Message-Id: <3rr4ua$oek0b5@mxip06a.cluster1.charter.net> From: "Elizabeth Preston" <prestoe@uwec.edu> Subject: RE: boycott big oil! Date: Mon, 4 Apr 2005 10:19:53 -0500
Gas prices have been soaring for some time, indeed. I don't know if my
individual response adds anything new, but here you go anyway:
I believe not buying from Exxon and Mobile could help; one thing I have
wondered, tho, is if these parent companies have child companies with
different names. For example, could "Handy Mart" or "Quick Trip" or "Bill's
Gas" be owned by a Big One?
Many of you live near campus and already walk to school, but for those of
you who, like me, do not live in the campus-area, here are some small things
I've done:
(1) I take the bus. It's always pretty empty, but if more people took
the bus, EC Transit would profit more locally but the gas companies less
globally, perhaps? (2) I walk-2.5 miles each way, about 45 minutes each
way-at least twice a week (barring those frigid weeks). (3) I bike (when
the snow and ice are gone). We have many good bike shops and a decent bike
cost me about $200 a couple years back. Takes me less time to get to work
(downhill) and I don't have to bother with the 2-hour parking restrictions
that annoy me-with-car. Uphill home is a drag, though.
While my singular efforts cannot do much to challenge Big Oil or Help the
Environment, there is a physical/psychological benefit of exercising and -
especially when walking in the winter - getting Vitamin D from the sun.
I've also tried to make it so I only have to grocery shop once a week, and
"other shop" once a week or less. I am less successful with that than I
would like to be, but getting better over time.
_____
From: sfpj-request@listserve.uwec.edu
[mailto:sfpj-request@listserve.uwec.edu] On Behalf Of Kate Hale
Sent: Monday, April 04, 2005 9:45 AM
To: Wesenberg, Nancy Christine; Lyons, Arthur John; Giamati, Claudia M.;
SFPJ
Subject: Re: boycott big oil!
A couple of things--(1) according to some of my alternate-energy friends,
it's good (less bad?) to support British Petroleum because of their support
of alt. energies, wind power, stuff like that. There's a BP down at the end
of Barstow where it intersects Madison . . . (2) When we talk about what
gasoline "costs," we should also consider how "costs" is defined. There are
costs other than the barrel of oil itself-to the environment, e.g., in all
sorts of ways. When Exxon says they can't pay more to clean up the Valdez
spill because they've already paid "too much," then there's a cost that
isn't being paid. When oil exploration or drilling does damage to habitat,
that's a cost we're not paying. When the federal government does not
address long-term impacts of pollution from gas-powered vehicles, then there
are other costs-say, to human health-that are not being addressed. Not just
metaphorical costs, but actual financial costs.
Were we to pay what we "should" for gasoline, we'd none of us be driving
gas-powered vehicles. If I could afford a hybrid, I'd have one now . . .
David Orr of Oberlin College has a great book, Earth in Mind: On Education,
Environment, and the Human Prospect in which he explores the various ways
that we work within our disciplines and remain oblivious to our environment.
Sorry to go on for so long; I've been thinking about this stuff a lot . . .
.
Sigh. Back to work.
Kate
On 4/4/05 9:23 AM, "Wesenberg, Nancy Christine" <WESENBNC@uwec.edu> wrote:
IN addition, while I hate spending big money at the pump as much as
anyone else, and am not in favor of making either Mobil or Exxon richer,
I am rather in favor of anything that might encourage people to dump
their giant SUVs and trucks and drive less. So...
-----Original Message-----
From: sfpj-request@listserve.uwec.edu
[mailto:sfpj-request@listserve.uwec.edu]
<mailto:sfpj-request@listserve.uwec.edu%5d> On Behalf Of Lyons, Arthur John
Sent: Monday, April 04, 2005 9:05 AM
To: Giamati, Claudia M.; sfpj@listserve.uwec.edu
Subject: RE: boycott big oil!
About gas prices: I have been under the impression for many years,
beginning with conversations with several Brits, that US citizens paid
artificially low gas prices compared to the rest of the world. If this
is true, then paying higher gas prices, while it hurts our wallets,
might be more fair relative to others in the world. I don't know whether
this perspective has any factual basis. Does anyone on the list know
more?
-----Original Message-----
From: sfpj-request@listserve.uwec.edu
[mailto:sfpj-request@listserve.uwec.edu]
<mailto:sfpj-request@listserve.uwec.edu%5d> On Behalf Of Giamati, Claudia
M.
Sent: Monday, April 04, 2005 8:09 AM
To: sfpj@listserve.uwec.edu
Subject: FW: boycott big oil!
Sfpj ers,
This isn't our usual fare, I thought it may be appropriate for us to try
this little boycott, if you're up for it... I guess I see GW as the
flag-bearer for big oil addiction and anything that is counter to his
stance is mostly ok with me. Forgive if it's jamming your inbox!
Family and Friends -- This seemed to be just too good an experiment
not to share.
It just came to me in an e-mail from another friend. It would be
interesting to know whether a grass-roots effort on the Internet like
this would work.
Enjoy
! -- Layman
I hear we are going to hit close to $3.00 a gallon by the summer. Want
gasoline prices to come down? We need to take some intelligent, united
action. Phillip Hollsworth, offered this good idea: This makes MUCH
MORE SENSE than the "don't buy gas on a certain day"
campaign that was going around last April or May! The oil companies
just laughed at that because they knew we wouldn't continue to "hurt"
ourselves by refusing to buy gas.
It was more of an inconvenience to us than it was a problem for them.
BUT, whoever thought of this idea,
has come up with a plan that can really work. Please
read it and join with us!
By now you're probably thinking gasoline priced at about $1.50 is super
cheap. Me too! It is currently
$1.97 for regular unleaded in my town.
Now that the oil companies and the OPEC nations have conditioned us to
think that the cost of a gallon of gas is CHEAP at $1.50 - $1.75, we
need to take aggressive action to teach them that BUYERS control the
marketplace....not sellers. With the price of gasoline going up more
each day, we consumers need to
take action. The only way we are going to see the
price of gas come down is if we hit someone in the pocketbook by not
purchasing their gas! And we can do that WITHOUT hurting ourselves.
How? Since we all rely on our cars, we can't just stop buying gas.
But, we CAN have an impact on gas prices if we all act together to force
a price war.
Here's the idea: For the rest of this year, DON'T
purchase ANY gasoline from the two biggest companies (which now are
one), EXXO N and MOBIL. If they are not selling any gas, they will be
inclined to reduce their prices. If they reduce their prices, the other
companies will have to follow suit. But to have an impact, we need to
reach literally millions of Exxon and Mobil gas buyers.
It's really simple to do!! Now, don't whimp out on
me at this point...keep reading and I'll explain how simple it is to
reach millions of people!!
I am sending this note to about thirty people. If each of you send it to
at least ten more (30 x 10 = 300) ... and those 300 send it to at least
ten more (300 x 10 = 3,000)...and so on, by the time the message reaches
the sixth generation of people, we will have reached over THREE MILLION
consumers! If those three million get excited and pass this on to ten
friends each, then 30 million people will have been contacted!
If it goes one level further, you guessed it.....
THREE HUNDRED MILLION PEOPLE!!!
Again, all You have to do is send this to 10 people.
That's all. (If you don't understand how we can reach 300 million and
all you have to do is send this to 10 people.... Well, let's face it,
you just aren't a mathematician. But I am ... so trust me on this one.)
How long would all that take? If each of us sends this email out to ten
more people within one day of receipt, all 300 MILLION people could
conceivably be
contacted within the next 8 days!!! I'll bet you I
didn't think you and I had that much potential, did you! Acting
together we can make a difference.
If this makes sense to you, please pass this message on. PLEASE HOLD
OUT UNTIL THEY LOWER THEIR PRICES TO THE $1.30 RANGE AND KEEP THEM
DOWN. THIS CAN REALLY WORK
Professor of Law and Senior Research Scientist, University of Michigan,
734-340-3739, laymanal@umich.edu http://thinkers.law.umich.edu Up to a
little challenge that may benefit youngsters and adults in your family?
See: http://thinkers.law.umich.edu:8080/msq/login.jsp