Crude Oil Prices From 1861-2008: A Graph

Mouse over points on the chart to see crude oil - both normal and in 2008 dollars - change over the past 147 years.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[gcallaghan]

Does anybody still doubt that big oil's been calling the shots for the past seven years?

[Coyote2]

Energy Scarcity is not coming..................................pssst: pass it on.

[Mike169]

Saw my 1st $4.00/gal of gas yesterday - actually jumped to $4.13. Don't tell Bush.

[KillTheMessenger]

Don't tell Hillary, either. She can't even pump coffee and she is out of change. Sorry... just had to say that. :-)

[KillTheMessenger]

What a funny graph! Love it.

And if we divide the price of oil by the increasing fuel efficiency of our cars, effective operating costs have not increased much at all. That assumes one is smart enough to drive a Prius, of course. SUV drivers may not apply.

[way2muchsense]

That is, most modern cars will get high 20s on the highway at the very least. We wouldn't be in the soup if everyone drove a four-cylinder Accord or its equivalent, or smaller. But most of us don't. We've bought into the idea that SUVs are the way to go, and damn the price of gas. Well, as SUV drivers watch the resale value of their monster trucks drop so fast they can see the needle move, I have to say they made their beds.

If you think about it, our 1999 Accord is the greenest car we've ever owned. It is still running VERY well at 155,000 miles, which is more than one can say for most US-branded scrap iron. I figure the old Accord will make it to a quarter-million miles easily.

[KillTheMessenger]

I would say that SUVs are simple fashion statements. Like an Oscar de la Renta dress. If you can afford it, good for you! But if you can't and you bought it anyway, do you really expect me to pity you?

I think that is really where we are. A lot of people bought into the hype that they need these metal monstrosities where a much smaller car will actually get the job done. There are plenty of truly tiny cars on European roads these days. I call them "chairs on wheels" because that is what they look like. They are quite "zippy", though and beat even a Prius in mileage.

In the US something of the size of a Prius or Civic hybrid will do perfectly fine for the average commuter plus family of four. Would I drive through the desert in a Prius? No. Or Alaska? No. But it will get me from home to work and back at a fraction of the cost of an SUV which will never go to either place, either.

[sixthskinjob]

I believe that what you claim is more due to the fact that although oil is currently 'expensive', gasoline is rather 'cheap' in comparison. I don't, however, expect that trend to last too much longer.

[eej]

I cannot wait until plastic becomes too expensive to make throwaway crap out of it.

Everything was so much more beautiful, and better, before plastic.