Gas Out day...

[tomboudreau]

I found this from snopes.com this morning and I thought I would share it with you all.

Claim: Participating in a one-day "gas out" on May 19 will help bring the retail price of gasoline down.

Status: False.

Examples:


[Collected on the Internet, 2004]

IT HAS BEEN CALCULATED THAT IF EVERYONE IN THE UNITED STATES DID NOT PURCHASE A DROP OF GASOLINE FOR ONE DAY AND ALL AT THE SAME TIME, THE OIL COMPANIES WOULD CHOKE ON THEIR STOCKPILES.

AT THE SAME TIME IT WOULD HIT THE ENTIRE INDUSTRY WITH A NET LOSS OF OVER 4.6 BILLION DOLLARS WHICH AFFECTS THE BOTTOM LINES OF THE OIL COMPANIES.

THEREFORE MAY 19TH HAS BEEN FORMALLY DECLARED "STICK IT UP THEIR BEHINDS DAY" AND THE PEOPLE OF THIS NATION SHOULD NOT BUY A SINGLE DROP OF GASOLINE THAT DAY.

THE ONLY WAY THIS CAN BE DONE IS IF YOU FORWARD THIS E-MAIL TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS YOU CAN AND AS QUICKLY AS YOU CAN TO GET THE WORD OUT.

WAITING ON THIS ADMIINSTRATION TO STEP IN AND CONTROL THE PRICES IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE REDUCTION AND CONTROL IN PRICES THAT THE ARAB NATIONS PROMISED TWO WEEKS AGO?

REMEMBER ONE THING, NOT ONLY IS THE PRICE OF GASOLINE GOING UP BUT AT THE SAME TIME AIRLINES ARE FORCED TO RAISE THEIR PRICES, TRUCKING COMPANIES ARE FORCED TO RAISE THEIR PRICES WHICH EFFECTS PRICES ON EVERYTHING THAT IS SHIPPED. THINGS LIKE FOOD, CLOTHING, BUILDING MATERIALS, MEDICAL SUPPLIES ETC. WHO PAYS IN THE END? WE DO!

WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. IF THEY DON'T GET THE MESSAGE AFTER ONE DAY, WE WILL DO IT AGAIN AND AGAIN.

SO DO YOUR PART AND SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW. MARK YOUR CALENDARS AND MAKE MAY 19TH A DAY THAT THE CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES SAY "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH"


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[Collected on the Internet, 2000]

Last year on April 30, 1999, a gas out was staged across Canada and the U.S. to bring the price of gas down, and it worked. It's time to do something about it again.

Only this time lets make it for three days instead of just one. The so-called oil cartel decided to slow production to drive up gasoline prices. Lets see how many Canadian\American people we can get to ban together for a three day period in April, NOT TO BUY ANY GASOLINE, during those three days.

LET'S HAVE A GAS OUT. Do not buy any gasoline from APRIL 7, 2000, THROUGH APRIL 9, 2000. Buy what you need before the dates listed above, or after, but try not to buy any during the GAS OUT.

If you want to help, just send this to everyone you know and ask them to do the same. We brought the prices down once before, and we can do it again.

Come on North America lets stand together. WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.

Even if you receive this 100 times keep passing it around, this way you know everyone is being informed and no one will forget!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Origins: Although
it went into hiding for several years, the one-day "gas out" craze is back — and with it a reminder that protest schemes that don't cost the the participants any inconvenience, hardship, or money remain the most popular, despite their dubious effectiveness. A one-day "gas out" was proposed in 1999, and a three-day-long event was called for in 2000, but both drew little participation and had no effect on retail gasoline prices because they were based upon flawed premises. This year's version is no different.

First of all, everyone's "not purchasing a drop of gasoline for one day" will not cause oil companies to "choke on their stockpiles." Oil companies run their inventories on a weekly basis, and since the "gas out" scheme doesn't call on people to buy less gasoline but simply to shift their date of purchase by one day, oil company stockpiles won't be affected at all.

Next, merely shifting the day of purchase will not "hit the entire industry with a net loss of over $4.6 billion." Consumers won't be buying any less gasoline under this "gas out" proposal; they'll simply be purchasing gas a day earlier or a day later than they usually would. The very same amount of gasoline will be sold either way, so the oil companies aren't going to lose any money at all.

By definition, a boycott involves the doing without of something, with the renunciation of the boycotted product held up as tangible proof to those who supply the commodity that consumers are prepared to do without it unless changes are made. What the "gas out" calls for isn't consumers' swearing off using or buying gasoline, even for a short time, but simply shifting their purchases by one day. Because the "gas out" doesn't call on consumers to make a sacrifice by actually giving up something, the threat it poses is a hollow one.

Not buying gas on a designated day may make people feel a bit better about things by providing them a chance to vent their anger at higher gasoline prices, but the action won't have any real impact on retail prices. An effective protest would involve something like organizing people to forswear the use of their cars on specified days, an act that could effectively demonstrate the reality of the threat that if gasoline prices stay up, American consumers are prepared to move to carpooling and public transportation for the long term. Simply changing the day one buys gas, however, imparts no such threat, because nothing is being done without.

Moreover, the primary potential effect of the type of boycott proposed in the "gas out" messages is to hurt those at the very end of the oil-to-gasoline chain, service station operators — the people who have the least say in setting gasoline prices. As such, the "gas out" is a punch on the nose delivered to the wrong person.

Either apathy or an outbreak of common sense has made previous "gas outs" non-events with very low levels of participation, as documented by these snippets of news accounts from across North America:

Friday's gasoline boycott was an effort that sputtered, coughed, then died. Motorists continued to fill up gas-guzzling sport-utility vehicles and trucks alongside smaller vehicles despite a one-day protest aimed to pressure oil companies to lower gas prices.


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Although a gasoline boycott that began as an electronic mail campaign kept some drivers nationwide away from the pump, dealers say they saw little, if any, effect on their traffic.


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In Seattle, there were so many cars waiting to get into [a] Texaco station . . . yesterday afternoon that it caused a backup five cars deep into [the] right-hand lane.


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Reports indicated few motorists paid attention to a nationwide boycott touted initially by Internet e-mail and later by word of mouth.


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A planned nationwide boycott protesting the high price of gasoline didn't have much effect on local gas stations.


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"We were expecting something substantial," said Mark Johnson, the owner of a Chevron station. "We haven't really noticed much of a difference."


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Irving stations in sunny Halifax said the boycott had no effect on business.

"It's been busy as a bugger here," said Bruce Riley, manager of one station. "We haven't been busier in the last two weeks," added the manager at another Halifax outlet.


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Gas stations [in Ottawa] reported "busier than ever" conditions at the pumps on the day of The Great Internet Gas-Out.
Gasoline is a fungible, global commodity, its price subject to the ordinary forces of supply and demand. No amount of consumer gimmickry and showmanship will lower its price in the long run; only a significant, continuous reduction in demand will accomplish that goal. Unfortunately, for many people achieving that goal would mean cutting down on their driving or opting for less desirable economy cars over less fuel-efficient models, solutions they find unappealing.

An event like a "gas out" can sometimes do some good by calling attention to a cause and sending a message. In this case, though, the only message being sent is: "We consumers are so desperate for gasoline that we can't even do without it for a few days to demonstrate our dissatisfaction with its cost." What supplier is going to respond to a message like that by lowering its prices?

Last updated: 13 May 2004

[wx247]

Thanks Tomboudreau!

[Stephanie]

Thanks for posting this Tomboudreau!

[furluvcats]

Reguardless, I still did my part and didn't purchase any gas yesterday, and that meant postponing a trip into Mexico, so we wouldn't have to gas up. If it makes someone feel good "thinking" that they are helping a problem, then WHY do some of you have to tear that down? If you don't want to participate, then let go....

[Stephanie]

It did make me feel good as well Shannon!

I didn't see long lines at the gas stations this morning either.

[wx247]

Reguardless, I still did my part and didn't purchase any gas yesterday, and that meant postponing a trip into Mexico, so we wouldn't have to gas up. If it makes someone feel good "thinking" that they are helping a problem, then WHY do some of you have to tear that down? If you don't want to participate, then let go....

Shannon... sorry if you feel that i have torn you down. I simply have stuck by my opinion that a one day gas out won't help the situation. My mom did not buy gas yesterday either and she said the same thing you did and that is fine. Being involved is a good thing. I am just saying that doing it one day won't bring down the price of gas... so whether you fill up today, tomorrow, next Monday, or not for three weeks... you will still fill up. If we want to exert real change, we must change our habits. Your trip to Mexico is a good example.

[Lindaloo]

I did not buy gas yesterday either. A friend of mine who works at a convenience store said they were extremely slow yesterday in gas sales. Their gallons sold was down like 70%. So, IMO it worked regardless if snopes said it is false.

[Pburgh]

Hey Stephanie, I was in one of those lines this morning. I kept my promise and did not fill up yesterday. Barely chug chugged into the station today!!!!!!

[wx247]

I did not buy gas yesterday either. A friend of mine who works at a convenience store said they were extremely slow yesterday in gas sales. Their gallons sold was down like 70%. So, IMO it worked regardless if snopes said it is false.

Linda... but the point is this -- those people who didn't fill up yesterday had to fill up the day before or today, tomorrow, etc. So, it really solves nothing. The only way it will work is if people constantly cut back or don't drive at all.

[Guest]

I really needed gas yesterday too, but I didn't give in. I was running on fumes, lol.
...Jennifer...

[Stephanie]

I must admit Karan that I filled up Tuesday!

[StormCrazyIowan]

I didn't gas up yesterday, and shoot, I haven't yet today! I need to! And I'll admit the reason I didn't yesterday was because I was broke!

[Guest]

If it makes someone feel good "thinking" that they are helping a problem, then WHY do some of you have to tear that down? If you don't want to participate, then let go....

Please read the above before posting in this thread again. You know, and this is directed to all those who don't buy into this gas boycott, that activism is what gets things changed in this world. Sitting back and saying "no that won't work" won't solve anything. We may not have gotten prices lowered, but we made a statement. Quit taking away the morale of those trying to accomplish something that will benefit us all.
...Jennifer...

[GalvestonDuck]

Well, if you really want to get down to brass tacks, I didn't buy gas yesterday either. But the thing is I usually only fill up my tank on payday (every other Friday) anyway. I hardly drive much during the two weeks in-between checks.

Did my not buying gas yesterday make a difference? No. Because I wouldn't have been buying it in the first place.

It's still the same number of consumers purchasing the same amount of gas, but doing it on a different day.

If an apartment complex has 200 units and everyone pays $500 rent, what happens if 199 tenants pay their rent on Monday and the one remaining straggler pays rent on Tuesday? Nothing. The owners/landlord still gets the same $10,000.

However, if no one paid rent for one month and were able to completely skip out on paying it without penalty, late fees, or being forced to pay, the owners would miss out on $10,000.

That's all we're saying about the gas out. If we didn't drive at all and didn't NEED to buy the gas for a week or two, then it would make a difference. However, because many of you still drove your cars, even though you chose not to fill up your tanks, you still "consumed" gasoline by burning it, which requires it to be replaced in your tank at some point.

[wx247]

If it makes someone feel good "thinking" that they are helping a problem, then WHY do some of you have to tear that down? If you don't want to participate, then let go....

Please read the above before posting in this thread again. You know, and this is directed to all those who don't buy into this gas boycott, that activism is what gets things changed in this world. Sitting back and saying "no that won't work" won't solve anything. We may not have gotten prices lowered, but we made a statement. Quit taking away the morale of those trying to accomplish something that will benefit us all.
...Jennifer...

It hurts me to read that. I read it... even quoted it. I don't take away from what you did, but honestly it didn't change anything. I have taken stands on things before. I know where you're coming from. I am just saying that if you want something to change you have do more than do it just one day.

I am sorry if I offended someone, but I don't want someone jumping on me for just stating my opinion. I never flamed anyone, so I did nothing wrong. If I did, I would appreciate being told in a pm rather than being called out right here in the forum.

[Guest]

Garrett, this is not directed at you. This was directed at everyone in general. I am disheartened at the way people are jumping in to say "it won't work". Like I said, it brings down the morale of those who are just trying to make some sort of difference, as insignifigant as it may seem to others. That's all I was trying to say. Please don't be offended. We love computers, but they don't allow emotion and facial expressions to be shown. You have to take the words at face value and it's hard to always understand what is being said. Seriously, no hard feelings, ok?
...Jennifer...

[senorpepr]

I didn't buy gas yesterday because I didn't need to -- but I should have! The price of gas locally went up today 10 cents!!! (Mind you, I'm speaking of the gas station nearest to my house) Yesterday 87 octane was $2.059 and today it's $2.159.

Errr!

[Stephanie]

You're both right Jen and Garrett. One day doesn't amount to much, but it's a start. What else needs to happen are changes in consumer's driving habits, writing to their elected officials, etc. At any rate, IT WAS NOTICED - it was in the news and there may have been slow downs of gas purchases in some areas and there may not have been. It's a ripple and hopefully something that can develop into a wave in the near future.

[wx247]

Garrett, this is not directed at you. This was directed at everyone in general. I am disheartened at the way people are jumping in to say "it won't work". Like I said, it brings down the morale of those who are just trying to make some sort of difference, as insignifigant as it may seem to others. That's all I was trying to say. Please don't be offended. We love computers, but they don't allow emotion and facial expressions to be shown. You have to take the words at face value and it's hard to always understand what is being said. Seriously, no hard feelings, ok?
...Jennifer...

I don't harbor hard feelings. We disagree... which is fine. I thought I was being called out.