[jasonraymondson]

Date: April 2, 2008
Contact: Dr. Tom Wyrick
(417) 836-5060
SPRINGFIELD, MO. –

Don’t get him wrong. As a consumer, Dr. Tom Wyrick, professor of economics at Missouri State University, doesn’t enjoy spending $50 for a tank of gas. But as an economist, he also sees the positives associated with record-high gas prices.
This year, the price of crude oil rose to a record $100 or more per barrel. That sharp increase in price has consumers throughout the United States fearing that the price of unleaded gasoline could reach as high – or higher – than $4 per gallon come summer.

First off, Wyrick said, “I doubt if we will see $4 a gallon for unleaded gas. In the early 1980s, many people were saying that $3 per gallon was right around the corner. That took more than 20 years.”

Second, he added: “High gas prices tell us that oil is scarce. As consumers, the higher prices give us incentive to conserve the stuff. Use mass transit. Buy a house closer to work. Car pool. But the higher prices also give producers incentives to explore and find new supplies of oil and bring more to market.”

Wyrick said the United States’ economy can learn a lesson from the high gas prices of the 1970s when oil prices quadrupled and sparked a wave of innovation. “When that hit, people went out into the ocean to find oil. They went to Alaska. Nobody knows how much oil is underground. The question is: how far will we go to find it?”

Wyrick said that gasoline prices have increased an average of 2.4 percent annually since Ronald Reagan took office. “Compared to prices of other things we’re purchasing on a daily basis, that’s not bad,” he said. “But when the price changes a lot in a short period of time – like it has with gas – that attracts our attention.”

He said consumers should also be monitoring the price of food commodities such as barley, yellow corn, wheat and soybeans, Missouri’s largest crop. “Those prices are up 50-100 percent for many crops in the past year,” he said.

[emersonbiggins]

Idle speculation, combined with an overly rosy view of the 1980s.

This will be a good thread to revisit in July.

[jasonraymondson]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('emersonbiggins', 'I')dle speculation, combined with an overly rosy view of the 1980s.

This will be a good thread to revisit in July.

[emersonbiggins]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jasonraymondson', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('emersonbiggins', 'I')dle speculation, combined with an overly rosy view of the 1980s.

This will be a good thread to revisit in July.

[dinopello]

He is just making a judgment about the elasticity of the demand. That is still a big unknown. But I think the demand is not as elastic as he thinks it is apparently.

[PrairieMule]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jasonraymondson', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('emersonbiggins', 'I')dle speculation, combined with an overly rosy view of the 1980s.

This will be a good thread to revisit in July.

[emersonbiggins]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('dinopello', 'H')e is just making a judgment about the elasticity of the demand. That is still a big unknown. But I think the demand is not as elastic as he thinks it is apparently.

[AirlinePilot]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jasonraymondson', '
')Wyrick said the United States’ economy can learn a lesson from the high gas prices of the 1970s when oil prices quadrupled and sparked a wave of innovation. “When that hit, people went out into the ocean to find oil. They went to Alaska. Nobody knows how much oil is underground. The question is: how far will we go to find it?”

[TheDude]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jasonraymondson', 'W')yrick said the United States’ economy can learn a lesson from the high gas prices of the 1970s when oil prices quadrupled and sparked a wave of innovation. “When that hit, people went out into the ocean to find oil. They went to Alaska. Nobody knows how much oil is underground. The question is: how far will we go to find it?”

[Tyler_JC]

As was noted in another thread, US oil demand fell by nearly 500,000 barrels per day last quarter.

[Gandalf_the_White]

Look at how it works though. PTB fear loss of hegemony, try to keep impending crisis under wraps until miracle cure arrives. In the mean time keep plenty of half cogniscent Phd's in the fridge to be popped open like an Old Milwaukee every few months or so.

The Fed may make the statement I am about to make a reality.

If I had a dollar for every economist who thought free markets were the answer to every problem I'd be...

The guy is basically sticking his erect economics 101 textbook in our faces and philosophizing while envisioning Adam Smith's hair blowing in the breeze.

There must be a special level of hell for economists. It's somewhere between pride and ignorance.

Hey that's why they call him cracker jack!

[SchroedingersCat]

Expert should come to San Francisco where everything except regular unleaded is already over $4 per gallon. My 'benchmark' station is at $3.97 for regular today.

[seldom_seen]

There is no class of people so disconnected and decoupled from reality than academic economists.

They have created a pseudo-scientific bubble (which resembles more a religion than anything to do with the sciences). They have climbed in to the bubble and they are not coming out for any reason. They have coined all sorts of esoteric nomenclature in an attempt to legitimize their 'science.' They have co-opted mathematicians in a further attempt to dazzle laymen with their pretentious and 'complex' theories.

If you peel back the layers upon layers of superfluous muck economists have shielded themselves with. You will find at the core, a primitive cargo cult. As long as you believe, the goods will keep flowing, in ever greater quantities.

Horn of plenty!

[Ayoob]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Tyler_JC', 'A')s was noted in another thread, US oil demand fell by nearly 500,000 barrels per day last quarter.

[Dreamtwister]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('PrairieMule', 'I')t's god's own little mystery how they function outside of acadamia.

[Kylon]

As the old saying goes


"Those who can do, those who can't teach".

I don't know how true it is, but it certainly seems true in this fellows case.

[vision-master]

Posted by Zardoz

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'P')osted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 4:41 pm Post subject: Re: Another Gasoline Record

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Chevron station I posted the pic from bumped everything except diesel by four cents today. $4.04 for premium.

[jasonraymondson]

He decided to enlighten us in class today with another piece of wisdom.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'W')e will definetly not enter a recession, and we are just looking at small economic slow down. That by this time next year, the dow will be at an all new record and gas will be back below $2.00 per barrel

[vision-master]

I would tell him so, but have some facts. Wait, your a chicken so you won't say anything. You sure wouldn't want to be known as a trouble maker now, would you.............

[jasonraymondson]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('vision-master', 'I') would tell him so, but have some facts. Wait, your a chicken so you won't say anything. You sure wouldn't want to be known as a trouble maker now, would you.............