Record heating bills may be coming

I know Mitchell oil sent out notification that the cap this year would be $4.89.......my oil bill will be higher than a car payment! then the economy will really tank. I'm starting to save now and sure hope we have a mild winter.

the burning of woodstoves this winter, that is.

In England, a gallon of Diesel fuel(same stuff you burn at home) costs the equivalent of US $11.50

Imagine if big oil wants to raise our prices to that level.

S-C-R-E-W-E-D

My Mitchell "budget" payment for the next 12 months just increased 58%. Yes, it's now more than a car payment. A LARGE one.

I just got oil delivered last week; it was $4.55/gal. I was told that it could go has high as $6/gal!!! I'll be wearing lots of layers this winter and scraping the ice off the inside of my house windows!!!

I have to give the NT credit, as they're the first ones to bring up a topic that going to hit us all hard this winter.

If things stay like this, we're going to see more fires from electric heaters, kerosene, and chimneys of people burning wood, and more frozen pipes when folks run out of oil.

Standard Oil Co is $4.74 right now, they are making no commitments to offering a price cap or pre-buy pricing.

Forget fires, you will see more people dead from using the gas stove to heat the house.

Our Government is useless. Do yourselves a favor and read Tom Friedman for a sensible answer to what is needed. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/22/opinion/22f...

There is a word for these politicians who are trying to control market behaviors through government intervention/control: COMMUNISTS.
Oil prices are so high because of simple supply/demand. We live in a country where the average vehicle on the road gets less than 18 mpg and the average house is now over 2500 Sq ft. And we wonder why there is so much demand for petroleum products? And consequently why prices are so high?
Lets get these commies out of office ASAP before they have their way and we really find out what economic pain and suffering are all about - Soviet style

Lieberman is a communist wrote:

There is a word for these politicians who are trying to control market behaviors through government intervention/control: COMMUNISTS.
Oil prices are so high because of simple supply/demand. We live in a country where the average vehicle on the road gets less than 18 mpg and the average house is now over 2500 Sq ft. And we wonder why there is so much demand for petroleum products? And consequently why prices are so high?
Lets get these commies out of office ASAP before they have their way and we really find out what economic pain and suffering are all about - Soviet style

the problem today is that speculation in oil futures has disrupted the market so that prices no longer are based on supply and demand.

After the housing bubble burst institutional investors such as hedge funds pension plans and investment banks began excessive speculation in oil contracts to hedge against inflation etc.

it is the excessive speculation that is damaging the free market.

markets can be disrupted by private actions as easily as government actions.

this is a rare occasion where government action (regulation) is needed to make the prices more closely conform to supply and demand.

I agree with brill's sentiments though i wouldn't go with his wording.

"the problem today is that speculation in oil futures has disrupted the market so that prices no longer are based on supply and demand.

After the housing bubble burst institutional investors such as hedge funds pension plans and investment banks began excessive speculation in oil contracts to hedge against inflation etc.

it is the excessive speculation that is damaging the free market.

markets can be disrupted by private actions as easily as government actions.

this is a rare occasion where government action (regulation) is needed to make the prices more closely conform to supply and demand. "

- Wrong. Market disruptions of this type always correct themselves over time. If we intervene, the law of unintended consequences takes over we will cause more problems then we fix. Not to mention we would be bringing ourselves even farther down the slippery slope of communism.

Lieberman is a communist wrote:

"the problem today is that speculation in oil futures has disrupted the market so that prices no longer are based on supply and demand.
After the housing bubble burst institutional investors such as hedge funds pension plans and investment banks began excessive speculation in oil contracts to hedge against inflation etc.
it is the excessive speculation that is damaging the free market.
markets can be disrupted by private actions as easily as government actions.
this is a rare occasion where government action (regulation) is needed to make the prices more closely conform to supply and demand. "
- Wrong. Market disruptions of this type always correct themselves over time. If we intervene, the law of unintended consequences takes over we will cause more problems then we fix. Not to mention we would be bringing ourselves even farther down the slippery slope of communism.

The private forces which are disrupting the oil market are every bit as ambitious and potentially damaging as government regulation leading to communism.

If the private market disruptions are not dealt with, a private monopoly could arise. We should fear this sort of control as much as communism.

In general, however, I agree that we should reduce government regulation as much as possible.

Why don't the politicians offer them a discount for paying cash because that will be SOOO affective for gas stations...

Hey .. to all you politicians. Get off your ass and do something about this mess. Stop with the action politics to make you look like your doing something.

for every seller, there has to be a buyer. Lower consumption and the price will lower accordingly. Nothing about the laws of supply and demand have changed here. What we are seeing is simply another case of politicians trying to enact yet more regulations that will serve no purpose other than to keep more government workers on the payroll and keep us even more dependent on foreign oil.

Anybody care to speculate on how many people will have to choose between being warm this winter, or having food to eat?
Not all homes have fireplaces or wood burning stoves - what options are there for those people? Something needs to be done about this - and if it means regulating the "speculators" - I'm all for it.

Lieberman is a communist wrote:

for every seller, there has to be a buyer. Lower consumption and the price will lower accordingly. Nothing about the laws of supply and demand have changed here. What we are seeing is simply another case of politicians trying to enact yet more regulations that will serve no purpose other than to keep more government workers on the payroll and keep us even more dependent on foreign oil.

you don't understand how the futures market works

sure, many of the same people who live in large houses and drive large SUV's....economic reality will cause them to challenge their purchasing decisions and adjust accordingly. Thats how the world works.

That being said, there are many less fortunate people out there whose circumstances dictate that they will have it rough this year. I pray for these people and hope that their friends and neighbors can step in and help.

this is some country nobody seems to know what to do, i think we are doomed, look whats going on with this lifelong election process, icant believe it, idont think bush even cares anymore,hes got all the money he,ll ever need, the hell with everybody, but somebody is getting all our money, thats for sure

korean vet wrote:

this is some country nobody seems to know what to do, i think we are doomed, look whats going on with this lifelong election process, icant believe it, idont think bush even cares anymore,hes got all the money he,ll ever need, the hell with everybody, but somebody is getting all our money, thats for sure

Wall Street is taking your money due to unregulated electronic trading in the oil futures market. Congress will likely act soon and close a legal loophole that allows unregulated speculation in the commodities markets, requiring speculators to put up a greater percentage when purchasing a futures contract. This will result in lower retail prices for oil and gas before the cold weather.