[Ansteorra] gas prices too high...travel effects

[Michael Silverhands]

--- Refr inn draumspaki <commander at mongounegen.com> wrote:

> To be honest I am happy with the prices, we do not pay nearly as much as 
> those in the UK and other nations.
> <snip>
> -- 
> Adrian Empire

That's true. However,

1) The EU nations have had a slow, steady rise in the cost of fuel since
roughly the end of World War II. They have had plenty of time, as a society,
to become acclimated to $7/gal automotive fuel.

We in the US have not. Automotive fuel prices have remained relatively cheap
here for the past 50 years. I remember $0.25/gal gasoline -- it wasn't that
long ago. Yes, we could adjust to $3/gal gasoline (or higher) -- *in time*.
What's killing us is the fact that prices at the pump have *doubled* in a
very short time. Currently they are jumping at a rate of about $0.10 per
*day*. That is *horrendously* difficult for an economy to adjust to.

2) For either short or long trips, there is widespread, efficient mass
transportation in the EU. And most nations in the EU are smaller than our
states.

The US is H U G E and S P R E A D  O U T, geographically. The success of our
economy is largely dependent on being able to move both people and goods
about the country, cheaply and quickly. Fuel costs affect the cost of
*everything*. Every single thing you buy, wear or eat was moved at some time
by air, rail or truck. All of those vehicles use fuel. Those costs must be
and are passed through directly to the consumer (you and me).

3) Folks in EU nations aren't as dependent on fuel (in general) as we are in
the US. For instance, most of the EU's electricity is generated by nuclear
plants.

The US generates most of its electricity from natural gas and coal. Those
prices have *tripled* since 2003 and *quadrupled* since 1999. So, the problem
isn't that "automotive fuel costs <x>", it's that "*all* fuel costs are
rising faster than we can adjust to".

 * * *

All of this contributes towards a "perfect storm" which has the potential for
very rough treatment of little boats like the SCA. *Cheap transportation* is
vital for our hobby's survival, until and unless we *radically* change the
way we play our game. Unfortunately, staying at home for predominantly local
events would have other undesirable effects -- such as creeping isolationism
among our groups and their members.

Michael Silverhands