Subways are awesome. The mass transit system that cities such as New York and Boston embrace give some lucky people relief from the high cost of car payments, insurance, and the ever increasing gas prices. Just recently, oil barrels hit the highest price ever at $113 a barrel. We’re staring down the barrel 1 of $4 a gallon, and there’s nothing we can do about it. They have us by the…gas tank.
Exxon (and other gas companies–but I’m picking on those Exxon-Valdez jerks right now, who is this silent “Mr. Valdez” anyway?) state that the rising costs at the pump are due to the high cost of oil production/oil per barrel. This is understandable, until you hear that Exxon not only set, last year, the highest yearly profit, but most recently the highest quarterly profit (again, same story every quarter). Last year, Exxon’s profit was 40.61 BILLION. The fourth quarter profits they reported was 11.66 BILLION, not only their highest profit, but the highest of any U.S. corporation, ever.
As much as people want to say that the war has nothing to do with it, really, if the majority of these oil fields were in Switzerland would oil prices be an issue?–that’s more of a rhetorical question, but, feel free to post your opinion nonetheless.
We can’t do a whole lot to change this, despite what those annoying emails say about gas boycotts and price wars. Those hold no more truth than the chain emails that promise you the love of your life with cooperation, or certain death without. Price wars may make 10 cents a gallon difference at most. Only thing we can do is conserve, live more consciously, conserve our personal resources–I’m all about using two cans of water to fix my 62 cents a can tomato soup instead of the recommended , but then again I live on the edge.
There are other ways to save your money. You could, of course, go freegan(which means you ask for hand outs, and left overs–I may not be above trolling through Whole Foods’ dumpster for produce soon, like, in 3 hours), or you could sell a bunch of your clothes to one of those trendy consignment shops, or forget money altogether and start a band like everyone else in the world.
Also, most of us can start walking to stores and such-well at least most of you who read this, because if you’re reading this, you’re probably cool, and if you’re cool, you probably live somewhere in a really hip and trendy area, and in hip and trendy areas, everywhere is walking distance. Coffee shops have FREE! Internet! Take your MacBook and write in your blog about how broke you are and how the capitalists are killing you. Who the heck needs gas in your car when you can buy a $4.50 cup of Double Soy Sugar Free Vanilla Hazelnut Latte? Sneak a coffee mug in your bag to “refill”–for free!
Keep your eyes open on your walk to these places, you may even find a perfectly good-yet-disposed-of apple/orange/loaf of bread, and SCORE! you’re a freegan now too!
And, don’t even think about going to Europe anytime soon, the dollar sucks now there too.
1. Barrel of a gun–figuratively speaking, not barrel of oil–literally speaking
