Sunday, September 21, 2008

Gas Shortage in Asheville...Again

Last week we tried to get gas at the station down the street and found all the pumps labeled 'out of order.' Weird, but we just went to the next one, cursed at having to pay $45 for 10 gallons of gas, and went on our way.

It wasn't until I walked past a radio playing some local talk show that I discovered the 'Asheville gas shortage'. The talk show host was screaming at how disappointed he was in Asheville citizens for buying into some rumor about a gas shortage, thereby creating an unnecessary gas shortage.

Today, it happened again, except this time the 2nd gas station was also out of gas. There was one station opened and it had several cars waiting in line. Not really needing gas, we went on our way to the grocery store and let everyone else fend for themselves. Searching online, I found out that the gas shortage also effected Nashville, TN, Charlotte, NC, and somewhere in Louisiana.

Again, today I see every yahoo and his brother online talking about how idiots have caused a gas shortage. I suppose that everyone learned that story in high school about how Johnny Carson caused a toilet paper shortage simply by making a joke about a made-up toilet paper shortage, and now they think they are very smart and special for 'knowing' that everyone is out panicking over an invented gas shortage.

I wasn't out panicking over a gas shortage, I was just going to the gas station to get gas as though I live in a prosperous nation. I'm betting that most other people were doing the same. Only there wasn't any gas. But if we blame 'those idiots' who panic, then we don't have to face up to the possible reality that our economy is imploding and our government is fleecing the people through massive printing/devaluing of our dollar to support lousy banks, an endless war, and a dying American worldwide empire.

In short, I don't know if the gas shortage is real or just another psychological failure of the American people, kind of like our collective psychological delusion that supposedly drove up gas prices in the first place. More importantly, you don't know either. If you had that sort of insight, you'd probably be making lots of money off of stocks and commodities and derivatives and lots of other big financial words that I don't fully understand. So shut your pie hole.