The Star has a story this morning outlining a report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives which states that “Gas Costs 15 cents too much.”
Now, if you are a regular reader of this blog, it will not take a great deal of thought to know where I come down on this issue.
The petrochemical giants may very well be hosing us on gas costs. And the government, if they wanted to, might be able to enact some policy that would lower gas prices. And chances are that there will still be people who think the costs are unfair.
But this is would be a short term, short-sighted, and stupid thing to do. [Note: If price fixing was ever found to be true then of course something should be done, but the goal should be fairness and transparency, not lowering gas prices per se.]
Gasoline prices are going up whether we like it or not. Peak Oil makes that a certainty.
Whether the “real price” ought to be $0.90 and rising or $1.05 and rising doesn’t matter if the price will be double that in five years time. We may very well see gasoline shortages and rationing, regardless of price.
Let’s be clear. The only way to insulate yourself from volatile gas pricing is to use less gasoline!
That means:
- Drive less. Plan your trips to minimize milage. Take a bus. Take a train. Take a bike. Or walk. Sure, these are not always an option depending on your location and destination, but at least consider it every time you start your car. Ask yourself, “Is this trip necessary and could I make the trip any other way?”
- Have to take a car because you plan to buy something? Consider delivery.
- Sell one car! Not only do you save on car payments, maintenance, insurance (huge!), but having to share a car makes you think constantly about whether you can find another means to get there. Mollie and I sold our second car last year. We save enough that hiring a cab or a rental car infrequently still means significant savings, and more than half that time I am travelling for work and so it’s not my money.
Again, let me re-iterate the Green Party policy when it comes to gasoline pricing, which is the same as for all energy pricing:
- Raise the price of the commodity through taxation.
- Place the tax as far up the food chain as possible, like when the oil is taken from the ground or imported into the country, so that the increased cost is passed to all consumers, not just the end user at the pump. (Yes, this is a carbon tax and the Green Party uneqivocally supports carbon taxes. For good reason. They work!)
- Balance that increased tax with decreased taxes on income & payroll. This is called tax shifting, something which is unique to the Green Party platform. So far, anyway.
- The average person will be in the same position. They will bring home more money, but be spending more on energy. This higher-percentage-of-disposable-income-for-energy will motivate everyone who can to decrease energy use and keep more of their money in their pockets.
- Protection for the lowest income people to ensure they are not “energy poor” and have the means to get to work and heat their homes.
The point is that Peak Oil makes higher prices and energy scarcity inevitable, and true leadership in our government would not look for short term fixes, but instead be guiding society toward being less susceptible to those rising costs.
True leadership in government means being out in front of issues, instead of always reacting after the fact, cleaning up the mess made by short term thinking.
Want true leadership? Vote Green.
