If I had a penny for every time gas prices went up,

[Massacure]

Not only would I be rich, I would be Dick Cheney.

:evilgrin:

[Heidi]

1. You'd also appreciate the _low_ gas prices in US.

We Americans living in southern Switzerland pay the equivalent of $4.68 US dollars per US gallon for super unleaded.

I'm not being a b!tch . . . just saying that our uniquely American concerns are _not_ the center of the universe. :shrug:

[Kathleen04]

2. Living in Switzerland sounds

awesome, Heidi..(high gas prices aside!) I visited there once and it was beautiful. :) Is it easy living there as an American? Correct me if I'm wrong but the main language is German?..do you speak German?

[Heidi]

3. It's a nice life, Kathleen.

The wages are a lot higher, so I guess we can afford to underwrite low US gas prices. :shrug:

There are four official languages here: German (the spoken dialect is Swiss-German), French, Italian and Romanche. I speak English, some Swiss-German, and a little Italian and northern Italian dialect . . . all with a southern accent. :eyes:

[kick-ass-bob]

4. Yes, but...

living in a European country makes alternatives to driving much easier than it is for the bulk of the US. The way everything is laid out makes us much more reliant on our own automobiles than the average European - except for certain cities across the country.

[Heidi]

5. I'm an American, kiss-ass-bob.

I know very well that the reason reliable mass transit hasn't been done in even the most remote US communities is because I and others didn't _insist_ on it. When I lived in the US, I very much loved driving alone wherever I wanted, whenever I wanted, but I didn't realize then that the rest of the world was underwriting my whims.

I live in a village of 250 people, and have to take a bus (15 minutes) to the next larger village, then a ship (30 minutes) to the city where I shop. It costs me about $15 (US dollars) every time I do that, so I do it less and appreciate it more. :shrug:

[kick-ass-bob]

6. ???

Nowhere did I say or imply that you were European (knowing that you aren't), nor did I insult your name. What does that have to do with anything?

I don't see the "underwriting" reasoning. I see several reasons for lower prices in the US including:

1. America buys more oil than anyone, and as a result gets a lower price.

2. Tax rates. What is the tax on a liter of gas in Switzerland? This also contributes to the price.

3. Suppliers know the demand for their product in each country and price it "appropriately" to maximize profits (which fits in with #1.)

[Heidi]

7. Answers.

I don't see the "underwriting" reasoning.

Swiss people cannot get a driver's license until they're 18, and most don't own a car until they're gainfully employed (20-22); on days when the pollution index is high, _none_ of us are allowed to drive, but public transportion is free; we have a 61.3 percent federal gas tax, partially as a deterrent to people buying gaz-guzzling vehicles and going for "pleasure cruises."

1. America buys more oil than anyone, and as a result gets a lower price.

Among of the reasons American _need_ to buy oil in such large quantities is the general lack of public transportation; the love for large, gas-guzzling vehicles, our love for driving places alone rather than in car-pools, and our habit of buying our 16-year-old kids their own vehicles so that we don't have to taxi them around (I know this to be a fact, because I was once a step-parent to four teenage guys).

2. Tax rates. What is the tax on a liter of gas in Switzerland? This also contributes to the price.

61.3 percent for unleaded; 57.4 percent for diesel.

3. Suppliers know the demand for their product in each country and price it "appropriately" to maximize profits (which fits in with #1.)

Supply and demand. Also, the Wal-Mart effect.

P.S. I'm not picking a fight with you. As an American, I know that I spent 36 years of my life thinking we Americans were the center of the universe and that buying power was the be-all, end-all. I just don't feel that way anymore. I very much enjoy your posts, bob, and I apologize if I sounded bitchy in my earlier post.

[LynneSin]

8. or you might actually be able to afford a tank of gas

:shrug: