South Bruce Peninsular - Take a Stand and Fight Back - Comments

May 12th Hansard

garym — Fri, 14 May 2004 12:10:03 -0400

From the "May 12th Hansard":http://www.parl.gc.ca/37/3/parlbus/chambus/house/debates/053_2004-05-12/han053_1920-E.htm#SOBQ-, Peter Adams, Liberal MP from Peterborough:

bq. For years we have received calls about oil companies jerking around consumers. People notice that prices go up before weekends, especially long weekends. This is important in a tourist area like eastern Ontario. Prices go up suddenly but they come down slowly over a period of days. Prices seem to rise and fall at all gas stations at the same time. People want to know how it is that gas, which is already in the tanks at the station, can change in price like that. My constituents see excess profit taking, price gouging and collusion in these patterns.

only Peter isn't just complaining, he has a plan ... _why not lower the taxes when the price spikes?_

Joe Jordan of the Treasury Board takes over the play with a report on what the Treasury can and has been doing to investigate:

bq. I can assure hon. members that where the Competition Bureau finds that companies or individuals have engaged in anti-competitive conduct, it does not hesitate to take immediate and appropriate action under the Competition Act. Under the criminal provisions of the act, wrongdoers risk fines of up to $10 million for each count and five years in prison.
If anyone has evidence that prices of petroleum products are being set by agreement among competitors and not by market forces, I encourage them to bring the evidence to the Competition Bureau. All information given to the bureau is done so in strictest confidence. There are whistleblowing provisions in the act which protect employees who provide evidence. The bureau also has an immunity program which protects companies from prosecutions and individuals who come forward with information.

He adds that the federal portion of tax is fixed at a per-litre rate, not per-dollar (so why not shrink it?) and Constitution does not permit the federal government to meddle in gas prices in any scenario short of a War Measures Act, but that the Provinces can, and comments that when they have flexed their priviledge, the results have been mixed.

garym: ict evangelist - musician - whatever

Hybrids or Saturn

a tourist — Tue, 11 May 2004 09:21:11 -0400

Funny I should come across this little story and at another site a fellow blogger who is quite upset about his hybrid gas-electric car not giving him the mileage he was promised. I guess until they come up with a true hybrid or gas pumps on Saturn's moon (grin) we'll have to fight the good fight here with where we pump and who we vote for!

Topping the dollar

garym — Tue, 11 May 2004 01:14:05 -0400

Maybe I'm the only one who remembers, but then again, this blog remembers back to last August 17th when we'd spotted Sauble Beach gas prices at $0.99 per litre ...

The situation is probably going to go away; after all, there must be some reason we're willing to spend such huge amounts to topple governments in oil-rich nations. Nonetheless, here is another set of factoids that may be relevant: while US demand continues to grow, and while "Chinese demand now rivals the Americans":http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/111403_oil_demand.html and thereby "promises to keep the prices high":http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_17/b3880054.htm (short term) enough that it "even worries the Chinese":http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200405/10/eng20040510_142842.html, other sobering sources say the forecast tapering of the supply rates have also been underestimated, and that's going to paint an even more omninous scenario as the wealthy states collide with developing nation growth in the bid for a shrinking number of barrels.

But there is another factoid that may be of interest: I read somewhere (sorry, no link) of a respected geologist who believed oil was not a 'fossil' fuel but a natural process of high-pressure geology; while he had also predicted we may be on the verge of finding vast reserves in places we'd previously overlooked, NASA now tells us there is evidence of great seas of crude ... on Saturn's moon Titan!

Although trimming our consumption of just about anything is usually prudent, and all the more so if we can convince the truly obscene waste practices (like war machinery), once again, by Horacio's Rule (of the more things in Heaven and Earth) it seems maybe it ain't over 'till it's over :)

garym: ict evangelist - musician - whatever

got bad gas...

bub — Mon, 10 May 2004 21:10:56 -0400

Yes, mip...I don't think there is anyone around who will disagree with you on the high prices of gas.Its awful, a few people want to make prices high for benefitting that very few, and the many want decent prices.It always gets me when those same few always say something silly like...well..the prices in some country that doesnt produce petroleum pays.I would argue..lets compare us to saudi arabia prices..a bit far off..but it gets the point across.Now as for the government, they wont get involved..after all their percentage of taxes goes up automatically with the prices.
This whole things kind of reminds me of a certain pipeline.....
:D

Take a Stand and Fight Back

Mon, 10 May 2004 15:58:35 -0400

Not sure if this is the appropriate place to post something like this, but what the heck, we here in SBP can take a stand along with everyone else in the province.
As someone who does a lot of driving due to my job (not to mention taking the kids around for things like swimming, music, dance, etc.) I find it totally out of control how the gas prices can fluctuate so wildly and rise so steeply. From the government who tacks tax on top of taxes to the oil companies who cry poor and make $5 billion dollars in profit it totally frustrates me.
So when I saw this http://gasbusters.net/ protest site that is trying to organize a boycott I thought it'd be good to post it here to try and gain some exposure for it as well.
I read about it in an article in the Toronto Sun - so get out there and don't buy any gas from the listed gas chains and lets try and get our voice heard!

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