Over $4 is nuts. I hope that'* only a few stations trying to rip people off and is not going to be widespread. Regular came down from $3.14 to $2.98 yesterday and was still there this morning. So I'd figure premium was at $3.18

I sure don't miss paying for premium but my loss of MPG has probably countered it. The move closer to work has made a differece though. I have cut my one-way distance from 47miles to 25 miles.

Its all greed on the oil companies part...especially Exxon/Mobile. We have both of them here in town and I stay right away from their gas. Its insane.

I remember when 93 was $2 a gallon, and we thought we had it bad then

Oil used to be more of a supply based market price. There was OPEC and non-OPEC companies so they kind of balanced each other out. One would limit production to raise the price and then other would produce more to take advantage of the high price, thus driving the price back down. From what I hear, now OPEC got together with the non-OPEC companies and they are all managing their production together and fixing the price. Price fixing is illegal in the US, but oil is a world market and world production so it is had to police that type of thing. There is no easy way to tell all the middle-east companies from different countries that they cant do it. They all realized that oil is limited, so why wait untill its alomst gone to be getting more $$ for it if you can start raking in the $$ now. So I guess you could say oil is based on a "future supply market". Hopefully the greed will get to some of them and they will try to up their production to take advantage of the high price and the alliance will break and go back as before.

that was just one gas company (BP) unforuntly every other company jumps on the bandwagon and raises the prices

Works kinda the same if one company reduces/loses their output/supply. They'll just buy it from someone else, or ship it through a different pipe. I saw a show on The Discovery Channel about oil supply. All the companies dump their oil into one pipe, count how many gallons/barrels went in, and get crdit for that at the other end....

I suppose I am missing something obvious here. Why is it that the large oil companies don't have to eat their losses like every single other business out there. Their profits always hold steady or go up. Why isn't it that yogurt prices change hour by hour? Why not oil change prices? How about computer prices?

Maybe I am wrong, but I think it is just too easy for them to change their prices. They soak everyone else, but never have to cut their own losses, they just pass it on to us.

Take a taxi service for example. They have pretty consistant rates, and should make pretty predictable profits. Oil/gas prices go up: Taxi company loses out on some of its profits, oil companies gain profits. Not fair!

The most frustrating aspect to me is that there'* nothing any of us can do about it. For all intents and purposes, it'* a required commodity. Unfortunately, we have to rely on our lack-luster government to step in and stop the monopoly. Since that hasn't happened, I've had to turn to other alternatives: a gas sipping Honda Civic.

My personal feeling on this is that there are too many politicians with interests in the oil companies. Either their family owns one, or vice versa...