A Turn in the South

As you may have noticed, I did not make it to Missouri for this part of the trip. The pull of the South was too strong, so instead of making the trip North, we were guided through Alabama right into Mississippi. But, I did ask a number of people about what they thought about offshore drilling, and the answer was the same across the board. Unanimous support from the people I talked to, but, it’s important to note the context in which they answered the question. Everyone I talked to said the same thing, “I don’t know anything about the actual plan, but anything that could reduce gas prices, I’m for it.”

One small note, nearly everyone I talked to was in the process of filling up their gas tanks, watching as the price rose well above $50. The average gas price I saw in those two states was about $3.90 a gallon.

The Gas Price Effect

As many of you know, George Bush asked Congress yesterday to end a moratorium on offshore drilling. Part of the reason he is doing this now clearly has to do with the fact that gas prices have risen above $4 a gallon. Bush may be making it seem as if offshore drilling will bring instant relief to gas consumers, but really this will bring no effect on gas prices until 2030. 

I have decided to conduct a little experiment on how young people are reacting to this request (one that has been publicly supported by John McCain). I am going to see how gas prices of a region affect young people’s view of this plan. During the next four days I will be in Tennessee, Alabama, and Missouri (which famously has the lowest gas prices in the country).

Of course the difference in gas prices will only fluctuate by about 30 cents, but maybe that’s the tipping point for who is going to support this plan. If not, I will at least get to see how young people in general respond to the idea of offshore drilling as a means of eventual lower gas prices.