Gas prices.....zounds!!!!

[sschind]

I heard on NPR this morning that some dairy farmers are moving all their manure to a pit where it decays anerobiclly and makes methane that they make electricity from and sell to the power company.  I suppose that's better than nothing.

The way they raise dairy cows these days is a disgrace.  Time was a man could make a good living and send his kid to college milking 40 cows.  His cows grazed the land and put their manure there.  The manure was a benfit not a problem.  Cows had names.  It's not like that now and we, the animals, and the environment are the worse for it.

(Dang, I went on a rant!)

Cows still have names.  Names like Porterhouse, T-Bone, Ribeye, and my personal favorite Ground Chuck.  Just don't bother to call him he doesn't have any legs so he won't come to you anyway.


Reminds me of another joke my nephew just told me. 

Where can you find a dog with no legs?






Right where you left him.

[sschind]

http://www.globalresearch.ca/guess-what-happened-the-last-time-the-price-of-oil-crashed-like-this/5417215

That appears to be one of those 'sky is falling' sites......almost everything on it is alarmist check out counter material.....

another thing they don't tell you is that for the 6 or 7 months before the big drop oil prices hit record highs prompting record high prices for gasoline and diesel fuel.  Was it the low oil prices from  later in 2008 or the higher gas prices from earlier that had a bigger impact? 

I'm not up economics so I can't argue very well like some of you can.  All I know is that when I moved my store in the summer of 2007 after I reopened I saw a steady monthly increase in sales from about august 2007 until about may 2008.  That's about the time gas hit $4.00 a gallon around here and everything slowed down.  Pet stores usually experience a summer slowdown but what happened in 2008 was that it never picked back up in the fall.  After a summer of record high gas prices and the housing market collapse and all that other crap the economy had tanked and it was very slow to recover.  Perhaps it was the low oil prices that had more of an impact than the high gas prices I don't know.  I hear people saying the economy has recovered but I don't see it.  It is better than it was 5 years ago for sure but but it sure doesn't seem like people are spending like they were prior to that.  Maybe that's a good thing though.

[sschind]

Thanks for providing the cattleman article Ed.  I've just recently begun hearing adds on the radio saying the same thing.  I know I for one was taken in by the cries of potential food shortages due to so much corn being used for ethanol.

I would like to see more recent statistics and I'd also like to see the effects on the production of food stuffs for human consumption (I know the article mentioned the byproduct being used for corn syrup but that may be a bad thing if its all the high fructose kind.  Isn't that what is really screwing up the world...high fructose corn syrup... oh and gluten, don't forget the gluten)

I say I'd like to see them but I'm too lazy to actually look for them myself.  Hey, back off, admitting you have a problem is the first step in fixing it right?  Of course the second step is actually taking steps to fix it and I'm not up to that point yet but at least I have a start.  Anyway, as I was saying I would like to see this other information so if anyone has it at their fingertips, or is perhaps not as lazy as me and would care to look it up and post a link it would be greatly appreciated.  I do have my faults I admit but a failure to be properly appreciative is certainly not one of them.  I can assure you as long as that proper appreciation does not cost me anything and can be expressed from in front of my computer I can be as appreciative as all get out. 

[Mugwump]

http://www.globalresearch.ca/guess-what-happened-the-last-time-the-price-of-oil-crashed-like-this/5417215

That appears to be one of those 'sky is falling' sites......almost everything on it is alarmist check out counter material.....

another thing they don't tell you is that for the 6 or 7 months before the big drop oil prices hit record highs prompting record high prices for gasoline and diesel fuel.  Was it the low oil prices from  later in 2008 or the higher gas prices from earlier that had a bigger impact? 

I'm not up economics so I can't argue very well like some of you can.  All I know is that when I moved my store in the summer of 2007 after I reopened I saw a steady monthly increase in sales from about august 2007 until about may 2008.  That's about the time gas hit $4.00 a gallon around here and everything slowed down.  Pet stores usually experience a summer slowdown but what happened in 2008 was that it never picked back up in the fall.  After a summer of record high gas prices and the housing market collapse and all that other crap the economy had tanked and it was very slow to recover.  Perhaps it was the low oil prices that had more of an impact than the high gas prices I don't know.  I hear people saying the economy has recovered but I don't see it.  It is better than it was 5 years ago for sure but but it sure doesn't seem like people are spending like they were prior to that.  Maybe that's a good thing though.

I agree Steve. Most of those that got burned during the crash, and ensuing economic melt down, became overly cautious with any spending during the recovery period. Even now, as it has recovered, it doesn't seem to have recovered enough. is any, in the prime employment areas. The growth is very weak from the manufacturing, travel, service, retailer, construction, and other industries which are consumer spending main stays. These types of jobs, with static wages, can't keep abreast of the rising costs. Home values have declined, loan stipulations are off the wall, banks pay hardly any interest, and the stock market while flying high...is still viewed as risky by the general population.
Alas, those with funds are making money, those with none to spare are staying barely afloat at best.

Articles...

Consumer spending Survey
http://www.bls.gov/cex/

Consumer spending trends
http://www.inc.com/vince-passione/these-4-consumer-spending-trends-are-driving-your-market.html

and for grins....Gallup consumer spending weekly
http://www.gallup.com/poll/127544/consumer-spending-weekly.aspx

[GraphicGr8s]

http://www.globalresearch.ca/guess-what-happened-the-last-time-the-price-of-oil-crashed-like-this/5417215

That appears to be one of those 'sky is falling' sites......almost everything on it is alarmist check out counter material.....

another thing they don't tell you is that for the 6 or 7 months before the big drop oil prices hit record highs prompting record high prices for gasoline and diesel fuel.  Was it the low oil prices from  later in 2008 or the higher gas prices from earlier that had a bigger impact? 

I'm not up economics so I can't argue very well like some of you can.  All I know is that when I moved my store in the summer of 2007 after I reopened I saw a steady monthly increase in sales from about august 2007 until about may 2008.  That's about the time gas hit $4.00 a gallon around here and everything slowed down.  Pet stores usually experience a summer slowdown but what happened in 2008 was that it never picked back up in the fall.  After a summer of record high gas prices and the housing market collapse and all that other crap the economy had tanked and it was very slow to recover.  Perhaps it was the low oil prices that had more of an impact than the high gas prices I don't know.  I hear people saying the economy has recovered but I don't see it.  It is better than it was 5 years ago for sure but but it sure doesn't seem like people are spending like they were prior to that.  Maybe that's a good thing though.

I agree Steve. Most of those that got burned during the crash, and ensuing economic melt down, became overly cautious with any spending during the recovery period. Even now, as it has recovered, it doesn't seem to have recovered enough. is any, in the prime employment areas. The growth is very weak from the manufacturing, travel, service, retailer, construction, and other industries which are consumer spending main stays. These types of jobs, with static wages, can't keep abreast of the rising costs. Home values have declined, loan stipulations are off the wall, banks pay hardly any interest, and the stock market while flying high...is still viewed as risky by the general population.
Alas, those with funds are making money, those with none to spare are staying barely afloat at best.

Articles...

Consumer spending Survey
http://www.bls.gov/cex/

Consumer spending trends
http://www.inc.com/vince-passione/these-4-consumer-spending-trends-are-driving-your-market.html

and for grins....Gallup consumer spending weekly
http://www.gallup.com/poll/127544/consumer-spending-weekly.aspx

If this is a recovery it's the slowest I've ever seen.

Those with money are pretty much making it in the market. The question remains though what happens when the Fed stops pouring billions per month into it?

Sad thing is we never seem to learn from history. All this has happened before. Any one remember the S&L debacle? They poured money into the economy during the depression also. Many smart economists think it delayed a recovery by 7 years. Japan poured money into their economy too. They call it the lost decade.

One thing I am 100% absolutely sure of is you can't believe any of the numbers coming out or that have come out in the last 5 years.

[Mugwump]

http://www.globalresearch.ca/guess-what-happened-the-last-time-the-price-of-oil-crashed-like-this/5417215

That appears to be one of those 'sky is falling' sites......almost everything on it is alarmist check out counter material.....

another thing they don't tell you is that for the 6 or 7 months before the big drop oil prices hit record highs prompting record high prices for gasoline and diesel fuel.  Was it the low oil prices from  later in 2008 or the higher gas prices from earlier that had a bigger impact? 

I'm not up economics so I can't argue very well like some of you can.  All I know is that when I moved my store in the summer of 2007 after I reopened I saw a steady monthly increase in sales from about august 2007 until about may 2008.  That's about the time gas hit $4.00 a gallon around here and everything slowed down.  Pet stores usually experience a summer slowdown but what happened in 2008 was that it never picked back up in the fall.  After a summer of record high gas prices and the housing market collapse and all that other crap the economy had tanked and it was very slow to recover.  Perhaps it was the low oil prices that had more of an impact than the high gas prices I don't know.  I hear people saying the economy has recovered but I don't see it.  It is better than it was 5 years ago for sure but but it sure doesn't seem like people are spending like they were prior to that.  Maybe that's a good thing though.

I agree Steve. Most of those that got burned during the crash, and ensuing economic melt down, became overly cautious with any spending during the recovery period. Even now, as it has recovered, it doesn't seem to have recovered enough. is any, in the prime employment areas. The growth is very weak from the manufacturing, travel, service, retailer, construction, and other industries which are consumer spending main stays. These types of jobs, with static wages, can't keep abreast of the rising costs. Home values have declined, loan stipulations are off the wall, banks pay hardly any interest, and the stock market while flying high...is still viewed as risky by the general population.
Alas, those with funds are making money, those with none to spare are staying barely afloat at best.

Articles...

Consumer spending Survey
http://www.bls.gov/cex/

Consumer spending trends
http://www.inc.com/vince-passione/these-4-consumer-spending-trends-are-driving-your-market.html

and for grins....Gallup consumer spending weekly
http://www.gallup.com/poll/127544/consumer-spending-weekly.aspx

If this is a recovery it's the slowest I've ever seen.

Those with money are pretty much making it in the market. The question remains though what happens when the Fed stops pouring billions per month into it?

Sad thing is we never seem to learn from history. All this has happened before. Any one remember the S&L debacle? They poured money into the economy during the depression also. Many smart economists think it delayed a recovery by 7 years. Japan poured money into their economy too. They call it the lost decade.

One thing I am 100% absolutely sure of is you can't believe any of the numbers coming out or that have come out in the last 5 years.

I'd rather remain optimistic, myself.......your skepticism is shared by many, as I stated above....when the economy tanked it created a aura of caution by many....this alone has slowed spending and recovery...until there is a time coming when all is running well....it'll likely remain an issue...

[GraphicGr8s]

I'd rather prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Either way you're covered.

Most of the problem is business owners don't really know what will fall next. And so many policies just aren't conducive to expanding a business in the US.