Don’t forget this is 100% Trumps doing. He has created many of these preventable issues, and continues to hurt the economy with the tariffs and the war in Iran.
Exactly. We need to start demanding media reform. Fox News should not be getting subsidized by everyone who has a cable subscription, and Social Media Algorithms should be transparent and subject to regulation.
And the media sane washing and not calling out all the crazy ass shit going on - half the country has zero idea because hardly any media really ask the questions that need to be asked.
Uncontrolled capitalism. Capitalism is good at what it's good at, but it must have strict guardrails that force it to work for the population rather than against it.
Even Adam Smith outlined necessary regulation and limits right from the jump. We've embraced an exceptionally corruptible, largely unrestrained implementation of capitalist market forces, and it will increasingly crush the masses if left to continue as-is.
Essential State Duties In The Wealth of Nations (1776), Smith identified three main legitimate functions for the government: [1] (https://www.investopedia.com/updates/adam-smith-wealth-of-nations/), [2] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lN9KJOBFsgk)
National Defense: Protecting the nation from foreign enemies and maintaining a military.
Administration of Justice: Maintaining a legal system and police force to protect citizens from injustice, theft, and violence.
Public Works: Building and maintaining essential infrastructure (like roads and bridges) and institutions (like basic education) that private markets cannot profitably run.
Of course he had no idea that healthcare would ever turn into what it has or how society has developed. So I think much of the social safety net most developed countries have developed would be included as necessary infrastructure. Very close to the Nordic model.
He told the media - if the oil barons gave him a donation/bribe while running in 2024, if elected he would return the favor. He’s returning the favor. Gd this is painful. I wish his voters would wake up.
In a lot of ways. We didn't get our first-half bonuses for the first time ever and the main reason cited was that fuel practically doubled and fuel is one of our largest expenses since every employee has a company vehicle for field work.
It was already fixed under Obama. Just try to get them to vote against the assholes that support him. Congress is dead no thanks to democrats who literally fucked an easy win with Hilary and wtf happened with Biden. I think they hate the American people.
He’s also preventing us from the the threat of terrorists with a nuclear weapon and securing US energy independence for the next century so….probably worth the minor inconvenience
How ignorant. How do you explain the destruction of everything else he's done? Found the fascist! He's undone decades of scientific and international political progress. While America suffers, we are much worse off. Worst President ever, easily.
You have been propagandized very effectively. He’s enriching himself and doesn’t give a shit about anything you think he gives a shit about. He’s a conman and a fraudster, always has been, and always will be.
Donald Trump does not give a shit about the American people
Like when we had a deal with them (and Russia, China, and others) to let in IAEA inspectors - oh wait, Trump ripped that up. Also, securing US energy independence would be investing in green energy but Trump not only canceled those, his administration is actively trying to destroy things we already have in place. Aka things we already paid for and installed but that’s totally a minor inconvenience right?
Went and got my oil change this past weekend. Gonna try not to drive too much moving forward. Im very lucky to have the choice to walk or bike to work given I live in the US, where most people only have one option.
This isn’t luck. For decades we were told about the problems with dependency on oil and the problems with low fuel efficiency cars and commuting long distances and people just ignored it.
Even worse, now, publicly bringing up the problem topics labels one as a doomer, unpatriotic, or even one I hear commonly in my deep red part of the country, librul.
These aren’t matters of political nature. At least they shouldn’t be. Dependency on fossil fuels is something we were talking about a lot, as a nation, in the world, and many places have reduced their dependency. In America, we just change the CAFE standards, and shift manufacturing to meet the new standards.
You know what was a boon for many that the powers that be clawed back? Work from home. I'm lucky I don't have to commute far, but I have coworkers and friends who have to commute at least 30 minutes each way if not longer every day.
It's lost time, wear and tear on vehicles, and mostly wasted gas due to stop and go.
I’ve personally taken great advantage of it, to my financial benefit. Now, the car is something I keep around, but don’t depend on. Staying out of car loan debt has been the ultimate hack, so far, to the 2020’s inflation marathon.
The costs for an EV seem high if you buy or lease something new, but the payments, the insurance and the cost to charge end up being less than a gas car of lesser value and budgeting is predictable. No oil changes or unpredictable gas prices. You can even get power for free or invest in solar to not only charge your car for free, but reduce your electric bill in the process.
Yes, initial investment is high, but there's no chance that you're going to go back to gas and you'll be set up for decades to come.
EVs still have one MASSIVE caveat to affordability: where you charge. If you have a home/apartment where you can plug in overnight, then it’s a no-brainer for saving money. If you have to street park or live in a complex without a charger, then not only is going elsewhere to charge super inconvenient but it saves you very little if anything compared to gas.
For many people, EVs just can’t quite work in their lives. Hybrids like the Prius with 40-50mpg split the difference
I’m still worried about emergencies. If my area has mandatory executions and my ev isn’t fully charged, I doubt I can find somewhere to charge with everyone else also evacuating and potentially needing to charge too
DC fast chargers are usually between 30 and 50 cents a KwH which ends up being around $25 plus you get regenerative braking. EV charging is still much cheaper than gas even at it’s most expensive.
On top of that you can get a mobile charger which can charge from any outlet
Yeah, if your commute is short enough a standard 120 V outlet can get like 10 to 15 kWh of charge in a an 8 hour timeframe. (Depending on what you can pull from the wall amperage wise.) That's 30 to 40 miles for most cars, certainly too few of you're going to the next city over, but enough if you live close to work.
If you plug in when you’re home it’s 10-12 hours for most people which is enough for upwards of 60 miles while the average commute is 28 miles in the US.
Is it perfect? No obviously it would be better to use a L2 or DC charger which you would only have to do once a week for most EVs
Bought my EV 4 years ago. Almost never pay to charge (only paid while I was road tripping across the country- still cheaper than gas prices in the area). Dont really pay anything for upkeep. I cant even imagine how in the hole Id be right now if I was still trying to afford gas and keep my car running with oil changes and the like.
Not here to debate your well thought out comment. Hats off to you.
I, personally, am tired of the initial investment conversation. I need more money coming in, a meaningful amount, than is going out. And that’s the most common story. Incomes are pressured for the working class now.
Again, good points, and valid. I’m just talking nuts and bolts for me personally.
We’ve had an EV since the early 2010s. My buddy in his 70s still does his own oil changes on his crappy car. I just can’t believe people put so much unnecessary effort into vehicles. Since we got it we’ve needed only 1 new 12V battery and maybe 1 or 2 sets of tires.
As someone who does all my own work on my cars, the prospect of a car without an engine, cooling system, exhaust system, fuel system, ignition system, and all the various parts and fluids involved in those sounds incredible. I've come around to the idea that a simple electric motor hooked up straight into a drive train really makes much more sense. ICE cars are complicated machines and have 100s of parts waiting to break and be maintained, it really is a pain.
Now if electric cars would just become cheaper I'd get one and never look back.
EV batteries last as long or usually longer than most transmissions and the cost is similar to replace.
Tesla resale value has tanked because Elons little salute and other antics. Several others because the tax credit went away, and partly because this myth keeps circulating.
A Tesla battery typically lasts between 300,000 and 500,000 miles, or roughly 15 to 20+ years, before its capacity drops below 70%. [1]
You can also use them as home battery backups for less than the cost of a new system. Paired with solar, you’ll never have an electric bill or worry about outages.
Many of them can also be repaired by replacing individual cells.
Most EV batteries these days will last you over 200k miles a lot will probably go above 300k. On top of that future batteries will be less than half the price to replace
Unfortunately, many states are doing everything they can to make it less affordable and to prop up oil companies. In my state, it costs $200 per year extra to register an EV. Plus the insurance would be ~50% more per month. So in a year, even though I'd save on gas, I'd still be paying about $800 more than if I keep my gas car. The money saved on an annual oil change is wiped out by higher tire consumption.
I should caveat that I really want a used Kia EV6 GT. So I'm not running these numbers because I'm a hater.
> In my state, it costs $200 per year extra to register an EV.
That's not to "prop up oil companies". That's because gas taxes are used to pay for roads and road maintenance. You don't pay gas taxes. But you still use roads. So there has to be a way for you to pay for them.
>Plus the insurance would be ~50% more per month.
So your theory is that the insurance companies are also trying to prop up oil companies?
In a state (for example Arkansas) that charges an extra $200 for EVs on their registration would equal the fuel tax of over 800 gallons of gas or nearly 25k miles in a 30mpg vehicle
Based on my mpg and annual usage, I pay $100-115 in taxes on my fuel consumption per year. So an extra $200 does not pass the sniff test for a typical EV buyer.
I definitely cut back on my summer road trips. Every bit of news this year has encouraged me to drive less. I live in a big city so I can go for weeks on end without touching my car, thanks to public transportation (and sheltered parking). Truly, I don't need to drive at all.
Over 2500 miles on the cargo bike this year and it just keeps getting better. Such an under appreciated aspect of housing for people that cant leave their homes without 5000lbs
Same, I call myself lucky given that I live in the US. Sometimes I dont move my car for weeks. If more people understood the value of having multiple transportation options.
I asked my mom who lives in italy if she was worried about gas prices. Her answer was I can bike or walk where I need to go no need to stress about high gas.
Doesn't most motor oil get recycled? Obviously there is some loss through use etc. but motor oil can be re-refined I thought so the net losses should be lower than just straight burning gasoline, but is obviously still tied to overall market trends/issues.
How long before we have to return to remote work again because there is no gasoline to get to work?
Short answer: Sometimes. Most auto parts stores don't give two shits about what is dumped into their collection tank. Antifreeze, heavily contaminated oil, brake fluid, and any number of other liquids get dumped in there. You can end up with something that looks like and has the consistency of a McDonald's milkshake when it gets emptied out.
Auto shops (especially independent ones) that work on cars are a lot more careful since they are more likely to burn used oil in the furnace. Contaminating their heating fuel is literally wasting their own money.
But what happens when that collection tank is emptied? They can't just dump it somewhere, so there must be an attempt to separate and do something with it.
It contaminates the collection tank of the truck that went to haul it away, likely ruining everything else in it that may have been "clean" used oil. What happens from there... I dunno. Treated like a controlled hazmat. Not sure.
I wonder if that contamination is also what results in the lower than expected amount being recycled at 10-15%ish. Seems that all sort of recycling is subject to this sort of contamination which is unfortunate for our ability to actually reuse things and not create as much waste.
Seems more often than not at auto part stores an employee empties my container or watches me empty it to make sure it's not mixed with water. Sometimes they let me empty it without someone checking, but it's rare.
A truck will empty the container weekly, so maybe it's just the shops burning the used oil in smudge pots
It's generally not recycled into new motor oil. Often is is processed into oil that is burned in heaters, industrial kilns, etc. Basically it gets burned in machines that can function using dirty oil.
My understanding with no personal experience, is a combo of cleaning/filtering process, re-refining, blending, or converting into other oil based lubes, or burning for fuel oil as you stated. I don't know how effective any of it is but that's why I posted it as a sign question, I'm sure there are people out there who can speak to how the process works more in depth.
Edit: Google says about 10-16% of used oil gets converted back to new base motor oil at a roughly 2.5 quarts per gallon of recycled oil so not as high as I would have guessed but also not nothing.
It can only be burned in very specialized furnaces that are made for it. It isn't like your home oil furnace just burning what is in your oil tank.
Just like how there are biomass plants that burn household trash to make electricity. Generally speaking, the hotter you burn things, the less likely there is for contamination to persist in any smoke or fumes. It's sort of the difference between putting a steak on a charcoal grill, versus putting it in a waste incinerator. Even if you let the steak sit on that charcoal grill for hours, there will still be something there. You can smell it. You put that same steak into an incinerator, nothing about that steak is going to survive.
Maybe Trump can come out with Freedom Oil. The man is letting you be free of all your money. If oil gets expensive and people start delaying oil changes, they could be causing harm to engines using 0w-8, 16, or 20. Even worse, you go for a warranty claim and it's denied because you didn't do your change on time.
I keep seeing these articles about motor oil and it has to be some kind of scare tactic. All the auto parts stores are still offering the 5 qt + oil filter +air filter combos at around the same price as the past two years with all the same name brands. I haven't seen any shortages or wild price hikes.
Source: I change the oil on 4 cars within my family. The bundles for full synthetic cost $35-$45.
Edit: I imagine the Kirkland brand is getting squeezed and now has to compete with the other name brands.
I'll say, I order online and sometimes I'll do store pickup and they won't have something on hand, but they'll get it from their hub for me, usually same day. Or when I have it delivered, I get it in a day or two, no issues. But that's been true for all parts, not just oil. Just regular store stocking issues.
It’s somewhere in between. Some base oils are experiencing a global shortage. 20% of production got bombed out and another 20% can’t move so a supply chain based on those oils is experiencing a major squeeze.
Lubricants that don’t rely on those oils are not directly exposed but will go up in price if they are substitutes. Some makers are working to reformulate. Overall there will certainly be a supply crunch and it will worsen so impact is just beginning but the US is less exposed than most places
I guess I'll be concerned when all the quick change places, dealerships, and maintenance shops that dot the landscape start running out of supply. These articles seem to want to induce panic buying.
Edit: let me clarify, the article is about one specific product at one specific retailer, but it's posted to the /r/Economics sub as if it's a national or global indicator of supply of a commodity.
Amazon price history on 5 qt Mobil 1 5W30 shows that it was about $25 a year ago, it's $32 today.
I see similar prices at Walmart.
The Mobil 1 is $42 at my local O'Reilly, $32 at at Walmart in the same shopping center. FYI: Never buy oil at an auto parts store if a Walmart is nearby.
The only combos I see at O'Reilly are off-brand "Prime Line" etc. About $50 but you only get 3 quarts. I don't know the price history.
The increase in motor oil prices is definitely real. Costco and Walmart don't play games with pricing. But the auto parts chains often have gimmicks with their off-brand stuff.
> The only combos I see at O'Reilly are off-brand "Prime Line" etc. About $50 but you only get 3 quarts.
You are terrible at looking up items then. I literally see 5 qts of multiple brands at the price points I stated. Are you only looking at single qt bottles? I hope not.
The bundles tend to be store-brand oils of dubious quality, or for big brand oil like Valvoline they will throw in a "free" oil filter but the oil costs $10 more than it does at Walmart.
As a dealership technician, we have been informed of pending oil shortages through corporate. Mopar has instructed dealers to use 5w20 instead of 0w20, volkswagen (who i work for) has said we are soon to be affected as well. not sure what we will be doing
Yes sir. Bought lost my mind a few years ago going to a quick change and it was $130 for a full synthetic change. No thanks. I can do it myself about as fast and then just run my used oil to the county on pick up days. I've saved a few thousand over 3 years with the family cars I do.
I can tell you that Rotella T6 has increased about $10/gal in the last few months in my area, and the 5W-40 weight has vanished from several store shelves.
The Motul 300V racing oil I use in my race bike has increased by about $20/4l jug as well.
The Shell Pearl GTL facility in Qatar was bombed back in March which refines base oils for Shell motor oil, and also supplies several other brands, including a lot of store brand motor oils.
This isn't hoarding. This is the oil supply interruption from the war. It's only going to get worse for motor oil, gas, and diesel prices in the years to come.
I’m old enough that I heard my parents talking about the 2nd Iranian Oil Crisis (1979-1985) as a kid.
I’m too young to remember the first one.
While the 2nd crisis was due to events in Iran, 3rd one is because my nation (the USA) attacked Iran and broke the strategic stalemate which benefited both nations. And now we have an oil shortage that everyone with a shred of sense predicted as a result of my nation’s actions.
And so here we are again, because my nation elected a dipshit for a leader. And anyone my age and older who voted for this dipshit should have known better — and anyone younger than me could have read one fucking article on Wikipedia and known better.
Man with every passing day I feel better and better about switching to an EV. I’m a lazy sack of crap who didn’t drive much to begin with so I didn’t want to deal with required maintenance. Having solar panels and the economics of electricity pricing helped make the numbers make sense
With all the wholesale stores, it's in the contract terms that they reserve the right to limit quantities on any and all purchases. It's happened to me before when bulk buying for work.
This situation just keeps getting worse. Republicans deserve to get wiped out in midterms for letting an idiot like Trump take over their party. Now he is out here offering 5k checks as a bribe for votes. What a disaster.
A few years ago we put in heat pumps, heat pump water heater, induction stove, and bought an EV. Our bills have never been lower and we’re not breathing combusted gas fumes in our house anymore.
I wonder if people are going to be stuck with stranded assets in the form of new-model gas cars or gas water heaters.
Massachusetts did this: gave everyone money to replace their appliances with electric: then jacked up the electricity prices to where the low income people are now far worse off than if they had kept their gas appliance.
I would consider an EV if I could charge it using solar power, and never a Tesla. Gas water heaters use natural gas, which at least in the US, is a domestic product. Not saying fracking is good.
Why do you need solar power before you'll consider an EV? I was about to say us EV drivers are "winning big" but really it's we're "suffering far less" than everyone else in this current situation. I don't have solar power but I'm feeling pretty good right now that I don't have to buy gas or do oil changes.
That being said, I do plan to get home solar eventually.
There was a great story about a pulmonologist doing research on the toxic shit people burn inside homes. One of the researchers that joined in later as a surgeon was a big poohpohh climate change conservative. After that conservative doctor was reading about the topic it was about two weeks before they were yanking gas appliances in their house for electric.
Of course they coukd afford to do it on a whim after ditching their ignorance.
Electric alternatives have problems. In the US if you wanted an electric stove you're getting an awful coil burner because induction is rare and outrageously expensive with few models to choose from.
Then EV cars, everyone thinks it's the range, but it's actually infrastructure. Many EV batteries have comparable range to gas vehicles, yet a gas vehicle getting only 250 miles on a tank of fuel is rarely a problem because you can fill it up in any town in the US (unlike EVs).
You can't expect EVs to fix bad charging infrastructure, even if they could, they'd be extremely expensive and heavy. It's why nobody is buying them in the US despite high fuel prices, the cars aren't a problem, it's the infrastructure which has been stagnate for years.
Nah, we just road-tripped our EV out to Wyoming deep off the grid and it was good to great in the least EV-friendly state in the country. There was a 21% increase in EV chargers year over year from July 2025 to 2026. I suspect you’re not attuned to what’s actually happening with charging infrastructure.
I remember when reddit was calling this fake news when the "leaked autozone" email's circulated....hmmm seems like there may have been some validity in those emails, and reddit jumped the gun... im sure that doesn't happen very often on here.....
I miss when toilet paper was the scare and not the thing our world runs on. Don't worry though everyone, as soon as Republicans win the mid terms everything will be perfectly fine again.
Hell you could even call it the golden age of America. In the sense you'll need an ounce of gold to fill your ranks.
Toast-N-Jam | 14 hours ago
Don’t forget this is 100% Trumps doing. He has created many of these preventable issues, and continues to hurt the economy with the tariffs and the war in Iran.
kent_eh | 12 hours ago
>this is 100% Trumps doing.
Don't let Trump's supporters, enablers, co-conspirators, sycophants and especially his puppeteers escape scrutiny and criticism.
Trump is a symptom of the problems, not the root cause.
deepasleep | 9 hours ago
Exactly. We need to start demanding media reform. Fox News should not be getting subsidized by everyone who has a cable subscription, and Social Media Algorithms should be transparent and subject to regulation.
whoeve | 9 hours ago
Seriously. This is the fault of REPUBLICANS
robustofilth | 7 hours ago
No. On this front he is absolutely the problem. Stop being naive.
kent_eh | an hour ago
He wouldn't be able to be a problem without those people supporting him and keeping him in power.
FJ-creek-7381 | 42 minutes ago
And the media sane washing and not calling out all the crazy ass shit going on - half the country has zero idea because hardly any media really ask the questions that need to be asked.
Alternative_Exit8766 | 10 hours ago
capitalism?
DacMon | 10 hours ago
Uncontrolled capitalism. Capitalism is good at what it's good at, but it must have strict guardrails that force it to work for the population rather than against it.
i_empathetic | 9 hours ago
Even Adam Smith outlined necessary regulation and limits right from the jump. We've embraced an exceptionally corruptible, largely unrestrained implementation of capitalist market forces, and it will increasingly crush the masses if left to continue as-is.
Alternative_Exit8766 | 9 hours ago
lol
DacMon | 9 hours ago
Essential State Duties In The Wealth of Nations (1776), Smith identified three main legitimate functions for the government: [1] (https://www.investopedia.com/updates/adam-smith-wealth-of-nations/), [2] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lN9KJOBFsgk)
National Defense: Protecting the nation from foreign enemies and maintaining a military.
Administration of Justice: Maintaining a legal system and police force to protect citizens from injustice, theft, and violence.
Public Works: Building and maintaining essential infrastructure (like roads and bridges) and institutions (like basic education) that private markets cannot profitably run.
Of course he had no idea that healthcare would ever turn into what it has or how society has developed. So I think much of the social safety net most developed countries have developed would be included as necessary infrastructure. Very close to the Nordic model.
PlutoJones42 | an hour ago
What a well thought out and profound response. I’m sure you have some really great takes
Suitable-Option833 | 12 hours ago
He told the media - if the oil barons gave him a donation/bribe while running in 2024, if elected he would return the favor. He’s returning the favor. Gd this is painful. I wish his voters would wake up.
KarmaticArmageddon | 11 hours ago
>Gd this is painful.
In a lot of ways. We didn't get our first-half bonuses for the first time ever and the main reason cited was that fuel practically doubled and fuel is one of our largest expenses since every employee has a company vehicle for field work.
trippinfunkymunky | 25 minutes ago
I kind of wish they wouldn't wake up...
calle04x | 9 hours ago
I used to hear that the president has little control over gas prices. Turns out, it's really easy for him to make them skyrocket.
Human_Local3519 | 6 hours ago
Yeah he's one of the most manipultive pieces of shit to walk the earth....
scottwsx96 | 9 hours ago
Severely harm the BEV market in the US then cause oil prices to shoot up. Brilliant.
L_Cranston_Shadow | 6 hours ago
It's all Obama's fault. /s
Okayyyayyy | 2 hours ago
All part of project 2025
Human_Local3519 | 6 hours ago
Don't forget this was all done on purpose
Tiny_Dare_5300 | 2 hours ago
No it's all Sleepy Joe Biden's fault!!! Trump's motto is to never take accountability for anything and so far it's earned him the presidency! Twice!
IllustratorMurky2725 | 47 minutes ago
It was already fixed under Obama. Just try to get them to vote against the assholes that support him. Congress is dead no thanks to democrats who literally fucked an easy win with Hilary and wtf happened with Biden. I think they hate the American people.
Zank_Frappa | 5 hours ago
Please ignore the bipartisan call for war with Iran for the past 50 years
Toast-N-Jam | 5 hours ago
GTFO. Trump is destroying America and you know that Republicans have all the control now. This is 100% on them.
Zank_Frappa | 4 hours ago
America deserves to be destroyed. Competent imperialism from neolibs is every bit as evil as bald-faced imperialism.
OkJose3000 | 4 hours ago
He’s also preventing us from the the threat of terrorists with a nuclear weapon and securing US energy independence for the next century so….probably worth the minor inconvenience
Toast-N-Jam | 4 hours ago
How ignorant. How do you explain the destruction of everything else he's done? Found the fascist! He's undone decades of scientific and international political progress. While America suffers, we are much worse off. Worst President ever, easily.
OkJose3000 | 4 hours ago
Lololololololololol
PlutoJones42 | an hour ago
You have been propagandized very effectively. He’s enriching himself and doesn’t give a shit about anything you think he gives a shit about. He’s a conman and a fraudster, always has been, and always will be.
Donald Trump does not give a shit about the American people
OkJose3000 | an hour ago
Haha ok. So they’re not building a nuclear weapon, funding terrorists, and chanting death to America?
eukomos | an hour ago
This is actually impairing our energy independence significantly and destabilizing fuel markets in a potentially permanent way.
mightybeesees | 3 hours ago
Like when we had a deal with them (and Russia, China, and others) to let in IAEA inspectors - oh wait, Trump ripped that up. Also, securing US energy independence would be investing in green energy but Trump not only canceled those, his administration is actively trying to destroy things we already have in place. Aka things we already paid for and installed but that’s totally a minor inconvenience right?
OkJose3000 | an hour ago
Lol the deal where they didn’t let anyone inspect shit and kept building a nuclear bomb while they publicly yell death to America? Lololol
sereca | 14 hours ago
Went and got my oil change this past weekend. Gonna try not to drive too much moving forward. Im very lucky to have the choice to walk or bike to work given I live in the US, where most people only have one option.
ThereGoesTheSquash | 14 hours ago
This isn’t luck. For decades we were told about the problems with dependency on oil and the problems with low fuel efficiency cars and commuting long distances and people just ignored it.
Boredpanda19er | 13 hours ago
If there’s one thing we’re good at, it’s ignoring warning signs…
dust4ngel | 12 hours ago
if there’s short-term money to be made by a few people at the expense of the future, we gotta do it
Lightening84 | 9 hours ago
"We" are the consumers, not the suppliers. "We" were told to not buy gas guzzling vehicles. "We" opted for the gas guzzlers.
082426grateful | 10 hours ago
Even worse, now, publicly bringing up the problem topics labels one as a doomer, unpatriotic, or even one I hear commonly in my deep red part of the country, librul.
These aren’t matters of political nature. At least they shouldn’t be. Dependency on fossil fuels is something we were talking about a lot, as a nation, in the world, and many places have reduced their dependency. In America, we just change the CAFE standards, and shift manufacturing to meet the new standards.
Tafinho | 10 hours ago
But …
But the shareholders’ dividends…? You need to consider those poor souls.
ExcitingResponse1864 | 11 hours ago
You know what was a boon for many that the powers that be clawed back? Work from home. I'm lucky I don't have to commute far, but I have coworkers and friends who have to commute at least 30 minutes each way if not longer every day.
It's lost time, wear and tear on vehicles, and mostly wasted gas due to stop and go.
082426grateful | 10 hours ago
I’ve personally taken great advantage of it, to my financial benefit. Now, the car is something I keep around, but don’t depend on. Staying out of car loan debt has been the ultimate hack, so far, to the 2020’s inflation marathon.
Suspicious_Place1270 | 10 hours ago
i'm thankful to commute 1h each way in a train and not have to worry at all about a car
Hippyedgelord | 5 hours ago
American exceptionalism is about to be turned on its head for the first time in living memory. It’s going to be ugly.
QuestioninglySecret | 4 hours ago
America has never been exceptional, except in it'd arrogance
photon1701d | 10 hours ago
Even if you are not driving, still need to change every 6 months or 5000 miles. Especially if you have a small turbo or running 0w20 oil.
77rtcups | 54 minutes ago
And we are repealing mpg requirements and car makers are scraping some evs. Doesn’t make sense to stay so reliant on oil.
jaimequin | 13 hours ago
Here I am. Driving electric.
The costs for an EV seem high if you buy or lease something new, but the payments, the insurance and the cost to charge end up being less than a gas car of lesser value and budgeting is predictable. No oil changes or unpredictable gas prices. You can even get power for free or invest in solar to not only charge your car for free, but reduce your electric bill in the process.
Yes, initial investment is high, but there's no chance that you're going to go back to gas and you'll be set up for decades to come.
Pitiful-Mobile-3144 | 12 hours ago
EVs still have one MASSIVE caveat to affordability: where you charge. If you have a home/apartment where you can plug in overnight, then it’s a no-brainer for saving money. If you have to street park or live in a complex without a charger, then not only is going elsewhere to charge super inconvenient but it saves you very little if anything compared to gas.
For many people, EVs just can’t quite work in their lives. Hybrids like the Prius with 40-50mpg split the difference
loganwachter | 11 hours ago
My exact issue.
Want and realistically could afford an EV but I rent. My driveway is on the other side of the street from the house with no electric hookup.
Looking to move when my lease is up and trying to find somewhere with a garage so I can easily charge an EV if I get one.
teefnoteef | 12 hours ago
I’m still worried about emergencies. If my area has mandatory executions and my ev isn’t fully charged, I doubt I can find somewhere to charge with everyone else also evacuating and potentially needing to charge too
oh-bee | 12 hours ago
In my experience there is no gas available during evacuations. Everyone wants to fill up at once.
And then the roads are clogged.
Glittering-Walrus228 | 12 hours ago
They said mandatory executions, fix is simple, be one of the executioners
oh-bee | 11 hours ago
You only get executed if your car isn’t charged.
Acceptable-Peace-69 | 9 hours ago
Lethal injection solves the electric demand problem.
Perfect_Grade5617 | 6 hours ago
If your area has mandatory executions, charging your EV is the least of your worries. 🤣
The-Fox-Says | 8 hours ago
DC fast chargers are usually between 30 and 50 cents a KwH which ends up being around $25 plus you get regenerative braking. EV charging is still much cheaper than gas even at it’s most expensive.
On top of that you can get a mobile charger which can charge from any outlet
LuminousRaptor | 8 hours ago
Yeah, if your commute is short enough a standard 120 V outlet can get like 10 to 15 kWh of charge in a an 8 hour timeframe. (Depending on what you can pull from the wall amperage wise.) That's 30 to 40 miles for most cars, certainly too few of you're going to the next city over, but enough if you live close to work.
The-Fox-Says | 6 hours ago
If you plug in when you’re home it’s 10-12 hours for most people which is enough for upwards of 60 miles while the average commute is 28 miles in the US.
Is it perfect? No obviously it would be better to use a L2 or DC charger which you would only have to do once a week for most EVs
hereditydrift | 13 hours ago
Now if the US only had a wide base of affordable EVs like some other countries...
wiscotangofoxtreat | 12 hours ago
A bolt was 6k 7 months ago
hereditydrift | 12 hours ago
It shows as starting at $27k now. There should be multiple options in the sub-$15k price range. EVs are cheap to produce.
cornhole99 | 12 hours ago
6k used. They were never 6k new
wiscotangofoxtreat | 10 hours ago
Don't be an idiot bud
Gr8WallofChinatown | 10 hours ago
No it wasn’t unless you’re referring to a 15 year old bolt with 150k+ miles
wiscotangofoxtreat | 10 hours ago
Yes it was. Earliest ones are 2017
Random__Bystander | 12 hours ago
Never thought about not having oil changes
CliftonForce | 12 hours ago
You can install a smoke detector in your garage. Felt wierd doing that.
Random__Bystander | 12 hours ago
Lol, good story
buttermilk_biscuit | 12 hours ago
Bought my EV 4 years ago. Almost never pay to charge (only paid while I was road tripping across the country- still cheaper than gas prices in the area). Dont really pay anything for upkeep. I cant even imagine how in the hole Id be right now if I was still trying to afford gas and keep my car running with oil changes and the like.
082426grateful | 10 hours ago
Not here to debate your well thought out comment. Hats off to you.
I, personally, am tired of the initial investment conversation. I need more money coming in, a meaningful amount, than is going out. And that’s the most common story. Incomes are pressured for the working class now.
Again, good points, and valid. I’m just talking nuts and bolts for me personally.
joshocar | 8 hours ago
Just buy used. Two year old former leased cars sell for 50% MSRP and have 20k miles on them. It's a ridiculously good deal.
9Implements | 11 hours ago
We’ve had an EV since the early 2010s. My buddy in his 70s still does his own oil changes on his crappy car. I just can’t believe people put so much unnecessary effort into vehicles. Since we got it we’ve needed only 1 new 12V battery and maybe 1 or 2 sets of tires.
mcchicken_deathgrip | 10 hours ago
As someone who does all my own work on my cars, the prospect of a car without an engine, cooling system, exhaust system, fuel system, ignition system, and all the various parts and fluids involved in those sounds incredible. I've come around to the idea that a simple electric motor hooked up straight into a drive train really makes much more sense. ICE cars are complicated machines and have 100s of parts waiting to break and be maintained, it really is a pain.
Now if electric cars would just become cheaper I'd get one and never look back.
Poonchow | 9 hours ago
The first time you open the hood on an EV it's almost comical.
Like, yup. There it is. A battery and a motor, compressor for AC and some wiper fluid stuff. That's it.
joshocar | 8 hours ago
Looked at used EVs, they are almost all leases, so 20k miles and two years old, and they sell for <50% MSRP.
[OP] VulcanSpark | 12 hours ago
but copper prices are high and going to go up
DacMon | 11 hours ago
You only use the copper once for hundreds of thousands of miles. It's not something you are constantly replacing. It isn't really a wear item.
[OP] VulcanSpark | 11 hours ago
what about depreciation and battery, prices depreciate more than 50% really quickly also new technology
DacMon | 10 hours ago
That's the same with any car, though.
[OP] VulcanSpark | 10 hours ago
nope rates are different https://www.reddit.com/r/UKExpatFinance/comments/1we3ddk/that_car_depreciation_chart_is_a_list_of_what/
DacMon | 10 hours ago
Lol. Just buy a used one after the depreciation has already hit.
[OP] VulcanSpark | 10 hours ago
that defeats the whole purpose as u wil need new battery and several breakdowns
Acceptable-Peace-69 | 8 hours ago
EV batteries last as long or usually longer than most transmissions and the cost is similar to replace.
Tesla resale value has tanked because Elons little salute and other antics. Several others because the tax credit went away, and partly because this myth keeps circulating.
A Tesla battery typically lasts between 300,000 and 500,000 miles, or roughly 15 to 20+ years, before its capacity drops below 70%. [1]
You can also use them as home battery backups for less than the cost of a new system. Paired with solar, you’ll never have an electric bill or worry about outages.
Many of them can also be repaired by replacing individual cells.
DacMon | 10 hours ago
That's just not true at all. EV batteries are lasting a long time. Well over 100,000 miles.
I'm obviously not suggesting that you purchase a run down vehicle that doesn't run.
The-Fox-Says | 8 hours ago
Most EV batteries these days will last you over 200k miles a lot will probably go above 300k. On top of that future batteries will be less than half the price to replace
marsemsbro | 8 hours ago
Unfortunately, many states are doing everything they can to make it less affordable and to prop up oil companies. In my state, it costs $200 per year extra to register an EV. Plus the insurance would be ~50% more per month. So in a year, even though I'd save on gas, I'd still be paying about $800 more than if I keep my gas car. The money saved on an annual oil change is wiped out by higher tire consumption.
I should caveat that I really want a used Kia EV6 GT. So I'm not running these numbers because I'm a hater.
thewimsey | 8 hours ago
> In my state, it costs $200 per year extra to register an EV.
That's not to "prop up oil companies". That's because gas taxes are used to pay for roads and road maintenance. You don't pay gas taxes. But you still use roads. So there has to be a way for you to pay for them.
>Plus the insurance would be ~50% more per month.
So your theory is that the insurance companies are also trying to prop up oil companies?
ytmnic | 5 hours ago
In a state (for example Arkansas) that charges an extra $200 for EVs on their registration would equal the fuel tax of over 800 gallons of gas or nearly 25k miles in a 30mpg vehicle
marsemsbro | 5 hours ago
Based on my mpg and annual usage, I pay $100-115 in taxes on my fuel consumption per year. So an extra $200 does not pass the sniff test for a typical EV buyer.
Odd_Vampire | 14 hours ago
I definitely cut back on my summer road trips. Every bit of news this year has encouraged me to drive less. I live in a big city so I can go for weeks on end without touching my car, thanks to public transportation (and sheltered parking). Truly, I don't need to drive at all.
wiscotangofoxtreat | 12 hours ago
Over 2500 miles on the cargo bike this year and it just keeps getting better. Such an under appreciated aspect of housing for people that cant leave their homes without 5000lbs
Luigino9876 | 11 hours ago
Same, I call myself lucky given that I live in the US. Sometimes I dont move my car for weeks. If more people understood the value of having multiple transportation options. I asked my mom who lives in italy if she was worried about gas prices. Her answer was I can bike or walk where I need to go no need to stress about high gas.
an_actual_lawyer | 9 hours ago
I stocked up on Liqi Moly 20W60 awhile back because it is really hard to find and the particular vehicle just can't use anything else.
Kodaic | 7 hours ago
lol ok
tikaani | 10 hours ago
Be careful out there. Car drivers are showing exceptional anger toward people on bikes at this time
bberg22 | 13 hours ago
Doesn't most motor oil get recycled? Obviously there is some loss through use etc. but motor oil can be re-refined I thought so the net losses should be lower than just straight burning gasoline, but is obviously still tied to overall market trends/issues.
How long before we have to return to remote work again because there is no gasoline to get to work?
Ryan_e3p | 12 hours ago
>Doesn't most motor oil get recycled?
Short answer: Sometimes. Most auto parts stores don't give two shits about what is dumped into their collection tank. Antifreeze, heavily contaminated oil, brake fluid, and any number of other liquids get dumped in there. You can end up with something that looks like and has the consistency of a McDonald's milkshake when it gets emptied out.
Auto shops (especially independent ones) that work on cars are a lot more careful since they are more likely to burn used oil in the furnace. Contaminating their heating fuel is literally wasting their own money.
bberg22 | 11 hours ago
But what happens when that collection tank is emptied? They can't just dump it somewhere, so there must be an attempt to separate and do something with it.
Ryan_e3p | 11 hours ago
It contaminates the collection tank of the truck that went to haul it away, likely ruining everything else in it that may have been "clean" used oil. What happens from there... I dunno. Treated like a controlled hazmat. Not sure.
bberg22 | 11 hours ago
I wonder if that contamination is also what results in the lower than expected amount being recycled at 10-15%ish. Seems that all sort of recycling is subject to this sort of contamination which is unfortunate for our ability to actually reuse things and not create as much waste.
Snazzy21 | 11 hours ago
Seems more often than not at auto part stores an employee empties my container or watches me empty it to make sure it's not mixed with water. Sometimes they let me empty it without someone checking, but it's rare.
A truck will empty the container weekly, so maybe it's just the shops burning the used oil in smudge pots
Own-Chemist2228 | 9 hours ago
It's generally not recycled into new motor oil. Often is is processed into oil that is burned in heaters, industrial kilns, etc. Basically it gets burned in machines that can function using dirty oil.
quintus_horatius | 13 hours ago
> Doesn't most motor oil get recycled?
Not really.
Many shops pour it in a tank and burn it for heat in the winter. It runs fine in a standard oil-fired heater.
How would one recycle used motor oil? It's already half-burnt and chock full of particulates that are too small for filtering to catch.
bberg22 | 13 hours ago
My understanding with no personal experience, is a combo of cleaning/filtering process, re-refining, blending, or converting into other oil based lubes, or burning for fuel oil as you stated. I don't know how effective any of it is but that's why I posted it as a sign question, I'm sure there are people out there who can speak to how the process works more in depth.
Edit: Google says about 10-16% of used oil gets converted back to new base motor oil at a roughly 2.5 quarts per gallon of recycled oil so not as high as I would have guessed but also not nothing.
wiscotangofoxtreat | 12 hours ago
Must be a joy to breathe around those places with all that contaminated crap ending up in your lungs and brains
Ryan_e3p | 12 hours ago
It can only be burned in very specialized furnaces that are made for it. It isn't like your home oil furnace just burning what is in your oil tank.
Just like how there are biomass plants that burn household trash to make electricity. Generally speaking, the hotter you burn things, the less likely there is for contamination to persist in any smoke or fumes. It's sort of the difference between putting a steak on a charcoal grill, versus putting it in a waste incinerator. Even if you let the steak sit on that charcoal grill for hours, there will still be something there. You can smell it. You put that same steak into an incinerator, nothing about that steak is going to survive.
wiscotangofoxtreat | 10 hours ago
Sure, but that doesnt mKe it clean. When you are burning anything, in any machine, youre creating nasty stuff
Ryan_e3p | 9 hours ago
Please go educate yourself on incinerators.
wiscotangofoxtreat | 5 hours ago
Please go educate yourself on combustion and physiology.
sommersolveig7 | 10 hours ago
Most used oil is disposed of/burned. Only some is collected and rerefined
photon1701d | 10 hours ago
Maybe Trump can come out with Freedom Oil. The man is letting you be free of all your money. If oil gets expensive and people start delaying oil changes, they could be causing harm to engines using 0w-8, 16, or 20. Even worse, you go for a warranty claim and it's denied because you didn't do your change on time.
1900grs | 14 hours ago
I keep seeing these articles about motor oil and it has to be some kind of scare tactic. All the auto parts stores are still offering the 5 qt + oil filter +air filter combos at around the same price as the past two years with all the same name brands. I haven't seen any shortages or wild price hikes.
Source: I change the oil on 4 cars within my family. The bundles for full synthetic cost $35-$45.
Edit: I imagine the Kirkland brand is getting squeezed and now has to compete with the other name brands.
suckuma | 14 hours ago
Yeah I assume it varies by region, but 5qts and oil filter was about $40 for me. I have a Costco near me, but they don't sell 0W16.
AmazAmazAmazAmaz | 13 hours ago
0w16 appears about the same price as last year. It was and is expensive.
suckuma | 12 hours ago
Just checked a Walmart near me full synthetic is about $32 and add $10 for an oil filter.
AmazAmazAmazAmaz | 11 hours ago
Same on amazon. It was $28 in 2024.
1900grs | 14 hours ago
> Yeah I assume it varies by region
I'll say, I order online and sometimes I'll do store pickup and they won't have something on hand, but they'll get it from their hub for me, usually same day. Or when I have it delivered, I get it in a day or two, no issues. But that's been true for all parts, not just oil. Just regular store stocking issues.
grumble11 | 14 hours ago
It’s somewhere in between. Some base oils are experiencing a global shortage. 20% of production got bombed out and another 20% can’t move so a supply chain based on those oils is experiencing a major squeeze.
Lubricants that don’t rely on those oils are not directly exposed but will go up in price if they are substitutes. Some makers are working to reformulate. Overall there will certainly be a supply crunch and it will worsen so impact is just beginning but the US is less exposed than most places
1900grs | 14 hours ago
I guess I'll be concerned when all the quick change places, dealerships, and maintenance shops that dot the landscape start running out of supply. These articles seem to want to induce panic buying.
Edit: let me clarify, the article is about one specific product at one specific retailer, but it's posted to the /r/Economics sub as if it's a national or global indicator of supply of a commodity.
ComicBookEnthusiast | 51 minutes ago
If you wait until the shelves are empty then it’ll be too late.
GhostofBeowulf | 11 hours ago
...This article did no such thing. That's your personal perception.
1900grs | 8 hours ago
Oh, tell me how it didn't then. It's about Kirkland brand oil and Mobil marketing terms. What am I missing.
Own-Chemist2228 | 12 hours ago
Amazon price history on 5 qt Mobil 1 5W30 shows that it was about $25 a year ago, it's $32 today.
I see similar prices at Walmart.
The Mobil 1 is $42 at my local O'Reilly, $32 at at Walmart in the same shopping center. FYI: Never buy oil at an auto parts store if a Walmart is nearby.
The only combos I see at O'Reilly are off-brand "Prime Line" etc. About $50 but you only get 3 quarts. I don't know the price history.
The increase in motor oil prices is definitely real. Costco and Walmart don't play games with pricing. But the auto parts chains often have gimmicks with their off-brand stuff.
1900grs | 8 hours ago
> The only combos I see at O'Reilly are off-brand "Prime Line" etc. About $50 but you only get 3 quarts.
You are terrible at looking up items then. I literally see 5 qts of multiple brands at the price points I stated. Are you only looking at single qt bottles? I hope not.
TheGoodBunny | 13 hours ago
Where are these bundles?
Own-Chemist2228 | 12 hours ago
The bundles tend to be store-brand oils of dubious quality, or for big brand oil like Valvoline they will throw in a "free" oil filter but the oil costs $10 more than it does at Walmart.
TheGoodBunny | 12 hours ago
yeah that's what I am seeing. Even mobil1 at amazon is $10 cheaper so any "savings" of oil filter are negated
girugamesh_2009 | 13 hours ago
Also asking for a friend.
1900grs | 13 hours ago
Autozone, Oreillys, Advance Auto, pick one. They all run bundles.
McGlowSticks | 6 hours ago
As a dealership technician, we have been informed of pending oil shortages through corporate. Mopar has instructed dealers to use 5w20 instead of 0w20, volkswagen (who i work for) has said we are soon to be affected as well. not sure what we will be doing
IrlArizonaBoi | 10 hours ago
It's not an even shortage. The low viscocity synthetic oils are whats mainly affected. Stuff like 0w-8 and 0w16 and some full synthetic 0w20
If you're using 5w30 to 10w30 it's far less of a concer.
1900grs | 9 hours ago
Full synthetic 0w20 here and no issues yet. Knock on wood.
homer_3 | 10 hours ago
>The bundles for full synthetic cost $35-$45.
Are you changing the oil yourself? That is very cheap. Even 10 years ago, $50 for a full synthetic change was a great deal.
1900grs | 9 hours ago
Yes sir. Bought lost my mind a few years ago going to a quick change and it was $130 for a full synthetic change. No thanks. I can do it myself about as fast and then just run my used oil to the county on pick up days. I've saved a few thousand over 3 years with the family cars I do.
willy--wanka | 10 hours ago
I wish. Oil over here doubled last oil change I performed for my fleet.
tunnel_magnet | 6 hours ago
Let's work with the facts. Costco has limited buying of motor oil. That's a ground fact. Why did they do it?
fuzznuggetsFTW | 4 hours ago
I can tell you that Rotella T6 has increased about $10/gal in the last few months in my area, and the 5W-40 weight has vanished from several store shelves.
The Motul 300V racing oil I use in my race bike has increased by about $20/4l jug as well.
The Shell Pearl GTL facility in Qatar was bombed back in March which refines base oils for Shell motor oil, and also supplies several other brands, including a lot of store brand motor oils.
OkJose3000 | 4 hours ago
Def a scare tactic and as you can see, a political narrative. We’re fuckin fine. Get over it
DeadInternetVoid | 15 hours ago
Horders trading toilet paper for motor oil wasn't on my apocalypse bingo....
I'm writing this so I don't get fined. I'm writing this so I don't get fined.
GallowBarb | 14 hours ago
This isn't hoarding. This is the oil supply interruption from the war. It's only going to get worse for motor oil, gas, and diesel prices in the years to come.
Edit- *motor oil
WizeAdz | 13 hours ago
This is the 3rd Iranian Oil Crisis (2026-?).
I’m old enough that I heard my parents talking about the 2nd Iranian Oil Crisis (1979-1985) as a kid.
I’m too young to remember the first one.
While the 2nd crisis was due to events in Iran, 3rd one is because my nation (the USA) attacked Iran and broke the strategic stalemate which benefited both nations. And now we have an oil shortage that everyone with a shred of sense predicted as a result of my nation’s actions.
And so here we are again, because my nation elected a dipshit for a leader. And anyone my age and older who voted for this dipshit should have known better — and anyone younger than me could have read one fucking article on Wikipedia and known better.
And, yet, here we are.
dwagent | 11 hours ago
A dipshit AND pedophile (defender)…don’t forget the pedophile (defender) part, because that’s the main reason why he started this war.
DeadInternetVoid | 13 hours ago
You underestimate the lowlife Pokémon and GPU scalpers....
If there's a scummy, side-hustle to be had, those mouth-breathers will force the invisible hand.
Something as simple as a Hotwheels Ferrari, is scalped from the rack.
fx2600 | 14 hours ago
Mods should ban people who have so little to say they can't clear the ridiculously low bar for top level comments set by this subreddit.
J_NonServiam | 13 hours ago
Or bother to take three seconds of googling to know how to spell hoarders properly
thewimsey | 8 hours ago
It starts with a "w", right?
BurntNeurons | 14 hours ago
Exactly.
DeadInternetVoid | 14 hours ago
Meh. It's a whole lot funner to troll mania and hysteria manufactured by mainstream media and stockholders of such....
There's typically an underlying distraction within these events. Let the other armchair economists elaborate....
fx2600 | 11 hours ago
Is The Drive considered Mainstream Media?
The_GOATest1 | 13 hours ago
Man with every passing day I feel better and better about switching to an EV. I’m a lazy sack of crap who didn’t drive much to begin with so I didn’t want to deal with required maintenance. Having solar panels and the economics of electricity pricing helped make the numbers make sense
Maxpowr9 | 12 hours ago
With all the wholesale stores, it's in the contract terms that they reserve the right to limit quantities on any and all purchases. It's happened to me before when bulk buying for work.
hearmeout29 | an hour ago
This situation just keeps getting worse. Republicans deserve to get wiped out in midterms for letting an idiot like Trump take over their party. Now he is out here offering 5k checks as a bribe for votes. What a disaster.
Pallasine | an hour ago
The republican party needs to be dismantled or broken into two parties or something. There must be longstanding repercussions for all of this.
unfixablesteve | 14 hours ago
A few years ago we put in heat pumps, heat pump water heater, induction stove, and bought an EV. Our bills have never been lower and we’re not breathing combusted gas fumes in our house anymore.
I wonder if people are going to be stuck with stranded assets in the form of new-model gas cars or gas water heaters.
Wrong-Camp2463 | 14 hours ago
Can’t imagine why low income people aren’t replacing every appliance in their house and buying an ev….
medicinaltequilla | 14 hours ago
It's expensive to be poor, low-income people can't afford the high prices of current appliances to replace them
nefrina | 13 hours ago
you have to own a house first to change the appliances
Grabbioli | 14 hours ago
This is the answer. The upfront cost of an upgrade is too high for the people that need to save that money the most
unfixablesteve | 14 hours ago
That’s why the stranded assets thing is such a problem. Can’t afford the fuel, can’t afford to replace it.
That’s also why the Inflation Reduction Act was actually a good idea.
Wrong-Camp2463 | 14 hours ago
Massachusetts did this: gave everyone money to replace their appliances with electric: then jacked up the electricity prices to where the low income people are now far worse off than if they had kept their gas appliance.
unfixablesteve | 14 hours ago
Massachusetts also is almost entirely reliant on natural gas for power. Weird how prices spiked!
medicinaltequilla | 14 hours ago
yup! ...but if you were capable of borrowing or had capital, you put in solar panels at the same time. a voila!
unfixablesteve | 14 hours ago
Our particular roofline isn’t well-suited for solar, but whenever balcony solar is a thing here I’ll put a few panels up in places it makes sense.
wiscotangofoxtreat | 12 hours ago
Almost like we should have some sort of government policy leading to better lives less suffering and lower costs...
artisanrox | 9 hours ago
maybe we could do..hear me out...something like an EV tax credit? like...offer some positive reward for moving to sustainable energy??
naaaah. that's socialism.
Remote_Minimum_5046 | 14 hours ago
That is a fine statement to make but you obviously have never been poor.
ExpensiveLeather69 | 13 hours ago
theyre being sarcastic
SimpleVegetable5715 | 14 hours ago
I would consider an EV if I could charge it using solar power, and never a Tesla. Gas water heaters use natural gas, which at least in the US, is a domestic product. Not saying fracking is good.
Remote_Minimum_5046 | 14 hours ago
Natural gas is very inexpensive, provides good jobs domestically, and has infrastructure already established. Not using it makes zero sense.
The_GOATest1 | 13 hours ago
Sure if you stick your head in the sand about externalities. I’m sure asbestos provided good jobs domestically also
WhipsAndMarkovChains | 3 hours ago
Why do you need solar power before you'll consider an EV? I was about to say us EV drivers are "winning big" but really it's we're "suffering far less" than everyone else in this current situation. I don't have solar power but I'm feeling pretty good right now that I don't have to buy gas or do oil changes.
That being said, I do plan to get home solar eventually.
wiscotangofoxtreat | 12 hours ago
Still burning something in the home is not good
wiscotangofoxtreat | 12 hours ago
There was a great story about a pulmonologist doing research on the toxic shit people burn inside homes. One of the researchers that joined in later as a surgeon was a big poohpohh climate change conservative. After that conservative doctor was reading about the topic it was about two weeks before they were yanking gas appliances in their house for electric.
Of course they coukd afford to do it on a whim after ditching their ignorance.
Coldsmoke888 | 12 hours ago
Yeah, that’s a great point, you can spend a shitload of money to save a shitload of money. Don’t forget to buy a house too.
SquirrellyBusiness | 6 hours ago
Stranded assets were absolutely a risk we were monitoring in the commercial banking space.
Oryzae | 3 hours ago
This comment is dripping with privilege lol. Good for you I guess
Grampz03 | 13 hours ago
Stop running your car inside the house.
Talk about hook line sinker for gas stoves causing cancer and you should replace it with an electric.
Are you in seattle? I came across a few people that were legit scared of their gas stove because local news station said so.
joeydimaggio | 9 hours ago
You think breathing in natural gas is good for you? Do you have your covid vaccination
Snazzy21 | 10 hours ago
Electric alternatives have problems. In the US if you wanted an electric stove you're getting an awful coil burner because induction is rare and outrageously expensive with few models to choose from.
Then EV cars, everyone thinks it's the range, but it's actually infrastructure. Many EV batteries have comparable range to gas vehicles, yet a gas vehicle getting only 250 miles on a tank of fuel is rarely a problem because you can fill it up in any town in the US (unlike EVs).
You can't expect EVs to fix bad charging infrastructure, even if they could, they'd be extremely expensive and heavy. It's why nobody is buying them in the US despite high fuel prices, the cars aren't a problem, it's the infrastructure which has been stagnate for years.
unfixablesteve | 10 hours ago
Nah, we just road-tripped our EV out to Wyoming deep off the grid and it was good to great in the least EV-friendly state in the country. There was a 21% increase in EV chargers year over year from July 2025 to 2026. I suspect you’re not attuned to what’s actually happening with charging infrastructure.
rovertb | 3 hours ago
I remember when reddit was calling this fake news when the "leaked autozone" email's circulated....hmmm seems like there may have been some validity in those emails, and reddit jumped the gun... im sure that doesn't happen very often on here.....
/s
Plethorian | 3 hours ago
Standby for panic hoarding of motor oil. Also, there's like 10 different weights and grades now. This is going to be bad for car engine life.
only_respond_in_gifs | an hour ago
I miss when toilet paper was the scare and not the thing our world runs on. Don't worry though everyone, as soon as Republicans win the mid terms everything will be perfectly fine again.
Hell you could even call it the golden age of America. In the sense you'll need an ounce of gold to fill your ranks.