Exactly on point. Most ordinary folks don’t pay attention to the crap that politicians try to get away with until hits them directly in the pocket book every day. Well, 4 buck gas is starting to do that. It was a significant factor in the failure of the Leiberman-Warner carbon cap-and-trade and wealth redistribution bill, which in reality turns out to be a good thing. And while $4 gas might seem high most folks are managing to cope by cutting back on driving or other expenses. People bitch a lot but they are not motivated to extreme action.
Frankly I hope gasoline does hit $10 a gallon in the US. That will generate true public outrage, the kind no politician can afford to ignore. Then we’ll see how important dealing with “climate change” and protecting the polar bear really is.
At the end of the day it may turn out that $10 gas was really a blessing in disguise.
The heck of it is, some (not all, but some) of the high gas prices are completely avoidable. I think that if prices stay where they are for an extended period (6 months or more), then we'll start seeing some of the inefficiences that are inherent to the current system get wrung out.
"Botique Blends" of gas mandated by local governments, for one. Ethanol blends, for two. Like I said, touchy-feely environmentalism is just fine until people can't afford to feed their kids.
It's a simple "what if". What if, as a gas station owner, I told the local, county, or state gov't that's mandating a specific blend to "Get Stuffed" and went out to get whatever gas I could find or was cheapest. Who would know, or care? And how would those laws be enforced? Through fines that I could recoup by selling cheaper gas? We might be on the cusp of seeing a general revolt.
Honestly, though, I think that gas is headed back down, contrary to popular opinion. We won't see $0.99/gal again, but, - unless there's a major shock to the market, then all bets are off - I think that we're looking at the top right now.