The upside of low gas prices

Would you rather be paying these prices or .....

The way the media and financial pundits make it sound, we should fret about paying less at the pump.

Say what?

Okay, let's tackle the "downsides" of low gas prices.

The Saudis are pumping the same amount of oil in spite of the glut on the world market due, in part, to fracking in the U.S.

This, in turn, has hammered countries like Russia, Iran, Iraq and Venezuela who rely almost

.... or these?

completely on the high price of oil to run their countries.

Instability in those countries could increase which could result in unwanted consequences.

What they are, who knows.

The intended consequences of high gas prices, though, are well known: Less money to spend on more useful things.

The frackers, from Texas to North Dakota, need oil to be more than $60 a barrel to make a profit. If the price keeps going lower, the frackers may stop fracking until the price rebounds.

So, with lower gas prices we can reduce the horrible practice of fracking that is causing untold damage to our environment.

Also,with less money going to Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia, the very countries that help fund terrorism throughout the world, we could  perhaps reduce some acts of terrorism.

And with Russia making less from low gas prices, perhaps it will run out money to fully invade Ukraine and, potentially, the Baltic states.

On top of all that, Americans are saving billions at the pump which is freeing up money to spend on other more worthwhile things that could actually improve our economy.

A few weeks ago, when regular gas was $2.20 a gallon, I redeemed my gas points from Safeway and paid just $1.60 for a gallon of gas. I was able to fill up our Honda for less than $20.

Right now, gas at Fred Meyer in Bend is $1.89 per gallon, plus either 3 cents or 10 cents off a gallon for Fred Meyer patrons.

Obviously, the low gas prices are great in so many ways.

The only downside to the low gas prices is that fools will rev up their Hummers and Escalades and go cruising, just to burn the fuel.

Plus, people will buy more gas guzzlers rather than hybrids or electric vehicles. 

Don't be fooled. These low gas prices are just a ruse to get us to resume our wasteful ways.

The sun also rises and so will gas prices. You can drive to the bank on that.