Gas prices , again

[wa2crk]

Hey Ed in T
I had the same thought but even my devious cop's mind had a hard time going there!!! Well, not a really hard time.
Bill V

[jsburger]

I saw in the paper this morning that there would be no copa increase for social security. Apparently the low gas prices was a big factor in inflation index.
That makes sense lower gas prices figure the inflation index once it is done you raise it up again for another year.

Yes I read the same thing. Gas is a cop out but maybe things have not gotten more expensive. I seem to remember many years ago we did not get a military pay raise but I could be mistaken.

Does anyone remember the Misery Index the big three news programs reported almost every day back during the Carter administration?

My wife and I get 5 retirement paychecks from the Federal Government due to our service but none of them will see an increase. Not really a problem but another $100 or so would be appreciated.

[JPG]

Gee my 'retirement check' has not increased in over 27 years.

[skou]

Outside of my "local" area, less than $2 ($1,99.99 per gallon) or $2 per gallon.

Here in town, best I've SEEN, is $2.19 a gallon.

Boss's son saw $1.95.99 a gallon, in Snottsdale. But I'm NOT
taking my bike to Snottsdale. (Scottsdale Az.)

steve

[dusty]

Hmmm, No COLA increase because the cost of gasoline is down??

Help me remember! When the cost of gasoline was sky high, did we get comparatively large COLA increases?

Back a few years we experienced dry spells when there were no COLA increases. During those times, what did the cost of gasoline look like? I don't recall that it was down.

[Ed in Tampa]

Charles you are right I meant COLA. Old mind fighting through years of memories and years of accumulated knowledge. ( newest reason why older minds seem slow)

Dusty there weren't any COLA increases in 2010 and 2011 and now it looks like 2015.

To those that complain that their retirement hasn't increased, neither has mine.

But we are talking about Social Security that I was forced to pay into along with my employer.
It carried lots of promise like yearly cost of living increases and such. Oh by the way if congress hadn't diped into it, it could afford to give cost of living increases.

Instead it is called an entitlement and makes it seem like all SS recipentants are leeches living off society. We paid for the coverage and it wasn't a gift.

Think about this, had I been allowed to take the money I had to paid and the money my employer had to pay and invested it, I could be getting twice what I now get and pay for yours also.

Now the bums in Washington are saying that the cost of gas is down so there wasn't any inflation. No inflation have any of them taken a trip to a store? Bought medicine, replaced a roof, paid an electric bill, bought a car?

Last week Motor week did a road test on vans. A Chyrsler town and country in 1985 cost
$8500 today a similar van is $47,000. I was stunned when I heard that!

[Bruce]

Until we get Congress on social security, they will always be robbing from it for their pet programs. I'm not on it yet, and I'm not hopeful that I will get much from it when I do. The current administration and Congress is bankrupting the country.

[Gene Howe]

Yeah, and you still end up with a Chrysler.
Had to rent a 300 a few months back. 2200 miles on it and it was already full of rattles. Back windows wouldn't work and, I swear that the dash was going to pop off any minute. What a piece of crap! It did go fast though. Didn't drive it long enough to accurately check the MPG.
The merger with Fiat didn't help. Blind leading the blind.

Last week Motor week did a road test on vans. A Chyrsler town and country in 1985 cost
$8500 today a similar van is $47,000. I was stunned when I heard that!

[dgale]

$2.95/gal for regular unleaded here in way northern California - I have an account with the local CardLock, so I get it for more like $2.70/gal, but either way quite a bit more than virtually everywhere else in the US. I don't complain too much, as it wasn't that long ago I was paying between $4.00 and $5.00/gal

[garys]

Gas here in Utah is higher than the national average for some unknown reason and we have a refinery right here in Salt Lake City. It never varies drastically from day to day but when it does go up or down it is usually 2 or 3 cents a day over a week or 10 days. Right now it is 2.52 and that is the lowest it has been in a long time.

We have the same sitution here. We have a refinery on the edge of town, and yet we always pay well over the national average for gas, and worse, we pay higher prices than the cities that are a couple of hundred miles away from the refinery. Having a refinery in town sets you up for a monopoly. Once that refinery has all the local market, they can set the price. A station that doesn't sell for the set price has been known to have their windows shot out as a reminder to toe the line.