In Dallas - the highest in the state of TX - it’s 2.27 for regular unleaded.

In my part of northern Virginia, it’s averaging about $2.39/gal for the cheapo octane. That dropped a few cents this week. The highest I saw last week was $2.43.

$2.25 (BJ’s) this morning here in So. Maryland

Looks like a bit of variance between regions. How come it costs so much more here? I have no idea what it was here last week. I wonder if we saw a slight drop in price this week, too. Sheesh, it must be causing pain for commuters.

It’s been creeping back up again out here ... where gas is always expensive (no snickering, Linkmeister).  Regular is somewhere near $2.50. 

Part of that rise (a teeny-weeny part) is the first piece of our increased gas tax—9.5 cents per gallon, to be phased in over 4 years or so—revenues from which will be directed to the big road construction projects that are crying out to be done.  That includes the Alaskan Way Viaduct in Seattle, which almost came down in the 2001 earthquake (think MacArthur Freeway in Oakland, 1989, if it had fallen), the SR-520 bridge across Lake Washington, and equally urgent projects elsewhere in the state.

An initiative to repeal that minuscule tax will be on the ballot in November, and probably pass easily.  Have I mentioned how absurd the “progressive” reforms of initiative and referendum have become?

Update… googling revealed a website devoted solely to the study of Seattle gas prices.

I ain’t snickering.  I noticed this afternoon that the local Chevron and Shell were slightly cheaper ($2.57) for regular unleaded than the non-national guys ($2.60), which is unusual.

We’ve got one of those websites too.

On the Missouri side of KC it’s about 2.15. On the Kansas side about 2.20.

Looks like Missouri is the least expensive, so far. Why is that?

N, so when the tax is repealed and a bridge eventually fails, no one will remember they elected to repeal the tax, but it will be the government’s fault anyway. I am glad we don’t (yet) have the initiative and referendum thing happening here. At least not like on the west coast. We do have the means to propose initiatives and referendums, but they have to be approved by 1/4 of the State Legislature in two consecutive sessions before getting a slot on the ballot. On the other hand, though, the Big Dig might not have been such a boondoggle if citizen oversight was easier to implement. One of the tunnels is already leaking like a sieve.

Apparently there is still money in the coffers for road work. They’re torn up for summer repairs, as usual, between here and Boston. It’s traditional summer sport here.

N, so when the tax is repealed and a bridge eventually fails, no one will remember they elected to repeal the tax, but it will be the government’s fault anyway.

Of course.  Just like it’s the gummint’s fault that schools are in trouble even though there used to be a vehicle licensing excise tax that went to education (this one is more complicated—the initiative that eliminated the tax was found to be unconstitutional, but the chickenshit legislature undid the tax anyway to try to placate the slimy Tim Eyman).  There are many other examples.

If initiatives and referenda truly came from “the people”, they’d be fine.  But lobbies, corporations, and special interests now control the process, paying signature gatherers, funding huge and often misleading ad campaigns (no funding limits, unlike most candidates for office), smearing opponents.

It was $2.53 here the other day for premium (which is what I have to use in my car) a few days ago. I dread going to fill it up over the weekend. I really hope it doesn’t say $2.70 when I get there or I just might cry right there in front of everyone.Dang, on the strict budget I was just put on I will only be able to afford to go to the grocery store and back! Yeash.

Premium was $2.66 here yesterday. That made my eyeballs pop out. I’m so glad my little car eats cheap fuel and not much of it. I’d be in a wholesale panic if I still had Rodi.

N, your last paragraph is why our democracy isn’t so democratic anymore. What are we now? Kind of an imperialistic plutocracy with fascist overtones?

Premium is in the $2.75 range here.  My car is even smaller than Kate’s, but it prefers a rich diet of gasoline, so I follow that price line. 

I haven’t yet paid $3/gallon, but it’s just a matter of time.

imperialistic plutocracy with fascist overtones?

Sounds about right, though it doesn’t adequately capture the fundamentalist xenophobia of America’s Taliban. 

In a sense, it’s a shame that “fascist” has become so co-mingled with “Nazi”.  You can’t really use that highly descriptive and quite apt f-word without being accused of a Godwin’s Law infraction.

As far as I can tell, theocracy is part and parcel of fascism. A meld of religion with nationalism. Hitler and, to lesser degrees, Mussolini and Salazar tried it, too.

It’s apropos to mention Hitler et al. in the context of what the neo-cons (Leo Strauss’s proteges and latter day disciples) have wrought—by furiously courting and allying with the religious right while whipping up a firestorm with their assertions that if you’re not with us you’re against us. Patriot vs. Traitor.

In the neo-con case, I think most of their convictions (except the xenophobia part) are about an inch deep and mainly demonstrate a cynical manipulation of the people (to keep them pacified) and a naked grab for power. 

Xenophobia is built in to fascism, too. Umberto Eco, in his list of 14 features common to fascism, said, “The first appeal of a fascist or prematurely fascist movement is an appeal against the intruders. Thus Ur-Fascism (Eternal Fascism) is racist by definition.” There has to be an easily identifiable people or threat to fear in order for fascism to work.