Off Year

Equal protection under the law is what every American expects.

On January 30, 2016, I posted a picture on Facebook of the cost of gas in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At that time gas was $1.99 a gallon. I remember standing at the pump very pleased that I was able to fill up my SUV for about $45. At the height of the economic downturn, it could cost almost $100 to fill up one of my SUV’s. Over the next few weeks, the prices continued to fall, and I could feel the difference in my wallet.

This past Monday I was greeted with gas prices of $2.49 a gallon. I had to stop and think what is the reason? After a scan of several news sites, there was no event that was explicitly linked to rising gas prices. In my daily review of news I came across a story about wildfires in the oil sands area in Canada.

My first reaction was “You have got to be kidding me?” Companies cannot use this to invoke the “Fear Premium.” A few days ago I was reading one of my favorite papers, and the headline stated oil was going north of $50, and the “Fear Premium’ was a factor.  The headline and subsequent article left a smirk on my face. My thoughts went to American foreign policy and diplomatic efforts. What kind of country are we going to be? Is it about the individual or is it about entities.

The lowering of gas prices is a boom for the individual and can help spur the economy. With lower crude oil prices the oil companies have seen their record profits fall.

If you look at diplomatic events in correlation to the oil prices dropping, think about when everyone had their opinion about the nuclear deal with Iran. As a result of the nuclear deal with Iran, millions of barrels of oil were reintroduced into the world's economy. Economically do we operate from a Hope Premium or Fear Premium. I guess your answer would depend on the value you place on the individual or the entity.