Joules Burn

Oil Price Impact in Perspective

Interesting point. But to be accurate, you should conclude by saying that gas COSTS for DRIVING are 50% below their highs in the 1980s. Prices are slightly higher, and the driving of cars doesn't account for all of the oil costs in the economy.

Something else to look at would be the gas costs relative to the median income as opposed to the per capita GDP (which will be skewed towards high earners).

Finally, there is the airline industry. There has been a rather pronounced increase in efficiency there to:

www.airlines.org/econo...

So, what's the big deal? Mostly that their (until recent) prices were designed for the fuel costs of a few years ago. The question will be whether their business model can change as fast as future fuel price increases.

$200 Oil Is a Very Real Possibility

Pie in the sky numbers like 2 trillion barrels mean squat. What counts is the rate at which it can be produced, and we are now having to get it from a) smaller and smaller fields or b) deep under the ocean floor or c) by digging it out of the ground and then baking and hydrogenating it to make it it flow (e.g. tar sands). The net result is less net energy available to power your car on, no matter what the price is. And to make matters worse, more and more people want that oil.