Comment Re:Misleading summary (Score 1) 371
"If oil prices in the US were truly based on global demand, then we'd be suffering the same fate that Europe has for the last decade. We don't pay ~$6 per gallon like everyone in Europe does."
I think you are confusing oil and gasoline. A European can buy a barrel of oil for pretty much the same price as an American (subject to minor shipping costs factored into the price). A European cannot buy a gallon of gasoline for the same price as an American because of localised factors, like sales taxes (much higher in Europe than the US) and labour costs at gas stations etc.
"Gasoline is just not economically feasible for the US anymore"
Yes it is. As you've already noticed, gasoline prices in the US are about half what they are in Europe despite people in the US being generally richer than people in Europe. Gasoline at its current price is economically feasible because people are still using it.
Maybe one day in the future gasoline will cease to be economic for consumers, but that day has not yet arrived.
I think you are confusing oil and gasoline. A European can buy a barrel of oil for pretty much the same price as an American (subject to minor shipping costs factored into the price). A European cannot buy a gallon of gasoline for the same price as an American because of localised factors, like sales taxes (much higher in Europe than the US) and labour costs at gas stations etc.
"Gasoline is just not economically feasible for the US anymore"
Yes it is. As you've already noticed, gasoline prices in the US are about half what they are in Europe despite people in the US being generally richer than people in Europe. Gasoline at its current price is economically feasible because people are still using it.
Maybe one day in the future gasoline will cease to be economic for consumers, but that day has not yet arrived.
