The Great Rip-Off

It's no secret that the oil companies are gouging the public. We've known that for a long time. But what you may not know is that their gouging is minimal compared to how other fuel providers are ripping us off.

At least the oil companies have some sort of excuse - oil prices have, indeed, risen, and their is instability in the region where oil is produced.

Now I would like to hear the reasons why natural gas, wood pellets and cordwood have risen proportionately to oil.

Last I knew, these fuels are not derived from the Middle East. Nor has the actual cost to procure them risen much. Sure, the cost of gas and oil to run chainsaws and woodsplitters would increase the cost of wood a little, but not dollar for dollar with the cost of oil.

There has been almost NO increase in the cost to produce and distribute natural gas, except for the minor cost of fuel used to transport. Yet, the cost of natural gas has kept pace with that of oil.

So again I must ask, just what is the real justification for the excessive cost of cordwood, pellets and natural gas?

Seems to me these suppliers need to be regulated, even more than the oil companies!

I know, because I cut and use cordwood. It costs me about $2.00 per cord in additional costs due to the rise in oil prices. But the cordwood companies that sell commercially have nearly doubled their prices for cordwood - up to $225 per cord, having been around $125 earlier. How do they justify a $100 per cord price increase when the cost has only risen by less than $5.00 (including delivery costs)?

It is long past time for people to say "enough". Let's get our Congressmen to consider regulating prices on fuels that are not a luxury - they are a necessity of survival.