a Mini Cooper S. They get about low 30's MPG with good power and handling and decent space. Or I would get a Subaru wagon WRX or Legacy etc.

[1UnderU]

The article about CEO salaries related to high oil prices is completely ridiculous. Consider the numbers.

The US Imports about 1.5 Million barrels of oil per day. At and average right now of $135 per barrel that is $202.5 Billion dollars per day on spending of foreign oil. Not Domestic Oil that is produced in the US.

They cited 3 CEOs making $21.7, $15.7, $15 Million. If you were to take all of these salaries away from the CEOs and give it back to the country and supply more oil you have bought about 25% of the total oil imported in one single day.

The problem is oil consumption is too high, oil speculators, China/India demand, and the week dollar due to he FEDs lowering the interest rate. This problem has nothing to do with over inflated salaries. It’s a Macro problem, not Micro.

[Lemay427]

The article about CEO salaries related to high oil prices is completely ridiculous. Consider the numbers.

That is obvious. Nobody said the high gas prices werea result of salaries to the executives. The point I think they were trying to make is how they were making more profits and the general public was suffering from the same events. Anyone with half a brain would know that a 15 million dollar reduction (one salary) would have zero impact on what we are paying.

[1UnderU]

Then what is the difference in what the CEOs have made. It's not going to affect our (the consumers) bottom line. If they have no control over the price of oil the entire article is Moot.

[joshtpa]

But the article would never have been written if gas prices were not too high. Their salaries were the same when the gas prices were low. Where were people then? The cost of food has been going up like crazy for restaurants. Do we get mad at Chris Sullivan or Bob Basham the owners of Outback Steakhouse Inc for their salaries? No, of course not.

[1UnderU]

True, Outback is pretty luxurious, and I thought our country ran on Dunkin'?

[joshtpa]

Its simply an example of where people want to blame the wealthy for worlds woes. The execs salaries have NOTHING to do with the cost of oil. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!

[Ceej]

I switched to a car from an SUV. My wife still has an SUV though, Trailblazer. It's an extra $160 a month to keep it gased up, and she doesn't drive as much as I do, but we need at least one big car in my family with a kid, another on the way and a dog.

[GaijinGolfer]

You guys think you have it bad ? works out about $10 a gallon over here, heating costs $250 a month (and the idiot Prime minister is still adding tax to it.)

You guys over there have a lot more taxes on your fuel than we do.

[GaijinGolfer]

Minivans really arent much better on gas than an SUV. Most minivans only get about 20-25 mpg, which is only about 5 mpg better than a midsize SUV. My parents have an '07 Ford Explorer V8 and it pulls 20-22 mpg on the highway.

Besides, front wheel drive isnt a good thing when you live in a place like Illinois that has snowy winters. Last winter was my first experience with driving a front-drive vehicle in the snow (I drove my ex girlfriend's '07 Chevy Malibu) and it sucked. Now I know what people mean when they say that front-drive vehicles have a mind of their own when you drive them on snow and ice...

[x-forged]

Tell your parents that this is a safe bike that you wont go 175 mph on........

IM thinkin more along the lines of this...

sexy.

[Lemay427]

Nice bike. Ya I wouldnt get a Ninja 250. I just made that suggestion because its slow and thought your parents might be ok with a slow bike.


Ducatis are awesome. I like this bike:

[golf_junkie27]

Its simply an example of where people want to blame the wealthy for worlds woes. The execs salaries have NOTHING to do with the cost of oil. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!

While their salaries don't have a direct impact on the cost of oil, the increase in oil prices increase the profits and stock prices of most oil companies. I believe it was the Exxon or Mobile CEO who retired last year and was awarded with almost $400 million in stock options. Plus, when these guys receive their bonuses, they are going to receive a very healthy cash influx.

I'm not against it, this is why we live in a capitalist society and companies are in the business of making money. However, it would be naive to believe that the oil companies are not excited over the increase in prices and profits.