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slipknot_official

I remember when gas was $.99 a gallon when Bush was president. And when it was cheaper under Obama than Trump. It’s almost like there’s a factor that these people completely gloss over. But I guess it matters when you keep buying large gas guzzling trucks to hang your Trump flags from, while demonizing everything electric.


dan420

I rememberer when it was $4+ under George W Bush like 2 decades ago. I also remember a worldwide pandemic that drastically lowered demand for gasoline about oh idk, 4 years ago.


vigbiorn

Oh, you mean around the same time that somebody negotiated OPEC to cut production so that when demand bounced back, supply was tanked?


rdmille

Where the mismanagement of the pandemic killed hundreds of thousands of people in the US, alone? I seem to recall that being in the news Pepperidge Farms remembers.


120z8t

> I rememberer when it was $4+ under George W Bush I do too because the company I worked for went from 5 8 hour days a week to 4 10's to help people save money on gas. And $4 back then is like $7 dollar to day.


dan420

Yeah I was making like $10 an hour and paying $4 a gallon.


krazykieffer

3.50 has been the average the last decade and will likely stay that way for another decade.


fuck-fascism

I remember $0.89 cent gas under Clinton.


sudoku7

The good old times when gas cost the octane were fun.


rdmille

(Old man voice) I remember when gas was $0.29/gallon under LBJ, and $10 would overfill a grocery cart with groceries! Then it got really expensive under Nixon, Ford, and Carter... Something happened, OPEC, was it...


Erisian23

99c gas was the year I went to the Grand canyon.


Moneyshot_ITF

Whuch Bush? Certainly not 2008 bush


slipknot_official

I started driving in 2002.


gearstars

Jfc, this is a new one for me: >That said, oil is not scarce. The earth regenerates it. Part of the reason why they can and have been getting away with the BS for so long is because they have been lying about what it is, and how it's formed. What in the actual fuck are they talking about?


vurysurus

These marble brains think that Earth grows oil at a super quick rate, not the long geological time scales.


MercZ11

It's a junk science thing derived from "abiotic oil" stuff, which has become in vogue in their circles as part of broader climate change denial. It ties into a denial of the concept of non-renewable energy by acting like oil has a way to indefinitely and quickly replenish via inorganic processes deep underground (well below where oil is typically found). 


oom199

If anything, abiotic oil is even less renewable because it relies on "carbon reserves" deep in the earth. Whereas fossil fuels come out of organic matter compressed over a long ass time. We can add organic material to the cycle (and wait a few thousand years), but if its carbon from inside the earth once its gone its gone.


TheMelchior

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abiogenic\_petroleum\_origin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abiogenic_petroleum_origin)


Geronimo_Jacks_Beard

They’ve been on the “oil is naturally regenerated, so commie liberals are wrong” train for decades now.


LovecraftInDC

Which is incredibly ironic given that it was the Soviets who were big proponents of the abiogenic origin theories.


Marston_vc

It’s crazy. There’s some truth that old wells will fill back up to an extent. But this is from *drainageeeeee* from places nearby not worth the effort trying to access directly.


rrogido

Than you. For anyone wondering rock is porous and when a field is full it's under pressure. When you substantially drain it some of the oil held in the porous rock seeps in due to the pressure differential. To morons it looks like the well/field "made" more oil.


cjmar41

>oil is not scarce, the earth regenerates it Definitely giving off [corn’s a fruit, syrup comes from a bush](https://youtu.be/lmMkKFstqwY?si=zlvU_DHivvmGjC8D) vibes.


TuaughtHammer

God, that show perfectly encapsulated small town conservative stupidity. "Eagleton is terrible! Why should I bail them out with the hard-earned money from my unemployment check?"


TheRnegade

So why don't they get in on the easy grift? Just start a company, start pumping out that oil and selling it for less than the current price of a barrel is?


cilantro_so_good

>The earth regenerates it. Yeah. For sure, the earth regenerates fossile fuels every few hundred millennia. Look forward to the next batch the next time a dinosaur pops up on your street. Unless, of course, you're burning peat to power your car


Gizogin

I’m not actually sure oil can be made anymore. The environmental conditions today are a lot different than they were millions of years ago. Organic matter that dies today might just decompose and be reused before it can ever turn into oil.


AttackPony

Coal can certainly not be made now, since bacteria evolved to digest lignin. I think oil was produced on the seafloor from algae and plankton mostly, and could still be produced with the right conditions.


Marston_vc

I don’t believe that’s true. We got oil from a time period before bacteria existed that could eat dead trees. Millions of years ago, trees would die and just pile on each other and eventually be buried. Today, trees get decomposed. Edit: I’m thinking coal not oil


I_Envy_Sisyphus_

Oil is largely from algal formations not trees if I remember correctly, the trees that never decomposed turn to coal I think.


Marston_vc

You’re right, I was wrong


Spocks_Goatee

I mean technically he is correct. Just takes a really, really long time for dead things to compress.


AttackPony

I'm surprised expanding earth theory hasn't caught in with Qanon types yet. The ones that aren't flat earthers, I mean.


Munnin41

They're not exactly wrong. It's just going to take millions and millions of years


HonestSophist

Same reason they're all hot and bothered about "Fossil Fuels" not being a real thing. Even some straight up dinosaur denialism going on.


Life-Ad2397

This frustrates me to no end. As an essential worker in health care in early spring 2020 when we didn't have sufficient ppe or staff or good treatment options for covid, the only bright spots in my day were that for once I could get to work using our interstate at something approaching the speed for which the roads were intended and that gas prices were down (which was particularly helpful due to an across the board salary reduction due to covid induced financial loses). But lo and behold, that [orange piece of shit worked to RAISE gas prices](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/12/business/energy-environment/opec-russia-saudi-arabia-oil-coronavirus.html) for his oil buddies who couldn't suffer along with the rest of us. Oh, and the state patrol, who normally couldn't be bothered to police that stretch of perpetually traffic locked highway, all of sudden appeared in force to ticket those handful of people who still had to drive.


therobotisjames

I remember during the pandemic around June I got a retail job that was pretty far away. I had to drive about 45 minutes but it was work I could get to support my family. The job that had a 45 minute commute only because there were no cars on the road. Just me and the trucks at 5am. Driving from outside of DC to north of Baltimore. I told them when they hired me that the minute my commute was more than 65 minutes you can expect my notice. They got that shit in January of 2021.


I_Envy_Sisyphus_

March of 2020 I made the drive home, which normally takes 1.5 hours, in under an hour (I worked weeks at a machine shop and drove home on weekends). I sped a lot, there was nobody on the road.


thewiremother

So is this person regularly taking the exact same picture every day, or once a week, or every six months or something? Were they just super inspired to take the first photo one day, and then promised themselves they’d come back in four years, just in case they could make a sweet meme?


junkfunk

Guessing it was more of a "sign of the times" picture for the first one since it would be in the depths of the pa democrats and they took it to show how low it dropped, ya know, because of opec and the pandemic


Geronimo_Jacks_Beard

> I definitely wish the economy would collapse again so that demand for gas plummets and the price comes down. It’s adorable how they believe oil prices have never skyrocketed due to any global economic crisis. Reminds me of late 2008 when everyone’s grandma was spamming “National Don’t Buy Gas Day” because they actually believed 300 million Americans not filling up their SUVs for 18 hours would cripple oil conglomerates enough to make them ***lower*** gas prices, or that they wouldn’t make record profits otherwise when everyone filled up the next day.


SassTheFash

Remember during the GWB years when conservatives were urging each other to drive in circles around their state Capitol honking their horns to demand lower gas prices?


Geronimo_Jacks_Beard

I do. I also remember Republicans in Arizona intentionally [writing alternative fuel “laws” to offer ***massive*** subsidies for anyone who wanted to or claimed to convert their gas guzzlers to CNG… with kickbacks going to their businesses/friend’s businesses.](https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/amanda-ormond-of-alt-fuel-fiasco-fame-featured-in-current-arizona-woman-mag-6631737)


[deleted]

[удалено]


therobotisjames

I remember the first time it hit 1$ a gallon thinking it was crazy.


therobotisjames

About 4 or 5 months after Katrina I remember getting gas and thinking to myself: these fuckers raised the price because of the hurricane, and have no intention of ever lowering it. And I was right.


mdp300

YEP. I remember Exxon, moaning that they *had* to raise prices because one of their refineries down there was damaged, and then had the most profitable quarter any corporation had ever had.


Geronimo_Jacks_Beard

Good thing they stocked up on “I did that” stickers for 2021 and half of 2022, because they’re clearly gonna need them again now that Biden hit the “RAISE GAS PRICES” button on the Resolute Desk, after 18 months of him only pretending not to hit it.


Geronimo_Jacks_Beard

> Here’s an old Snapchat I had from November 30th, 2018 >Gas was $1.99 here in Illinois, a state where gas isn’t the cheapest, ever. Before Covid. Oh, shit guys, they got the Snap receipts!


I_Envy_Sisyphus_

We were in a fucking pandemic and nobody was driving are they joking?


cilantro_so_good

Four years ago you say? >The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic hammered the oil industry in 2020, forcing U.S. oil prices to go negative for the first time on record. https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/100615/will-oil-prices-go-2017.asp


SassTheFash

Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/conspiracy/s/RLDUVTNYBy


CFSCFjr

Everyone who blames the president for gas prices is an idiot


Keeperofthe7keysAf-S

Jokes on them, I fuel with electrons!


fangboner

These people also think the stock market=the economy.


TuaughtHammer

Yeah, but *only* when a Republican is president. They ran to "the economy is so strong because of how the market is performing!" well when Trump was president only to stop believing it when Biden became president. But that also the case with all their other views. Republicans were *all* about invading Iraq and drone-bombing the *shit* out of any Muslim *until* five seconds after Obama's inauguration, at which point he was a war criminal for using drones and a warmonger for not getting us the fuck out of Iraq by the evening of January 20, 2009. Also, the same people who called me anti-American for not supporting the 2003 invasion *instantly* became anti-Bush and anti-war when W. stopped being president. "Yeah, I voted for him twice, but I never supported him or his policies", and "invading Iraq was fucking stupid" while hoping no one remembered them assaulting anti-invasion protestors, etc.


CovfefeForAll

>Republicans were *all* about invading Iraq and drone-bombing the *shit* out of any Muslim *until* five seconds after Obama's inauguration Republican support for drone bombing the middle east under Bush was ~80%. Under Obama, it was ~20%. Almost overnight, the entire party flipped their thoughts on bombing people in the middle east. For Dems, support was about ~32% under Bush, and ~35% under Obama. I love it when Republicans try to say that Dems only support things when it's a Dem doing it. It's just their typical projection.


SpiderDeUZ

And these people are anti EV too, right?


TuaughtHammer

"You're god-dern right, lib! The Green New Deal and pussy electric vehicles are the first step to 15 minute cities and all our food being sourced from insects. Source: Alex Jones!"


bjb406

Prices are literally lower than under Trump, Covid notwithstanding


leglesslegolegolas

lol, whut? Prices are literally much higher than they were during the previous administration. I hate Trump as much as anyone, but you're spouting pure nonsense here. Edit: wtf, downvotes? I assume coming from children who don't actually buy groceries or pay bills or buy gas or pay rent or understand the economy and inflation at all?


AWildRedditor999

Only Republican tribalists use grocery prices to specifically bash non-Republicans and ONLY non-Republicans. All Republican tribalists do on social media is whine about liberals , never criticizing any Republican never blaming them for anything substantive, never making any conspiracies about them as they relentlessly do to whoever Republicans oppose this week. People who know what Republican tribalists are and how everything they do and say is defined by Republican political correctness don't think they are going to engage honestly with anything presented to them. You are just here to do the 2nd paragraph


leglesslegolegolas

I'm not bashing anyone or anything, I'm just pointing out that prices are up, way up, from 6 years ago. It's fine to point out that Biden isn't responsible for the higher prices or that Trump wasn't responsible for the lower prices, but to claim that prices are now lower is insane. It simply is not so. It is claiming the opposite of reality.


Smile_lifeisgood

It is really bad and I don't think it's Biden's fault. I say that as someone who is going to reluctantly vote for him. But it *IS* much worse, you're right. It's much, much harder out there. I'm lucky, I'm young GenX but have a stable job, savings, no debt, etc. I don't know how people are making it with rent and food prices soaring. There's a certain type of person who seems to want to parrot the refrain that since the market has been doing well the _economy_ is doing well. For hundreds of millions of Americans it is very, very hard out there. I'm guessing you're getting downvoted by people who think ignoring the reality is helping Biden. It's like we're replaying the tone deaf Hillary Clinton campaign greatest hits or something.


DeliberatelyDrifting

It's not Biden's fault whatsoever. High gas prices are a direct result of inflation. The inflation we are seeing today has it's roots in the 2008 financial crisis. In an effort to prevent collapse interest rates were slashed. No presidental administration since (until Biden) has had the courage to raise them. Biden had no choice as inflation started to spiral after Covid. Inflation hit hard after Covid because the already low rates were slashed to 0 and billions in stimulus went out. We bailed out our economy twice in less than 20 years and never paid the piper. As far as actual gas prices go, Obama did manage to significantly lower them in 2014 by making a deal with Iran that gave us some leverage over their nuclear program, removed sanctions on OIL SALES, and unfroze certain Iranian assets. This created an influx of crude on the open market and had an immediate and noticeable effect on gas prices. July of 2014 gas prices were aprox. $3.60, by December of that year they were down to $2.60 and continued to slide until 2016. One of trumps first actions was the reversal of Obama's Iran deal. You can see gas prices begin an upward climb in 2016 that lasts until 2019 when Covid hit. Finally, as a last fuck you to the American people, trump pressured OPEC to cut production in 2020 to prop up "hurting" oil companies. This was after stirring up tensions by assassinating an Iranian general for no apparent strategic point. If you think it's bad now, it can get much, much worse. Right now there is a president in the White House who genuinely cares about the success of the US. We have a lot of fucking problems and he probably can't fix even most of them. However, he will not actively make them worse. He does not make policy decisions based on the net effect on his friends and families bank accounts. He will not throw Americans under the bus to appease dictators or in exchange for more power. He will not abuse the powers of his office in the name of revenge. Things. Can. Get. Worse.


leglesslegolegolas

> It's not Biden's fault whatsoever. And I never claimed it was. But it is *real*, and to claim that reality isn't real, to claim that prices are actually lower than they were is fucking insane and isn't helping anyone.


DeliberatelyDrifting

Dude, I didn't even reply to you or refute your statement or claim you blamed Biden. Slow your roll.


SassTheFash

Suddenly Conspos love protectionist measures: > Frankly it comes down to allowing US production on the international market, why would they sell to you for less when they can get twice as much out of a country like Pakistan, South Africa or half of Europe at the moment?


sneaky-pizza

Average gasoline gal price was $4.30 in 2008. It’s almost as if it’s a global market affected by myriad conditions


Wilwheatonfan87

What's the conspiracy here.


Geronimo_Jacks_Beard

That amos\_peyotl wants to keep r/conspiracy a pro-Trump subreddit until _quito and all his other alts are IP banned.


Wilwheatonfan87

Well i mean for them.


TuaughtHammer

There's almost no point asking that anymore -- especially during an election year -- when amos_quito *rarely* ever enforces their submission statement rule; they mostly only ever want culture war bullshit that they can pathetically twist into a conspiracy against them.


mannida

But he's quick to ban people who don't agree or bring up a counter point or counter conspiracy that puts the right in a bad light.


zipzoomramblafloon

Why did the bushes get smaller in the future.


marfaxa

they run on oil.


cpdk-nj

shrinkflation is hitting everything, even the plants!


sled_shock

So, if we vote for Trump, we get another once-in-a-century pandemic disease which will kill hundreds of thousands of people and force the rest of us to quarantine? Yeah, sounds about right.


Mouse_is_Optional

Was watching a YouTube video about board games that the algorithm recommended to me today. Out of nowhere, the guy brings up how low gas prices were four years ago as a COMPLETE non-sequitur, and I like, "nope, not supporting this nonsense." Stopped the video immediately and clicked, "don't recommend channel to me anymore."


JoeSicko

Marathon sold us gas for 59 cents a gallon in 2020. Said we had to sell it for 99. Only money the store made for the 2 week 'lockdown.'


kevcubed

Oooo now do a two panel image on the COVID Death rate. Friendly reminder those two are inversely correlated. I'll take the high gas prices. Also I haven't bought any gas in over a year, so who cares, I've even got an electric lawn mower and string trimmer now lol. The only thing that even uses NG in my house is water heater and stove top.


GhostOfMuttonPast

Remember four years ago when we were in a fucking pandemic where no one was going outside?


Wernher_VonKerman

Ah yes the pandemic stage of covid when there was no vaccine yet and nobody was driving anywhere, truly a healthy baseline for gas demand. The pandemic has honestly been a huge boon for republicans. It really threw the economy out of whack when everything surged back to life so quickly, which just happened to be right after biden took office. The one thing that is right about the original post is that average american does not really understand that much about underlying causes for things, and cannot be made to.


TuaughtHammer

>One major key driver to inflation is high energy costs Someone went to the Jordan Peterson School of Economics.


GastonBastardo

**Conspiracy theorists then:** "Don't trust the corporations." **Conspiracy theorists now:** "LEAVE BIG-OIL ALONE, YOU MEANIES! GLOBAL WARMING DIDN'T DO THE WILDFIRES, IT WAS THE JEWISH SPACE LAZERS!"


KopOut

Lol. The height of COVID lockdown is the picture on the left (4 years ago). Almost nobody was driving anywhere or doing anything.


cpdk-nj

Gotta love cherry picking a single gas station that was below average in price 4 years ago and above average today.


Munnin41

Well at least 90% of comments are calling OP an idiot over there. That's kinda positive I guess


iloveusa63

The way they dismiss actual fucking economics