Thoughts on our “cheap” gas
May 27, 2008
I might have actually had steam coming out of my ears as I read this article on Slate.com by Robert Bryce.
He’s making the case that $4 a gallon gas is cheap. I agree that compared to what consumers in Europe are paying, yes, we have cheap gas.
However, there are some points in this article that, in my opinion, are absolutely off-base and even absurd.
The first thing that really bugs me is that he compars the price of gas at $4 a gallon to what a venti latte from Starbucks or a Budweiser would cost per gallon. That happens to be $23 and $11, respectively.
That’s great. But guess what? I’m not running my car on Starbucks or Budweiser! I go through roughly 15 gallons of gas in four days. There are 128 ounces in a gallon. I would have to drink over six lattes a week to equal just one gallon of Starbucks. It’s a ridiculous analogy that doesn’t compare apples to apples.
Plus, I can — and have — cut back on my Starbucks consumption because of how much I’m paying to fill my gas tank. Cutting back on Starbucks is an option. I still have to get to work everyday, so cutting back on most of my driving is not.
The other point Bryce tries to make is that the cost of gas is minor compared to the overall cost of car ownership. I would challenge at least part of that theory as well.
With the latest gas prices, I will spend approximately $3,480 a year on gas.
My insurance is only $810 a year. My maintenance costs this year, including registration and new tires, breaks and rotors for my car, will be about $910. (Keep in mind the tires and breaks aren’t an expense I incur every year.)
Add all of those up and I’m at $1,720 for the year, or half the cost of my gas.
Now I will admit that if you factor in my monthly car payments and add it in with my other expenses, over the course of a year it’s considerably more than the cost of gas. However, the amount I’m spending per month on gas is creeping uncomfortably close to the amount of my monthly car payment, and that’s a hard pill to swallow.
I really dislike calling gas a “minor expense.” I don’t know what kind of car or car payment Bryce has or how much gas he actually uses, but to me over $3,400 a year is not a “minor expense.”
It may be true that we’re all going to have to get used to gas at these prices. It may be true that we will be forced to conserve, and conservation would have good benefits for our Earth. It is true that we pay less for gas than many other countries.
All of that doesn’t mean that we have to trivialize the economic situation we’re in. It doesn’t mean we should compare gas to Starbucks or downplay what the financial impact of all-time high gas prices is doing to our families who still have to drive to work, and take their children to doctor’s appointments, and buy groceries, and live their lives.
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