As I recall, JFK was praised for that speech. I think of it every time I hear anyone blasting any one person for the prices of fuel in the United States. This morning, I sat in a restaurant listening to this loud mouth blast the president for not doing something about the cost of gasoline. His waitress was blasting the leadership of the major oil companies for making money for their stockholders. I kept my mouth closed, much to the amazement of Cindy. However, I was thinking to myself: “Hey a$$hole$, what have you done to help yourselves in this situation?” I thought, “How long has it been since you tuned up that full size Cadillac you are driving? Have you ever thought about buying something that at least gets double digit fuel mileage?” People have the right to complain if they can say, “I have tried every way I can to help myself by buying a fuel efficient vehicle, reduced my driving by 22% by planning my trips so that I don’t drive unnecessarily, actively planned a carpool, etc.” If they have not asked: “What can I do for my country… or in this case, What can I do to conserve energy,” then I don’t care to hear their belly aching. You might say: “Tom, I read the list of vehicles that you own… These are not fuel efficient vehicles.” You would be right. Both trucks get an average mileage (non-towing) of 18 mpg. Cindy’s Envoy gets 17 when she drives it and 19 when I do. (That will tell me if she reads this!) However, I am not belly aching over the price of fuel. I will point the finger where it belongs. In my case, it is pointed toward me. I do not blame others for the high price I pay for fuel. I have a need for vehicles on the farm land that are not conducive to fuel conservation. I am planning on that land feeding us after retirement. I consider the fuel cost to be investment in that future. Now… those of you that would complain about fuel costs and point fingers at anyone that is believed to be the reason for high fuel costs, look at your own actions. Also tell us what you have done to minimize the impact on yourself. What can you do to help yourself rather than point fingers?
:idea: The president has nothing to do with the price of oil one way or the other. The taxes on every gallon of gas are five times higher than the oil company profits on that same gallon... For decades these whiners have voted for "environmentalists" who stopped drilling in ANWR, stopped offshore drilling in Florida and California, stopped wind generators in front of the Kerry's and Kennedy's beach houses, prevented the building of new oil refineries for the last 25 years and prevented the building of all nuclear generators for the last 30 years... and now the prices of gas and heating oil are going through the roof as they look for scapegoats. They need to look in the mirror...
Well said Tom... Whenever I hear the Lib/Dems squawking and demanding another handout, the Kennedy speech resonates loudly....what has happened to that mindset. When did we become a nation that looks to the government rather than to our own devices? The framers are rolling over in their grave as they listen to this generation of entitlement seeking weenies.....the role of government is to govern. If your situation is not as you wish it, it is up to you to change it. Sad, sad, sad..... Terry
When our domestic oil is removed from the earth, the oil company has to pay a severence tax. This one item provides enough income for more than half the state of Alaska's total budget. When oil is imported, it's subject to a tariff. When the oil is finally refined it is subject to both federal excise taxes and state taxes. I've yet to see one of the hypocritical leeches who occupy congress suggest that perhaps some of that cost of gas be reduced. Gas is like cigarettes. The bastards in DC will tell you all day how evil or overpriced these items are but they literally depend on the tax revenue these provide.
I heard this morning that the state of New York is "looking in to" removing $0.18 in taxes on fuel. That is a good start. Let's see if any other state falls in line with this action.