A Letter to My Representative
Dear Representative Tierney:
I recently received an email from your office regarding a Gas Prices survey. I completed the survey, but wanted to share my opinions on the rising cost of gas with you.
In response to your survey: increased gas prices are not affecting other areas of my finances, as I budget appropriately and conserve as necessary.
Gas prices are indeed high, but attacking the Oil Industry for successfully running their business and making a profit on an in-demand product seems counterintuitive. There have been accusations of price fixing/gouging, but these claims have been made with no evidence. This strikes me as a knee-jerk reaction to success at a time when the service provided seems so expensive. Certainly, if concrete evidence is found that implicates Big Oil in a price gouging scheme, then they should be held accountable and criminally liable, but I believe that they are reaping the rewards of running a successful business. Furthermore, they can justify the rising cost of gasoline and oil based on events on the world market as well as the increased effort/energy required to gather more oil.
Logically, you can’t have the sheer number of people consuming as much gasoline as we Americans do without some consequences, especially when the costs of gathering oil continue to increase. The only logical way to force the price of gasoline down, and oil in general, is to reduce demand. We cannot “force” a reduction in demand because of the nature of the freedoms that we enjoy in this country, and we should never consider any course of action that would deprive us of these freedoms. Luckily, the very fact that gasoline prices are rising will serve to help us reduce demand.
To elaborate: in my opinion, the number of people who drive oversized, overpowered, gas-guzzling vehicles who have no reason to drive them is ridiculous. However, I would never abridge the People’s right to purchase said vehicles, due to the nature of the free market and the concept of supply and demand. With enough education; a little applied logic; and the fact that prices to fill these vehicles continue to rise, I believe we’ll see a reduction in the amount of SUVs and light trucks purchased by people who really don’t need them. This reduction in the number of gas-guzzling vehicles will reduce the demand for gas as these same people upgrade to vehicles that get 30+ MPG. This reduction in demand will reduce the price at the pump, thereby reducing the burden upon small businesses and others who rely upon larger vehicles for their business or day-to-day requirements.
The free market can work if we allow it to perform as intended. It’s not immediate, but we need to learn that quick fixes are rarely real fixes. Offering $100 rebates, rolling-back taxes and assaulting the oil industry are cheap attempts at quick fixes that will result in more problems further down the road. For more information on why rolling back taxes is a bad idea, please read the recent Atlantic Monthly article about taxes and the economy or listen to Governor Mitt Romney’s concerns in regards to Kerry Healey’s proposed roll-back on state gas taxes. The People can direct business as they see fit by using their wallets to maximum effectiveness.
As a constituent, I ask you to focus your energies spreading the word and asking people to conserve as opposed to attacking the free market.
I appreciate your time and your efforts on my behalf.
Sincerely,
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