So I was playing more with the gasoline data. I added two more lines:
- yellow line is the latest price
- green line is what I call the "reverse average"; for any point on the x-axis, it's the average price (adjusted for inflation) from that point to the latest point.
Got it?
Then here's the graph. It shows that the current price of gas, $3.67/gallon, is quite consistent with the average (inflation adjusted) price over decades, which has averaged between about $3.20/gal and $3.85/gal.
It shows that the current price is equal to the average price since about 2002. Inflation adjusted. Hard to complain about that, unless your income doesn't increase as fast as inflation does. (For freelance writing it definitely hasn't. Hence I'm trying to leave and do something else. But I might be too old. I am probably too old to do anything that is both interesting and pays well, ever again. Washed up.)
Of course, people don't compare today's price of gas to what it was in 1990, but this helps them see that maybe they should before complaining. (And believe me, I like to complain as much as the next gal.) In any case, it shows the current price of gas is lower than the approximately 10-year period from 2005-2015.
Gas prices started to rise after Hurricane Katrina and never really recovered. I think this is exactly what Bush Jr and Cheney wanted, one way or the other. Both had strong ties to the oil & gas industry.
4 comments:
It's a tragedy that freelance writing no longer pays. The quality of information we have access to is steadily declining as specialists are replaced with generalists who are in turn replaced by AI.
Thanks Layzej. I agree, I guess. I realize things always change. But I can't do it anymore and I should have decided that earlier. I'm not finding anyone at al who is interested in hiring me. Of course, it's easy to think this is because of my age.
Who knows. I have never felt more useless in my entire life.
It's a scary time. Things are changing so fast. I have no idea what guidance to give my kids. If journalism is no longer viable, I hope you find the employer who will appreciate your knack for making complex scientific concepts accessible to the general public without oversimplifying them. That's an uncommon skill.
Thank you. I hope so too, but I haven't found a place yet. I'm worried I'm too old now. I think that's the biggest hurdle of all.
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