The abuse of capitalism

I was going for a ride with a friend of mine last night and we were talking about fuel efficent cars. I of course started talking about my beloved volkswagen and how the new clean diesel with 50 state safe emissions will be coming out this summer. Then I saw the price of diesel and it made me think. Why the hell is diesel over $4.00 a gallon?

For those of you who don't know, diesel is a less refined fuel than gasoline. This in turn should make it cost less, no? Well it used to be that way. Diesel was usually at least 10-20 cents less a gallon than gas. For whatever reason now diesel is a full dollar more than gasoline.

This effects everything in our lives more than you could imagine. Every time we go to the mall to buy a cd, or a new hat or go grocery shopping, or buy gas for that matter, we are purchasing items delivered by a truck that runs on diesel. Wonder why milk is now almost $5.00 a gallon?

I have a friend who owns his own truck and in turn has to pay for his own fuel. He was telling me that 4 years ago his fuel bill in a month is now what it is in a week. Can you imagine that? Your costs go up 400%, but your salary pretty much stays the same.

I guess that this takes me to the rant in the title. How is it that the oil companies are getting away with charging us absurd prices for fuel and gas all the while reporting record profits. I think that I want to throw up a little in my mouth whenever I fill up my car. Just last night I decided to fill up my VW. Mind you I had 3/8 of a tank when I pulled into the gas station. $31 dollars later I was filled to the top. And that was in the Jetta. The Passat to fill is over $50. I know I am writing something that everybody else has to deal with also, but I mean come on, really, when will this stop? $5.00, $6.00, $10.00 for a gallon of gas? We seem to be facing a national economic slowdown and how much of it is related to the fact that everything is now more expensive because some fat cat at Mobil is getting fatter. That, my friends, is the abuse of capitalism.

Well now that I got that off my chest,

Peace
Jimi