Energy Literacy Advocates Newsroom

Energy Literacy Advocates (ELA) is a non-partisan, non-profit, public education and advocacy group dedicated to improving the energy literacy of all sectors of our democracy in order to empower a comprehensive national energy policy that is responsible and sustainable. Stay tuned for updated energy news!

Thursday, January 31, 2008

Poll: Big Expectations for New President

While this article covers several topics, the fact that 69% of Americans believe that the president has control over gasoline prices is significant. This actually may be true over the long term - good public policy could reduce demand for gasoline, and therefore it's price. However have no delusions, any demand abatement would have to be taken on by CONSUMERS, regardless of whether the cause is a shift in public policy. I doubt the 69% cited understand thoroughly that oil (and therefore gasoline) is a fungible commodity traded the world over, so direct control of pricing by the president in our free market system is impossible.

Read the article here.

Labels: energy policy, oil price