Dave Mancuso dot Com

As a result of Katrina, we’ve lost over 20 major oil production rigs so far (confirmed).

This means that we have a significant dip in oil production.

Gas prices in my town were $2.59 per gallon in the morning, $2.69 at noon, and $2.79 by five pm–all at the same gas station. Elsewhere it had already jumped to $2.89.

It’s almost a virtual certainty that we’ll need to dip into our national oil reserves. Even so, we’re looking at an instant recession. The formerly looming threat is now reality.

Here’s more on the oil rig story–they literally can’t find the rigs from the air searches. They’re gone.

From the article:

“We are looking at YEARS to return to the production levels we had prior to the storm. The eastern Gulf of Mexico is primarily oil production…
Loss of the MARS platform alone cost us 95,000 barrels a day for a year or maybe more.
YEARS, people. I know what this means – hope everyone else gets it too…”

And from the comments at the above webpage:

“In Hazleton, PA…There was panic buying in progress when I passed on my way home. Vehicles were lined up at 10-deep to access the two pump islands. Of course, the gas being pumped there was the same that sold a day before for $2.55. An immediate tight supply driving the price hikes? Or just jitters?”

Most of you are too young to remember the gas rationing in ’74. Think we’ll go back to odd and even license plate days? “Sorry, sir–only odd-numbered plates can buy gas today.” My Uncle Alfred was in a (typically) long line for gas then and watched a fistfight break out ahead of him in line.

Because they did it already. We’re now officially into our strategic oil reserves.

But, as the article says:

“The government’s oil “is not going to be of much help unless we get refineries running again,” said Adam Sieminski, global oil strategist at Deutsche Bank AG in New York, before the announcement. “Releasing oil from the SPR right now would be actually inappropriate because there would be no place to put it.”

On the other hand, supporting my belief that our economy is bult on mob psychology (or mass psychosis, however you misuse the terms):

““Whether it makes a physical difference or not is irrelevant,” Goldstein [president of the Petroleum Industry Research Foundation in New York] said. Government statements about the national stockpile had “a very important psychological impact because they came out early.”

Maybe my recent biodiesel obsession is more of a good idea now…if we can’t drill for fuel, maybe we should grow it instead.

So it looks like biodiesel is a pretty good alternative. In fact Worley and Obetz are selling biodiesel at the pump in nearby Manheim and in my town any day now.

So I just need a diesel car…maybe a used Jetta Ecodiesel model.

Yeah. A VW again. Cool. I’ll look on Ebay.

Hmm. Not much on Ebay, but…wait! Look-an awesome car! Rebuilt turbo diesel engine, upgraded drivetrain, special car features, more. The perfect car. 28-35 mpg, even for a vehicle its size.

But then I show it to my wife. And she says “If you buy another Vanagon Camper, you’ll be sleeping in it, so I hope it has a good heater in addition to the diesel engine.”

Sniff, sniff. Good-bye, cool opportunity. I was even willing to drive you back from Denver, Colorado.

Guess I’ll have to look further for my renewable-energy vehicle. And all I wanted was to save the environment.

They’re both somewhat persecuted nowadays, in a loose sense of the word. I thought that Help! Mom! There are Liberals UInder My Bed! was just a joke, but apparently it’s a real children’s book. Jeez, I never knew how the liberals were out to get all our money for wasteful “causes.” Bleeding hearts, always out to make the world better or some such nonsense. At least that’s what our old friend Niner would say (old inside joke).

Not to stir up another storm in the comments (my conservative, moderate, and liberal friends are very decent people but have strong opinions), but the book just seems weird. I wonder what it is about our society today that divides good people so sharply? It seems like primal forces venting in weird ways.

Forget about this stuff, though. I’m still sniffling over the diesel Vanagon (see previous post).

The Jetpack Propulsion Home Project.

Gotta give the guy credit for guts, though. (grin)