Billionaire Pickens High Gas Price Solution

clipped from www.reuters.com Tue Jul 8, 2008 3:16pm EDT By Timothy Gardner NEW YORK, July 8 (Reuters) - Texas energy tycoon T. Boone Pickens on Tuesday called for a massive switch to natural gas as a transportation fuel and a boost in wind power in a plan aimed at reducing U.S. foreign oil dependence by a more than a third. The Pickens Plan, which includes exploiting domestic natural gas supplies in new areas like East Texas and Appalachia, could replace 38 percent of U.S. oil imports, he said. “U.S. natural gas can replace foreign oil. It’s the only natural resource we have that can do that,” Pickens said during a press event for his energy plan. The 10-year plan would reduce the annual U.S. oil import bill of $700 billion, at oil prices of $140 a barrel, by hundreds of billions of dollars, he said. The country imports about 70 percent of its crude. Click here for the whole story

Cheaper gas new bulk buying site

Yesterday, an interesting new site was launched called MyGallons.com. As just reported this morning on ABC’s “Good Morning America”, the site is a new membership site that provides bulk discounts on gas. Since yesterday, several thousand people have already joined.

Check out MyGallons.com and let me know what you think. If this is as good as it sounds, this could be a real money saver for you!

Air drags down mileage

You may have never thought about this but how efficiently your car moves through the air can impact your miles per gallon. For example, if you have a roof rack on your car and don’t need it, take the rack off because that rack will cause your miles per gallon to drop. In fact, there are products on the market you can add to your car to make it move with less “drag” on the car. You may have seen large trucks with pieces added to the truck’s body to make it fuel efficient. Yesterday I learned from the owner of a local outdoor/sporting goods store that you can buy pieces to attach to your car to make it move more efficiently with less drag. One of the products is called air buds.

Bottom line, don’t keep racks on your car when you don’t need them! And consider adding a component to your car to cause it to move through the air with less drag.

Here’s some related stories:

Better MPG thru AERODYNAMICS….all the COOL kids are doing it!!!!

There are a couple of things we as commuters can do to increase our MPG by decreasing our cars drag coefficient. Roof racks, ugly wings, and huge body kits; really hinder the movement of air around your car….so get rid of those things. …

What Do Roof Racks, Ugly Body Kits, and Dragster Style Aluminum …

All those little Honda Civics running around with ugly unpainted body kits and huge dragster style aluminum wings….are killing the great gas mileage those little cars were born to get! And Please I Beg You!!!!……just save up your money …

Frugal Friday: Saving Gas

Rolling down the window creates drag and will cause your engine to work harder. Use the vents on the car air conditioner instead. * When you’re driving, avoid quick starts. Accelerating slowly can improve your gas mileage. …

Who Wants To Use Less Gas?

Cargo or cargo racks on top of your vehicle (eg, cargo boxes, canoes, etc.) increase aerodynamic drag and lower fuel economy. When it comes to mileage, a major issue is air flow. The fewer things blocking the air passage, the better. …

$11 worth of mods plus new tires - Car and Driver improves MPG by 25%

Fuel is burned to overcome two predominant forces: rolling resistance and aerodynamic drag. At highway speeds, aero drag dominates, and that’s where Car and Driver spent most of its effort - and the $11 for supplies. Mod #1: Front air …

How Can Truck Bed Covers Help Save Gas And Transform Your Truck

This could easily save several miles from your gas mileage every time you use your truck. These types of covers also provide extra gas mileage by reducing the air drag that is exacerbated by the truck bed - an aerodynamic nightmare. …

Irrational about gas?

I stopped by a nearb outdoor sporting goods supplier’s store yesterday to get my car outfitted to carry my sailboat and I began to speak with the owner. He pointed out that some folks are now towing their boats with a motorcycle instead of a van to save money. In fact companies are making boat trailers exactly for the reason of allowing motorcycle towing.

This same store owner at the store called Helisport added something he was doing about the high price of gas. He told me he had adapted his car engine to give him 60 miles a gallon. I was in a hurry and didn’t have time to get the details but his approach about the gas price got me to thinking about how other folks are dealing with the gas crisis.

I  learned today from CNN Money that folks in California were driving to Mexico to get cheaper gas even though if one considers lost time and the wear and tear on the car it didn’t make sense. Another story was told about how people are trading in their SUVs less than three years old even though SUV resale value is extremely low- another irrational gas decision.

On the CNN Money show today, CNN’s guest Daniele Arriele, behavioral ecomomist, spoke about irrational behavior on the part of consumers as it relates to money. He recently published a book called “Predictably Irrational“. (By the way, you can find an interview with Arriele from Amazon, by clicking here.

In thinking about how you are reacting about gas prices and how your friends have been acting, share some stories and tell me if you think the stories are rational or not.

See a related story from the Fayetteville NC observer where Arriele is interviewed about gas prices. In this article, Arrelle says he doesn’t see comsumers making major changes because of gas prices.

Energy Manhattan project?

Why aren’t we treating the high priced gas crisis like we treated the need to develop the A bomb during World War II? The Manhattan project was an all out effort by the government and private industry to develop the atomic bomb…we did it in record time and the course of history was changed forever!

We put a man on the moon because Kennedy inspired us and dedicated talented folks made it happen even though some people laughed and said it couldn’t happen…Why the hell don’t we have a Manhattan like project going on at this very moment but for alternative energy? The lack of an effort like this makes me mad as hell!…Mad for the sake of the security of this country…mad about what these high prices are doing to our economy and the people on tight budgets who are struggling now because of these prices.

Before we decide on who will be President, we should demand that the candidate we choose commit to an alternative energy Manhattan project…and not just rhetoric but a comprehensive detailed plan for how to make it happen!

Here’s a thought- a group of bright…no… brilliant minds from multiple disciplines from private industry should develop a written position piece and proposed plan for the Manhattan project starting right now.

Some say we should begin drilling in more places now to give oil prices some relief…If this is our only alternative, perhaps we should…but only as an interim measure. We need a longer term comprehensive Manhattan type project that is more environmentally friendly but with limited impact on our free enterprise system.

Why don’t we have the Oil Manhattan Project? Is it too controversial for our politicians? Are lobbying groups blocking this? Has no leader in business or government suggested this idea? Is the public not smart enough to demand that a project like this begin now? What do you think???

Shrinking take home pay and new trends

What gas prices are doing to take home pay makes a person want to cry! A member of The Telework Consortium summed up the whole situation this way- At $4 a gallon gas, it would take an employee earning $65,000 per year who commutes 40 miles round trip per day 2 /12 months to pay for commuting. That is twelve weeks and six days of his/her take home pay just to pay for the cost of daily commuting!

Although I’m not aware of the sociological and economic changes which have occurred to countries who have gone through the rocketing gas price experience we’ve gone through, I think we’ll see many changes in our society. I would guess some of these changes will include:

- More use of technology such as audio and video conferencing to replace commuting to work and taking business trips. As technology costs continue to drop and gas prices continue to rise, this trend is assured to happen.

- Shorter vacations, less vacations and people vacationing at home. ABC news recently used the term “staycations.”

-Increased use of mass transit

- A possible change in the infrastructure/funding of our highway system, the best system in the world! Can we continue to use tolls to support as much for road maintenance.

- Growth of more local retailing possibly. We all know the trend that occurred when the major national chains put the local, small retailer out of business. Will the tide change now and favor more local retailers now that gas costs so much?

- Increased use of the Internet for shopping. Ecommerce on the net is already growing substantially. I believe we’ll see this growth begin to move at warp speed as folks drive less.

-Families spending more time together, a good development if it happens. Author Faith Popcorn many years ago forecasted a trend called cocooning- people withdrawing more and spending time at home. I think we’ll see this.

-Growth in sales of home entertainment centers and other products and services built around the home to replace services which would normally be out of the home.

The examples I’ve given are the more obvious ones. I think there will be alot of less obvious, more subtle changes in how we will that may surprise all of us. What do you think? What changes do you think we’ll see?

For related stories, click below:

New merchant figures high gas prices may fuel his grocery business past bigger competition

High Gas Prices Making Vacations More Expensive - Rising gas prices have made travel almost prohibitive and you can easily run up a huge bill just filling your tank. Summer is the time to kick back and relax, not worry about how much you’re going to have to spend just to have fun. … Hamptons Doom and Gloom - How does a local family with a breadwinner making $40000 per year, or $800 per week, for example, with take-home pay of less than $600 per week pay for the escalating costs of health care and food – then pay $100 of that for gas just to … Why gas prices hurt retention - The biggest advantage of the transit benefit is that it has the same effect as a small pay raise, without an actual salary increase. An employee earning $45000 per year, who incurs $115 per month in mass transit expenses lifts take-home … Observations on ExxonMobil - It isn’t just the price of gasoline so you can run the family car. The cost of all goods transported in this country rise as a result of rising gas prices. That means food to the market, clothes to the store, etc, etc, etc… …

Learn about van pooling

Car pooling….van pooling…what’s the difference? Frankly, I don’t know. When I think of van pooling, I first just think of a big van with everyone sharing in the cost. I also think of a group of people jointly paying a commercial limousine service to haul them to work. Car pooling, van pooling, any kind of vehicle pooling is just a downright good idea with the high price for gas!

Here’s some related articles about van pooling:

Pumping Up Your Employees: No Rah-Rah, Just Help With Gas

There has been an increase in the use of van pools, car pooling, and even riding bikes and walking to work has increased. (I saw a guy the other day riding a bike who was so large you know he would not normally ride. But there he was, …

The difficulty of getting riders into the pool

telecommuting, ride sharing and van pooling. He made a similar pitch to business, starting with board members at the Maine State Chamber of Commerce. But it’s going to take more than some prodding from the …

Your Driving Costs- More reasons to Vanpool!

… get from point A to point B and places in between, the brochure offers tips for saving money and even budgeting for vacation. Click here for a link to the brochure, more of a reason to van pool. http://www.aaapublicaffairs.com.main.

Car Van Pooling

Car van pooling is the practice of sharing a vehicle either a car or a van among many people, usually while going to work. It is also known as car sharing, ride sharing or lift sharing. Car van pooling is popular among the office goers …

Blog Listings

Car pooling- why not now?

I don’t know about you but as I keep seeing the price of gas rise, I keeping thinking about finally getting serious about car pooling. Some ideas I had for car pooling include:

• Ask my company for help in finding me someone who commutes to the office and lives in my area;
• Approaching the owner of the office building where I work to launch a car pooling program for everyone who works there;
• Searching for web sites that help you find someone to car pool with. I know some government agencies have sites like this.

Reasons to Carpool

I understand the annoyances of carpooling. Right now I work from home, but for a couple of years I carpooled to work with my husband. While it was fun to have someone share the driving with and to talk with on the ride in, …

Interest in mass transit, carpools, scooters jumps

Paul Dorn says traffic almost tripled on his two websites that offer commuter tips for bicyclists — from 7893 in April 2007 to 21580 last month. Many visitors cite gas prices, he says. • Interest in vanpools is growing. …

Look, if you and two other people shared a ride to work, you’d cut your gas costs to 1/3 of what you were paying. I’m thinking to myself about now “Car pool now stupid!”

Here’s some related articles about car pooling:

Hybrid car buying info

With the high price of gas, lots of folks are thinking about other types of cars like Hybrids. Here’s some info I found about Hybrids you may find interesting.

Primer for Buying a Fuel-Efficient Car

Do you want a hybrid, or full electric automobile? Are you willing to search out alternative fuel options? Buying a car these days, whether buying a used car or a brand new vehicle, comes with almost too many choices. …

Hybrid Sports Cars May Be In Near Future

Many are wondering that if a hybrid power plant can be included into existing models, why they can’t be used in hybrid sports cars as well. One such innovation, constructed by a team of high schoolers built a diesel-electric hybrid …

Facts about Hybrid Cars

There are a number of myths and misrepresentations about hybrid cars but there are also a number of clear facts. Certain hybrid cars produce a significant amount less pollutants than conventional cars although the amount depends on the …

2007 Hybrid Cars - Changing The World?

If you’re thinking about buying one of the new 2007 hybrid cars, an internet search should reveal any dealers that are nearby to you. Ask about any local or countrywide incentives to buying a hybrid car – many areas are offering lower …

Spark plugs and gas costs

You pay have never thought about this but if your spark plugs aren’t working effectively you’ll get lower gas mileage. This is another simple idea to help you save on gas.

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