Soaring Gas Prices
By Cartoon: RJ Matson, The St. Louis Post Dispatch
Project: Cynthia Kirkeby, ClassBrain
May 3, 2006, 14:23 PST
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| © RJ Matson, The St. Louis Post Dispatch |
Soaring Gas Prices
Gas prices have become one of the hottest issues in the political world today. With the prices at the pump increasing day by day averaging approximately $3.00 across the country and topping $3.50 in many areas, the public has begun an outcry that is being heard loudly in Washington DC. The big oil companies just posted profits that many people feel border on the obscene, while the average American’s gas bill has increased approximately 20-30% depending on the region of the country.
Accusations of pricing collusion in the gas industry has spurred an investigation into big oil. Politicians have also been called to submit new legislation to speed the shift to alternative fuels, as well as implement stricter gas consumption requirements on new cars. Concurrently, the Senate is once again being called on to pass legislation sent over from the House, which would allow oil drilling in the pristine Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in Alaska, which supposedly holds oil reserves which exceed the giant oil reserves of Saudi Arabia.
Questions to Ponder
- Do you think that big oil profits are simply a matter of supply and demand?
- Are the oil companies involved in pricing collusion or price gouging?
- Should a cap be placed on oil profits, either as a percentage or a dollar value?
- Which alternative fuels present the best chance of migrating us away from our dependence on oil?
- Should the Senate allow oil companies to drill in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR)?
- Will oil prices continue to rise?
- How high will oil prices reach in the next five years?
- What alternate fuel sources are currently available to the average family?
ClassBrain Learning Links
Stumbo seeks gas price information from refiners, retailers
Source: Courier-journal.com
Preserve the Arctic Refuge
Source: NRDC
Alternative Fuel
Source: How Stuff Works
Big Rise in Profit Puts Oil Giants on Defensive
Source: Common Dreams News Center
Finding Cheaper Gas Prices
Source: ClassBrain
© Copyright 2006 by Classbrain.com
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