Gas prices again

it's around 1.08 here (one hour north of toronto)

1.35 is just stupid.

2 canadian dollars a litre in the UK - and still the green lobby want it to go higher..........

Yes, last time I was in the UK (last september) fuel was exceptionally expensive. Although, drivers in the UK do get the advantage of having many choices for fuel efficient cars, and generally a shorter commute distance then in North America. Oh, and a train system that is actually useable :)

I'm pretty lucky, my commute to work is about 1.2km each way (easily walkable of course), so fuel prices really don't affect me that much; I fill up my car about once a month right now.

Actually, in NA, there are many usable public transportation systems, including the SF Bay, Washington, Philadelphia, NYC, and Boston areas. I think Chicago has a workable system, too. Like in NYC, you might not be able to go everywhere in the area, but the system is definitely workable.

You can avoid that 1200 m drive to work each day, and just walk. Make your own CO2 instead of making the car do it for you.

Jeff

Gas costs went down by 50% for me last month. :-)

Sold the 15 mpg minivan and got my 30 mpg Escape Hybrid. (conservative estimate mpg, may get up to 34)

Less gas burned, less exhaust in the air I breathe, fewer dollars off to the Bush-Saudis, and a new car to boot.

I feel good all over.

Steve R. wrote:

Where I used to live, in Ottawa (Canada's capital) the transportation system -was- world class. It used a Tree-Root system, local busses feeding to a central high speed transitway going across the city. In the early 90s when I was using the system, I could get from the west end of the city to the northeast end (27km) in 40 minutes. Driving my car would take about 35 minutes, so it was just as convenient to take the bus. Unfortunately, the transit system didn't keep up with city growth, and some silly political choices were made (a light rail track no one uses), service hours have been cut and it has just gone down hill compared to the mid-90s. In the city I live in now, we have a total of 9 bus routes (serving ~150,000) with silly ring routes and obscure schedules.

I walk every second day on average, more in the summer, less in the winter (I live in the snow belt). I need a vehicle some days to do running around for my business, and I deal with a fairly large quantity of cash, so I tend to drive when I know I need to go to the bank. Between myself and my wife, we average about 12,000km a year. Most of that is highway, I do a ~900km trip about every 6 weeks to visit friends and family.

The Tribune Newspapers have an article on the cost of filling the tank in a Corolla

England $87.73 France 86.01 Denmark 85.91 US 37.33 Saudi Arabia 5.94 Iran 4.33 Venezuela 2.25

I guess the extra $50 in cost to fill your tanks once a week in England, France and Denmark is one of their contributions to "free" healthcare ;)

mike

O

It is, although it is a fairly regressive way of taxing people IMHO.

If you take two individuals, one earning $20,000 a year and another earning $100,000, the higher earner will, on average , drive more. He might even drive twice as much. He will no way do five times the annual mileage of the low wage earner.

And some of the lowest paid jobs in the country are car-dependent- shift workers for example.

However I recognise the role higher fuel prices have played in encouraging the switch to more economical cars. I just don't want them any higher..........

Well, the system works in Canada, it's not perfect, but then what is? I will soon be 67, and have had cancer 3 times. There were some waits, but I got first class treatment on time! Our system is not free, except for those on low incomes. Most of the low income people have paid into the system at some time. Anyone making over $20,000 a year must pay a monthly premium. By paying taxes, and premiums, we do not have to put out huge sums of money when we need medical care. On the other hand, a person cannot admit themselves to hospital. Only a doctor can admit a patient. This keeps the hypochondriacs from plugging things up. Each province has it's own "plan", governed by federal statutes. With millions of people paying into the system in each province, premiums can be much lower. After 3 doses of cancer, I still have my house! The premium information is explained at:

Steve R.

The health care program in Canada only stifles the industry. How many of the advances in health care or medications originate in Canada, for example? What's next, will they provide you with 'free' transportation to get to a specialist that lives in another Province or is only available in the US or buy a car for those Canadians the live in the boondocks to get to medial care providers?

The US Constitution and the capitalist system have made the USA and its people the richest, strongest, freest country in the history of the world that offers the finest health care. The government does nothing to produce wealth. To give something for 'free' it must first take it from those that do produce wealth to 'give' it to the people after deducting the cost of the taking and the distribution of the money it took. Personally I prefer to pay for the things I want and need directly, rather than pay more to receive the same things via an inefficient and bloated government program

mike

You missed the point, it's not free! We all pay into it. Yes we do have an air ambulance service, which will fly people to another province, or the US. The plan will pay for some treatments not available in Canada! We also help each other. There are numerous volunteer driver programs to take people to treatments, if they cannot get there on their own. By the way, I am one of the volunteer drivers! The program is run as near to cost as is practical, and is far from bloated. We also have major medical research labs all across the country. Not bad for a vast country with only 34 million people!

Steve R.

Now back to gas prices! It went up again yesterday, now $1.259 CDN per litre on south Vancouver Island.

Steve R.

And Canada has some of the best health care in the world, including Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children. McGill University is one of the best universities in the world, with world class researchers.

Canada's health care and research is just as good as that anywhere on the planet.

Canada spends far less per person for health care, compared with the US.

Excellent health care, research and relatively low cost. What's not to love?

Jeff

I paid $2.849 Sunday, and it was the same price today.

Jeff

You are entitled to believe what ever you choose. ;)

mike

Well, Mike, yes and no. Yes, in that the US does produce many of the advances made in health care. This is true. And do you know how many of those 'scientists' working in American labs are Americans? 10% maybe? Shock you? It should. You've got red-white-and-blue so far up your a$$ you're turning red white and blue.

I have a family member who, born and educated in Canada, went to Oxford to do her PhD in genetics. Trust me Mike, me and you and everyone in this newsgroup combined couldn't get through the first chapter of one text book in an intro course. You think you're smart until you really see smart. Then you realize how f**king dumb you really are. Yes, me included.

So, anyway, a Canadian going to the best school in the world (yes, Mike it is) in England. Then, WHO recruits her when she graduates at the top of her class, an American (who will remain nameless), one of the richest men in the world, based out of, of course, NYC. (Though I must say every major university in the US flew her around trying to recruit her. Ironic.)

That's what these firms do, Mike, they don't actually hire Americans. Seriously, you guys ain't too bright. They go find the best in the world, and 90% of those are outside the US. If they didn't, do you think these American drug firms would be so powerful. Made In The USA is a great slogan if you're shopping at Walmart. When you're building the next version MRI, chances are it was designed, built and is operated by a Canadian, a German, a Kiwi, who knows, but there is a very low chance it is just Americans.

Rome fell, the Aztecs fell, Britain fell, the US is falling too.

Now, go and find that OBL guy...

B

A litre? OMG. Say it ain't so. Where are you? That must be a gallon.

B

In 2005, the number was 37%.

Considering that I taught medical neurscience in a medical school to medicala nd graduate students, I could. In any field of medicine.

There is a difference between being ignorant and being dumb. I will let you determine whether you are the former or both the former and the latter.

There are plenty of world-class schools in the US, including MIT, Stanford, Harvard and U. Michigan.

Considering that there are world-class universities in Canada, Europe, and Asia, as well as the US, one would hope that 90% of the world-class scientists are outside the US. It is not a competition of US vs. the rest of the world. Everyone benefits from good work.

Take the Human Genome project. That is an international project. And anyone with an internet connection can download billions DNA sequences from the project and other projects.

Kiwi? People all over the world are trying to get people from New Zealand to operate their MRI machines? I don't think so.

MRI machines are operated by technicians, usually from the area in which the MRI machines are used.

GE is one of the biggest makers of MRI machines. An American company.

With people like you in it, no wonder.

Jeff

Actually, that was 37% were foreign born.

Sorry for the confusion.

Jeff