Welcome to 2022
I still remember the days when gas was well under $3 per gallon–like a year ago.
It’s only been one year into the Biden presidency, and the inflation has continued to harm American families.
The Federal Reserve told the American people that inflation was “transitory” in 2021. Well, it’s March 2022 now, and the United States is seeing the highest inflation levels in forty years. 7% inflation (based on CPI measurements) is burning a hole in the pockets of hard-working American families.
Now, what is one of the primary causes of the recent spike in inflation? Answer: gasoline prices.
Gasoline prices have skyrocketed in recent months. That’s not new news.
The chart below illustrates just how the price of oil (the West Texas Intermediate) has moved in the past year. In just one year, the price of oil is up over 60%.
As I am writing this article, the average price for a gallon of gas in the US is over $4.30. Just one month ago, the national average for a gallon of gas was about $3.50. One year ago, that number was about $2.80. That hurts.
In my home state of Louisiana, the average price of gas is a little over $4. I thought that price level was ridiculous. In California, gas is almost $6 a gallon on average. My goodness.
Personally, I’m really curious to see how high gas prices might get in the coming months. From my research, there doesn’t seem to be too much consensus as to how gas prices might get for the remainder of the year. I’ve seen forecasts of the US National potentially go up to $7 per gallon and to even $10 per gallon. Let’s pray that gas doesn’t get that expensive because our economy will collapse if gas gets that expensive.
Now, let’s shift gears here. With all of the worry of higher energy costs, many Americans have looked to our elected leaders for hope and guidance on this crisis. So, what’s been the response from our elites? The answer: condescension and disgust for Middle America.
President Biden is not willing to take any blame for rising oil prices. Never mind that he shut down the Keystone XL pipeline and decided to block any new oil drilling on federal land. No, Biden says that the real problem is Vlad Putin and Russia.
Unsurprisingly, the American regime is taking no responsibility for the situation. Instead, we hear all sorts of other rationalizations for the issue at hand.
The corrupt media claim that “more domestic drilling won’t decrease oil prices”. Entertainer Stephen Colbert and Energy Secretary Pete Buttigieg say that you would save more money by purchasing an Electric Vehicle (EV). How tone-deaf and out-of-touch do you have to be that the average American family cannot afford buying a new Tesla in order to save on gas?! But, I digress.
Actions have Consequences
The point of this post isn’t just to rant about how poorly our nation is being run (well, maybe a little bit). But seriously, the whole gas price situation should remind all of us of two important lessons:
1. Politics matters
2. Actions have consequences
For the first lesson, it’s a luxury to think that politics doesn’t matter. Politics affects all facets of life–from the economy to education and family life to religion. We can’t keep pretending that politics doesn’t matter.
For myself, I definitely noticed the importance of politics–especially on the state and local levels–back in 2020. The fact that politicians have the ability to shut down businesses, churches, and schools in the name of “public health” really opened my eyes. The past two years have reminded me that I cannot sit idly by anymore as my country is crumbling.
We now know what happens when corrupt people run our political, educational, and cultural institutions. If good people don’t get into positions of power to change the course of our nation, then we will continue down the path of decline and decadence.
To close, I want to hammer home the second lesson: actions have consequences. We are now witnessing the consequences of electing a president who promised to phase out oil production. We are now witnessing the consequences of unprotected Southern border. We are now the consequences of an America-last foreign policy–with weak statesmanship to boot.
Anyways, I hope this post shed some light on the current situation we are dealing with.
With that, have a blessed day & stay classy my friends!