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Ben Stein's Diary

Another Evening in Paradise

By on 3.28.12 @ 6:08AM

So what if gasoline is $5.49 a gallon…

Tuesday
 Tonight, I was standing at a gas station pump filling my ancient car with gasoline. I started to feel worried. The gasoline was $5.49 a gallon and I can very well recall — easily recall — when it was 25 cents a gallon and when you could get a fine steak dinner at the best restaurant in my home town, Washington, D.C., for $5.49.

I was just getting over a bad flu that had left me exhausted. A close friend was marking the one year anniversary of his wife’s death and he’s miserable. Half the people I know cannot sleep at night worrying about money and their futures.

What if this recession NEVER ends? The Great Depression only really ended with total mobilization to fight World War II. What if ours is like that? What if Iran gets the bomb? What if there is a total meltdown in the Eurozone?

What if this thing that’s always itching on my back is cancer?

And then a miracle happened. An incredibly pleasant breeze blew off the desert and washed me with the smell of desert wild flowers. Two college kids walked by and started to jump up and down and shout “Bueller, Bueller.” One of them said, “Like man, you’re the smartest guy there is.”

“I’m not that smart,” I said. “I worry all the time.”

“Well, you’re always really amusing on TV and it cheers up my whole family.”

Then a young girl in a blue dress came over and wanted a picture with my old car because they don’t make this kind of car anymore and she smiled because she’s a car buff.

I thought, “What a dope I am for worrying and complaining. I have plenty to eat. I’m not getting shot at in Burma or Belgium in World War II. I’m not being deported to a death camp. I get to live in this great, great country and have my freedom, even if I don’t have a lot of time left. I have the best wifey on the planet. My parents got married in the depths of the Depression and were pretty happy even though they couldn’t afford to eat at fancy restaurants. I can learn from them.”

I cannot control the recession. But I can be grateful to Providence for letting me have the best life anyone can have — a life of gratitude for being alive and fairly well in America in 2012. That would be truly smart. Really, really smart.

About the Author

Ben Stein is a writer, actor, economist, and lawyer living in Beverly Hills and Malibu. He writes “Ben Stein’s Diary” for every issue of The American Spectator.

Letter to the Editor View all comments (99) |

Frank Drackman| 3.28.12 @ 7:31AM

For my money 1975 was worse.
Gas at 50 cents a gallon, America got its first "L"in a war, those stupid wide ties, and the smart money was on Ted Kennedy in 76'.
And I was stuck in an Intergrated East Coast Pubic School whose Principal didn't know you couldn't say the Lords Prayer over the Intercom every morning.
If he'd been just as religious with keeping switchblades out of the locker room I meet even have showered once in a while.
Oh yeah, "Welcome Back Kotter" debut-ed.
When corrected for inflation, gasoline was cheapest in 1988, I remember payin 79.9 cents for regular at a shady North Georgia minimart.
And if the AC in your IROC needed re-chargin you could buy all the Freon you wanted at that same minimart, and if you spilled a little, you just bought more, damn the O-Zone.
Tube-TV technology was at its peak, as was Ronaldus Maximus I, whose last Surpreme Court Pick may end up being the Gipper's last touchdown dance...
Even His Claudius-like Sucessor George Bush seemed to have finally learned which side his bread was buttered on.
No BCS, NFL QBs were still backs instead of protected endangered species, and Rap was something you did to a door...

Frank

chuck| 3.28.12 @ 8:49AM

1975.......the polyester leisure suit.

Need I say more?

cuban pete| 3.28.12 @ 10:44AM

As John Updike observed,the best selling popular music group in the seventies was some white guys trying to sound like black women.

Seek| 3.28.12 @ 12:37PM

Would that be the Bee Gees?

Frank Drackman| 3.28.12 @ 1:03PM

Yeah, Disco Sucked,
but the best damn Rock Concert I ever went to, probably cause it was the only Rock Concert I ever went to, "Cal-Jam-2" at the Ontario Racetrack, March 1978.
Somehow Ted Nugent was able to shoot flaming arrows into the crown without putting a single bloodshot eye out.
I think in Air Traffic Control they call it the "Big Sky" theory.

Frank

Riff Raff| 3.28.12 @ 4:22PM

Death Before Disco!

albert constantine jr.| 3.28.12 @ 10:39PM

In artillery and fire support, it is Big Sky/ little bullet Theory.

rick| 3.29.12 @ 9:48PM

Big sky / little bullet when you're the cannon cocker - just the opposite if you're in the plane.

Occam's Tool| 3.28.12 @ 2:47PM

Gee, Ben, may be if we lowered taxes and stopped whipping entrepeneurs and pumping up lawyers and drones this recession might end.

Have you changed your idiocy about raising taxes in the mioddle of a recession yet?

Gas is $3.86 in rural Minnesota. Frank Drackman is Right! Nugent is Great!

cvrgrl| 3.28.12 @ 11:33PM

stein has become a
populist buffoon

his sentimentalism makes him an effete
non-conservative shill for so-called
independent voters

amer spec, lose him, he has no
edge, whines, and does not have
what it takes to advance the conservative
point of view

my grandma, god bless her moulding soul,
was more cutting edge

Patriot Gal NC| 3.29.12 @ 11:30AM

That was mean. Shame on you.

Mike Hawk| 3.28.12 @ 2:33PM

30 reasons why the 70s sucked:

1. Disco
2. Jimmy Carter elected
3. Double digit inflation
4. Double digit unemployment
5. Double digit interest rates
6. Disco
7. 70s look - Leisure suits/ Platform shoes/ shag haircut with fu-man-chu.
8. The 70s man – sensitive/ in touch with inner-self/ feminized wimp.
9. Militant feminists screw up everything
10. Democrats ran congress
11. Disco Duck
12. Three Mile Island
13. Gas lines due to dumb energy policies/ OPEC oil embargo.
14. Shitty cars after 1972.
15. Government regulation, Dept of Energy, EPA, OSHA created.
16. Billy Beer debuts
17. Susan B. Anthony dollar coin
18. Taxes smother initiative.
19. Jimmy Carter inaugurated
20. Disco
21. 55 MPH speedlimit
22. Watergate/Nixon resigns
23. S. Vietnam falls, Post Vietnam confusion.
24. Carter gives up Panama Canal
25. Misery Index, Carter malaise speech given.
26. Americans taken hostage in Iran.
27. John Wayne, Audie Murphy, Elvis died
28. Renee Richards introduces tennis without balls.
29. Disco
30. Jimmy Carter as President

John Navratil| 3.28.12 @ 6:13PM

31. Mustang II
32. Smog pumps
33. "MacArthur Park"
34. 5 MPH bumpers

cuban pete| 3.28.12 @ 6:21PM

#33
Arguably the worst song ever written.
Play it over and over at Gitmo.

chuck| 3.28.12 @ 9:08PM

Nope, Dream Weaver takes the worst song ever hands down.

Timothy L. Pennenn| 3.29.12 @ 6:59AM

I think you're fogetting: Afternoon Delight.

Flossie| 3.29.12 @ 12:58PM

Muskrat Love!

Doc Neaves| 3.31.12 @ 6:01AM

Sounds like a great idea for an anthology! I'll go mix it now!!! Oh, and I'll end it all with "Alone again, naturally"!

beebop2| 3.28.12 @ 7:39PM

Disco was great if you could dance. I lived in NYC at the time and it was some of the best times of my life. Saturday Night Fever seven days a week. Sigh. They were some great times ....

Appleby| 3.28.12 @ 7:59PM

Hockey expanded from the Original Six on an eventual path to 25 more teams than talent to staff them.

Nixon's Wage-Price Freeze, and concommitant kibosh on jobs for 40 million Baby Boomers exiting university into a no-jobs market.

California forces the catalytic converter on people who are driving cars old enough so we can actually work on them. My Plymouth Fury went from 15 mpg to 5 mpg. Garages then discovered the law said they had to be installed and the garage had to certify they were connected WHEN THEY WERE INSPECTED; garages started instructive the inquisitive how to disconnect them. Gas mileage went back up.

NA$CAR stopped being stock car racing.

Conversely, F1 began to be interesting, working up to the 1980s turbo era which was its zenith.

Ben is rich enough so no matter what gasoline costs, he will have plenty. And we who have to walk can be cheered by stories of his driving around counting his blessings that he's Not One Of Us.

Stefan Stackhouse| 3.29.12 @ 4:40PM

You left out the split foyer subdivision house with avocado green shag carpet and harvest gold formica counters and appliances.

Alan Brooks| 3.28.12 @ 7:08PM

"So what if gasoline is $5.49 a gallon…"

What happened to the enormous quantity of oil from Iraq? it must be "the lib'rals" fault for not supporting the war(s)?

Todd Powers| 3.29.12 @ 12:58AM

The Chinese got it because the Iraqis didn't want to abide by our environmental standards.

PattyMor| 3.28.12 @ 7:37AM

I am thankful every day for high gas prices. Am I stupid? No, but I want Obama gone, defeated, beaten, and unelected for a second term. High gas prices seems to be the one thing that people (even the one who voted for the Obamaination) can concentrate on and get mad over. So I cheer and welcome the high gas prices as the price paid to get rid of Obama. Its that simple.

solidground| 3.28.12 @ 2:10PM

I agree. Sadly, pointing out Obama's multitude of sins against our Constitution, economy, political process, racial harmony and on and on falls on deaf ears. But kick the average American in his or her wallet and all hell breaks loose.

bsg| 3.28.12 @ 3:01PM

If you voted for Obama the first time you could chalk it up to being young and stupid. If you vote for him again, well, now your just stupid.

Alan Brooks| 3.28.12 @ 7:14PM

"If you voted for Obama the first time you could chalk it up to being young and stupid. If you vote for him again, well, now your just stupid."

I personally did not vote for Obama in '08, for the same reason I never voted for Clinton-- didn't know if was the right thing to do. But now I see you are absolutely determined to push your rightwing statists to the max; you figure:
"better our statists than theirs.'

So this year I will vote for Obama.

SpiralArchitect| 3.28.12 @ 4:26PM

Irony. :)

Alan Brooks| 3.28.12 @ 7:10PM

"I am thankful every day for high gas prices. Am I stupid? No, but I want Obama gone, defeated, beaten, and unelected for a second term"

And Romney replaces leftist statism with rightist?

Timothy L. Pennell| 3.28.12 @ 7:50AM

Yeah. Good for you. You have the best life that anyone can have, phoning in your drivel, once a week.

Every REAL Economic Indicator is in the Sh*tter. REAL Unemployment is around 16%. Home prices are still Cratering. Foreclosures, Bank Failures, Bankruptcies, and the numbers of Companies leaving these shores, are still on the rise. 350,000 New Unemployment Recipients a week, is now a Positive. We have the Greatest number of Americans, EVER, on Food Stamps, living at the Poverty Line, and living BELOW the Poverty Line, a President who DESPISES everything that this Country is, hates our Military, and won't be happy until we all have the same things, in his Utopian 3rd World Banana Republic Workers Paradise.

But, that's okay. You've had a good life, so the Hell with the rest of us.

Stein? Stein? Ben Stein?

Idiot.

Dmac | 3.28.12 @ 9:49AM

Tim,
I think we all agree with your points, but I think what Mr.Stein was trying to convey is that even with all the issues facing this nation and all of us personally, we should still pause for a moment and be thankful for the good things we do have.
Then we can go back to being pissed off that our government is corrupt to the core and our current President is a lying POS.

Timothy L. Pennell| 3.28.12 @ 10:38AM

I disagree. When the Enemy of the State is gone, there will be plenty of time for self reflection.

Remember. This isn't just about us. It's about our Children, and our Children's Children.

Instead of pausing to be thankful for the good things we have, we must stay Focused on the fact that we are THISCLOSE to losing everything, to this Marxist/Muslim Bastard and his Band of Far Left Anarchists.

If you ask me?

Ben Stein is a Waste of Space.

Oldefarte| 3.28.12 @ 1:14PM

Is it Ben Stein's fault that the economy is in the toilet? F*ck NO! Most of us agree with your intelligent rants, but to accuse [or incinuate that] him of being the possible cause of same is asinine. If your situation is economically/financial detrimental, like it is is for the rest of us, then the only simple solution lies with 11/4/12 and in doing so to remember that..... IT'S THE DEMOCRATS, STUPIDS [and not Ben Stein]! I too remember his reflection of $.25/gallon and I KNOW WHO/WHAT is/was the principle reason for it being $4-5/gallon now [again, ITS THE DEMOCRATS, STUPIDS]!!!

Occam's Tool| 3.28.12 @ 2:51PM

Oldefarte: a point for TLP: Stein advocates higher tax rates on individuals NOW. He also favors litigation (although he may be gored himself soon, and hopefully excrutiatingly painfully). Stein is not a reason for the season, but idiots like him help it along.

In short, there are times he does side with the Democrats, and they are loathsome.

Both you and TLP are excellent, by the way. This is a discussion of argument, not of you guys, whom I both like.

Timothy L. Pennell| 3.28.12 @ 4:05PM

I never blamed Ben Stein of anything, other than being BORING.

Gary B| 3.28.12 @ 7:31PM

Hey, Timothy. I really like your writings, but raging about Stein's little articles is silly. Spare yourself the agony... don't click on Ben Stein's articles.

Timothy L. Pennenn| 3.29.12 @ 7:02AM

I don't like him.

One if by land...| 3.28.12 @ 7:43PM

Bingo!

PolishKnight| 3.28.12 @ 10:55AM

One of the many things I dislike about smug, hypocritical, and underhandedly evil leftists is that they made crying and bellyaching and victimhood into an art form that us, as conservatives, will never match them on. I lived in both Hollywood and Northern Virginia and this is ground zero for the smug, over-privileged leftist who continually talks about how lousy it is to live in the states, compared to Europe, so we should make things more like Europe (in other words, vote Democrat!)

Of course, what they mean by that is more diversity (they're limosine liberals and Europe is waking up about that too), more alternative energy (but don't put up those ugly windmills in their neighborhoods!), and preserving the "middle class" (government unionized workers). I asked one why she didn't pick up and move to Germany and tried to bluster back "How dare you say 'love it or leave it!!!' This is my home!" Yeah, right. She didn't go because the leftist cronies there won't give her a cushy job. It's all fun and games until they get hurt!

Bottom line: When they get all upset and bellyache, it's a crocodile tear act to lure stupid kids into believing it. When we get all upset and bellyache, we're just a bunch of whiners and they laugh their heads off because dehumanizing and destroying their opponents is how their system works. One of the best ways to defeat them is for us to have good lives.

macwell| 3.28.12 @ 9:31PM

Well Mr. Pennell once again you hit the nail, so to speak.

I believe the answer to all of the crap that America is in now is due to career politicians who have turned OUR Congress into the den of lawyers and thieves it has become. The career politician is only interested in their next election, or the next big stock tip. These minions of deceit trade their votes like baseball cards, (I'll vote for obamacare if you'll vote for XL pipeline). They are the real enemy of the state because if Congress did the job they're paid to do, this obamanation wouldn't have ever surfaced, let alone passed. Imho, unless we the people dismantle Congress and elect new people, (who aren't lawyers) we may just wave goodby to our republic. It doesn't seem to matter which party they're from, once they get a taste of corrupt money making there is while in Congress, they don't seem to be able to help themselves.

Most of our congresscritters are lawyers, and while I wouldn't want to go to court with any other profession, I'm sick of all the doubletalk that comes out of their mouths. With lawyers we get 2700 page bills that no one can understand, and through legislative tricks, gets passed in the middle of the night. We can see that there is no honesty or integrity in Congress, just the desire to make as much as you can and your constituents be damned.

Congress was never intended by our founders to be a career.
Also, Congress was never intended to be run by all lawyers.

We the people must come out in droves in November. What IS at stake is America, that's all.

Kenny| 3.28.12 @ 7:54AM

Is Ben still out calling for tax increases?

Steve| 3.28.12 @ 8:08AM

"I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder" G.K. Chesterton

I think that both Ben Stein and Chesterton are onto to something - the way to remain sane and happy in these insane and unhappy times.

Jack in Wi.| 3.28.12 @ 1:00PM

To think that just a couple of weeks ago Ben was writing how things were now improving. Now he is back in the Great Depression. Ben it would be better thinking Germany 1923.

RCV| 3.28.12 @ 8:20PM

Getting nostalgic for the good old days, Jack?

chuck| 3.28.12 @ 8:46AM

Ben,

Thanks for the reminder to be thankful for the things we have, not bitter about the things you don't have, or lost along the way.

Life is too short, take time to really appreciate the simple things.

Petronius| 3.28.12 @ 9:23AM

Cheapest gas I ever saw: $.15.9 from a long gone outfit called Vickers on highway 65 south of Springfield, Mo. in August of 1966. Before the Dept. of Energy and the cursed EPA we had gas wars. Back then the government delivered the mail, defended the country against communism, and the average American was not under assault from every loser who went home to mommy when his shoe laces were untied.

Occam's Tool| 3.28.12 @ 2:52PM

Petronius---he be correct. The invisible FOOT of government is good only for killing people.

Stefan Stackhouse| 3.29.12 @ 4:42PM

Back in the late 50s and early 60s there used to be these things called "gas wars" where two competing gas stations on a busy intersection would fight for customers and hopefully drive the other one out of business. I think I saw one of these where it got down to something like eleven or twelve cents per gal.

Doc Neaves| 3.31.12 @ 6:09AM

I've paid nine cents at a Mobile, but it only lasted a few hours, and it was back to ten, then fourteen the next day. My mom didn't believe me, and went inside to ask. Oh, and cigarettes were twenty five cents a pack, but one place sold them for eighteen cents.

Intelligent Design| 3.28.12 @ 9:26AM

In January 2009 diesel was about $2.25 a gallon. I also remember buying diesel fuel for my 1968 Mercedes for 25 cents a gallon. Now it's about $4.16 where I live, and probably heading for $5.00.

Bill Husssein O'Stalin| 3.28.12 @ 9:29AM

Lost in the maze of thoughts is a simple truth: Central planning in D.C. has failed.

As someone else noted we would all be better off if D.C. changed into a pumpkin and rolled away.

Cabermon| 3.28.12 @ 11:59AM

Spot on, B.H.O'S!
I have stopped calling the president a "Marxist" or "Socialist" since, although true, these are politically loaded terms.
The term I now use is "statist" which doesn't have the baggage but is accurate. Statists are usually of the Left, but keeping the left-right names out of the conversation had been effective in discussions.

Frank Drackman| 3.28.12 @ 9:39AM

Late 70's I had a gig washing dishes at a tony Southern Country Club for the-ten minimum wage of $2.90/hr.
One day the club manager let me borrow her Mustang King Cobra to go buy her cigarettes.
17 year old, King Cobra, Stick Shift, you can guess what happened next.
Except the best engine you could get in a late 70's Mustang put out maybe 130 Horses..
Todays V-6 Stangs put out over 300.
But with some fancy footwork you could light up those skinny 70 series raised white letters...
Didn't work there long afterwards..

Fank

Dmac | 3.28.12 @ 9:53AM

I remeber as a child riding my Schwynn stingray bicycle carrying a one gallon gas can on the handle bars to the corner gas station to get gas for the lawn mower. There was a gas war going on and gas was .19 cents a gallon. Funny, that now even if gas was free it would still be .47 cents a gallon due to the state and federal taxes on it. Maybe thats not funny.

mbfog| 3.28.12 @ 7:11PM

It was a Schwinn, not a Schwynn... I had several, my favorite being the 5 speed Orange Krate (banana seat, suspension and a shifter on the frame). I walked to get the gas for the lawnmower cuz I had the good sense not to carry it on my handlebars (no plastic jugs back then if you remember as well). It's also sad to note that those ol' Schwinns were made in USA- some outfit bought the brand and they are now made in China. Ughhh...

Anyway, I also remember my folks saying they paid $32k for their nice 4 bdrm house w/a pool in the suburbs of Los Angeles county, where I used to mow the lawn as kid, that is now worth over a half million even after the Great Recession.

I just don't understand all the grumbling about gas prices- everything is up. And to make the leap that it is the democrats' fault is asinine. Every president since Nixon is quoted as saying we need improved energy policy and they're working on it.

Disclaimer- I am not a Democrat. Nor a Republican. G.W. fixed that after being a Repub for a couple of decades.

Doc Neaves| 3.31.12 @ 6:13AM

The inflation is caused by printing money, nothing else. Every president has done it, and the fault lies with the Fed. It should be abolished.

Bill| 3.28.12 @ 10:38AM

The rock 'n' roll was better in those days, too, when you could buy a 45 record (what's that?) for $0.49!

Occam's Tool| 3.28.12 @ 2:53PM

Correct on the gas and the R & R Bill---it's all brain dead techno crap these days.

LindaF | 3.28.12 @ 10:46AM

This came at a good time for me. I was wakeful last night, thinking about bills and jobs, and worrying about how to prepare for our retirement.

No matter when you live, if you're with the one you love, life is good.

chris123| 3.28.12 @ 12:00PM

Well said, Linda.

I am constantly worrying about bills, jobs and retirement. I have to remind myself to be thankful for the what I have in the present, and not spend so much time worrying about things that may happen in the future.

Delta Zelda| 3.28.12 @ 11:55AM

Thanks, Ben!

martin j smith| 3.28.12 @ 12:15PM

Obama with his friends in Socialist France and Great ( or not so great ) Britian will open the flood gates of our " strategic" oil reserves so that Iran can prevent any oil going thru the straights of Hormuz and thus depriving us of oil. What a brilliant plan to lessen oil prices --Brilliant except for one thing--It is so obviously political that even a........Cave Man .. can see thru it.

RCV| 3.28.12 @ 12:16PM

Thanks, Ben. Always a pleasure to read your reminders of how fortunate we are to be Americans and enjoy the bounty and blessings we have. Keep the faith!

And Counting . . .| 3.28.12 @ 2:20PM

Thanks, Rickyboy. Always a pleasure to read your reminders of how fortunate those Americans enjoying bounties and blessings who were bountifully blessed with having the pleasure to have been born are fortunately and pleasurably faithfully keeping to their enjoyments. Keep the justice!

- 55 million innocent and defenseless Americans

RCV| 3.28.12 @ 7:55PM

...wish I could say the same of your posts, which countinue to be unintelligible rants.

Old Soldier| 3.28.12 @ 12:33PM

One correction - the Great Depression did not end with WWII - we just sent the unemployed abroad. It ended when FDR died.

This Great Recession will end when Obama is no longer President.

Seek| 3.28.12 @ 12:43PM

Actually, it ended in 1948. The period 1945-47 was a bad one. A massive railroad strike in the spring of 1946 almost shut down the country; President Truman threatened to call out the military to break it. Things did turn around in 1948, enough at any rate to ensure Truman's election. And they got better after that.

Jack in Wi.| 3.28.12 @ 12:58PM

The reason things had turned around by 1948 was because the Republican congress passed the Taft Hartley Act that got the unions under some control. They also slashed government spending and taxes and brought home most of our troops from overseas. The same thing should happen now. There has been no reason for our overseas empire to be still in business since the Soviet Union collapsed 20 years ago.

Old Soldier| 3.28.12 @ 1:01PM

FDR had a gigantic post-war New Deal II planned - which would have kept the Depression going indefinitely. Upon his death Congress immediately cancelled the whole thing.

The Bruce| 3.28.12 @ 6:34PM

And set about drafting an important amendment to the Constitution -- term limits.

Occam's Tool| 3.28.12 @ 2:54PM

Caliphate, Jack. Thanks for playing.

Bill| 3.28.12 @ 1:16PM

The postwar housing boom as GIs came home, married, and started families, was the single biggest economic event that ended the Great Depression.

Peppermint Tea| 3.28.12 @ 3:04PM

The lifting of wartime price controls in 1946, and of course the post-war enthusiasm. Harry Truman was about to send the National Guard to farms to confiscate livestock when the farmers wouldn't sell for the government fixed price, when he reversed his decision and let the price float, it was a signal to all that the long night was over.
Read the Great Depression Checklist available on amazon.

mbfog| 3.28.12 @ 7:21PM

There have been multitudes of papers and books written on how we got out of the Depression with varying hypotheses. If PhD economists can't agree on what ended the depression, I'm skeptical a few posts here will give us the absolute answer.

The economy is obviously not one dimensional, and to attribute a singular, simplistic occurrence, or even small set of occurrences, with the resolution of the Depression is really nothing more than folly.

The Bruce| 3.28.12 @ 6:32PM

If I had to say one positive thing that came as a result of an FDR administration (4 of them), it would be this -- TERM LIMITS

Oldefarte| 3.28.12 @ 1:02PM

THIS is why I voted for Newt Gingrich recently and why it's a damned shame that he won't become the Republican nominee and the POTUS :

'....Cheaper American alternatives are already here by Newt Gingrich (more by this author)
Posted 03/28/2012 ET As President Obama is spending billions of taxpayer dollars to prop up his preferred sources of energy—solar, wind, and algae—American truckers are offering a lesson in transitioning to new sources of fuel in the real world.Without even being ordered to do so by President Obama, trucking companies are starting to convert parts of their long-haul fleets to natural gas, an American energy source of which we have more than a hundred years’ domestic supply. And Clean Energy Fuels, in cooperation with Chesapeake Energy, is investing tens of millions to build more than 150 liquefied natural gas (LNG) stations to service them.America’s truckers and energy producers are doing all of this without half-trillion-dollar loan guarantees from the federal government. They’re doing it without the skyrocketing taxpayer giveaways the president has offered his favorite “greenback energy” pet projects.They’re doing it for one simple reason: it makes sense for their bottom lines.In my newsletter several weeks ago, I wrote of the incredible increase in America’s estimated supply of natural gas in the last few years, and the resulting collapse in its price. In 2008, the average price was $7.97 per thousand cubic feet. The spot price last Friday was roughly $2.07. That’s about a 75 percent drop in price in just four years, attributable in large part to improvements in technology which have made more gas recoverable than ever before. As a result, natural gas today is almost 90 percent cheaper than oil on an energy equivalent basis. That adds up to between $1.50 and $2.00 per gallon cheaper than diesel.
With natural gas less expensive relative to oil than it has ever been, many public transportation and urban truck fleets have already converted to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). And with diesel prices nearing record highs, the rationale for long-haul trucking companies to convert part of their fleets to LNG is more compelling every day. Fuel is one of the highest costs for any transportation business today, and the rising cost of oil is taking a toll on trucking companies that are heavily dependent on diesel. Since natural gas is now a dramatically cheaper alternative, companies that convert part of their fleets are discovering they have a growing price advantage over competitors that refuse to make the leap. Jeff Dillon, the founder of Dillon Transport, which owns hundreds of trucks and is investing in LNG, told Bloomberg last month that “nobody can beat us on rates right now if we have the [natural] gas component in place.”Many trucking companies will have a hard time resisting competitive pressures to offer LNG-based long haul services when the difference in cost is so immense . Already, UPS is using LNG-fueled trucks on one of its long-haul routes. Heckmann Water Resources is deploying a fleet of 200 LNG trucks for its water tank trucks. And Walmart is testing LNG vehicles for hauling in California.Energy suppliers and truck manufacturers are racing to meet what they anticipate will be a fast-growing demand for LNG stations and equipment. Chesapeake Energy has invested more than $150 million in Clean Energy Fuels, which is partnering with Pilot to provide LNG refueling at Flying J truck stops across the country, helping to build out America’s natural gas highway. Clean Energy plans to have over 70 stations in 33 states by the end of this year, and at least 150 stations in 2013—eventually one every 200-300 miles along the country’s major roadways. Long-haul LNG trucks have a range of about 600-800 miles before needing to refuel, so this network will enable LNG trucks to complete cross-country trips.Despite the long-term incentives for trucking companies to invest in LNG vehicles, the economic downturn has been a drag on the transition. For the 97 percent of trucking companies that are small businesses with 20 or fewer trucks, the current premium for LNG vehicles over diesel can be hard to swallow, even though the economics make sense over the course of the truck’s lifetime. With badly-needed tax reform and 100 percent expensing for American businesses (which would allow companies to write-off new equipment in one year) we can help ease the burden of investing in all new equipment, including natural gas trucks. This simple change would allow businesses to recoup the extra cost of new natural gas trucks faster—with no federal subsidy. And by reducing demand for oil, a switch to natural gas for freight trucks would put downward pressure on gasoline prices.There’s only one real model for achieving American energy independence, and it’s not the president’s top-down, bureaucratic greenback energy approach. When we do reach that goal, it will be because of investments like those the trucking and natural gas industries are already making right under the president’s nose......'

Anthony| 3.28.12 @ 1:05PM

Yes be grateful Ben, afterall, your perpetually conned innocent hero, DSK, who can't seem to escape the clutches of scheming women, yet is still deemed fit to run the world bank, could have implicated you in his prostitution ring case.
Yes Ben, you could have been identified as client 9 3/4, sneakers and all. What would Mrs. Stein have said to that? Maybe she would have hired Gloria Allred for her divorce lawyer!!!
Bueller gets the DSK treatment from Allred. Some would call that cosmic justice.

Rebecca| 3.28.12 @ 1:32PM

Well Ferris,
Speaking of death camps and WWII..
If Obama gets another four years, and your health is not good..."Death Camps" may take on a new meaning for you and for us.
So......premature to stop worrying.

Gramma| 3.28.12 @ 1:48PM

You are so right, Ben Stein. We must count our blessings and not get so depressed ove the Obama years that we forget who we are and why we are here. God is still in control.

Herman Cueva | 3.28.12 @ 2:03PM

Boker Tov Ben. Very positive message and it can be apply also to latin america and Canada. Shalom

Fredx| 3.28.12 @ 2:05PM

The rocking chair beckons.

WhiteBikerTrash| 3.28.12 @ 2:32PM

Ben, did the "Great Depression" really end "with total mobilization to fight World War II"?What then of the GDP contractions between 1945 and 1949? Not part of the same depression?

BrooklynChick| 3.28.12 @ 2:34PM

"""I said this line was something like "the tired old anti-Semitic line." I said this because in my long experience, those who talk about the U.S. "occupying" Moslem lands soon go to criticism of the U.S. for helping Israel."""

--Ben Stein, The F*ing Idiot

Mike| 3.28.12 @ 2:47PM

Well said...

SpiralArchitect| 3.28.12 @ 4:28PM

I'm not being deported to a death camp...have my freedom, even if I don't have a lot of time left.

1) I'm not being deported to a death camp yet.

2) ...have my freedom, even if I don't have a lot of time left. see '1)' above

Carl Schlanger| 3.28.12 @ 5:36PM

I am not quite as old as you, Ben Stein, nor as famous, wealthy, or as smart, but I do have enough sense to realize that I have been very, very privileged to live the most recent seven decades or so in this marvelous and beautiful country. Thank you, God of our Judeo-Christian tradition, or whatever Obama's and Bill Maher's equivalent happens to be.

GMiller | 3.28.12 @ 6:22PM

The only gas station I can think of that expensive near you is the rip-off place at Pt. Dume.

beebop2| 3.28.12 @ 7:37PM

Ben Stein is beyond insufferable. Put a sock in him.

Harry| 3.29.12 @ 12:09AM

Insipid!

IzeHavitt| 3.29.12 @ 12:12AM

The Scriptures tell us that it is always wisdom to be thankful....the unbelievers are not so. What does that tell you, O America?

Russell| 3.29.12 @ 1:37AM

"i cannot control the recession. But I can be grateful to Providence for letting me have the best life anyone can have -- a life of gratitude for being alive and fairly well in America in 2012. That would be truly smart. Really, really smart."

It's enough to make Voltaire weep.

Korean_Vet| 3.29.12 @ 3:56AM

Yes, I've seen- getting Car Gas for 29 cents/gal in 1950, I also got to see the 'real' 5 lb. "Smokey" as
a Cub with his paws all-bandaged from the fire
in Lincoln Nat'l Forest-! I was "Square-Dancing"
every 2 weeks & having a "Ball" without whiskey
or Beer--It was "Fun"-! "Les Paul & Mary Ford"
were performing with "Steel-Guitar" Sounds that
got them in the "Top 10" of Popular "Junk-Boxes"
everywhere-! But the "Korean Conflict" was in
Full-Fight--& I knew that "Good Times" were
ending in another War-! So I enlisted July 1951
with another Young Man & 5 1/2 yrs later--I came
back--but he "Didn't--He'd been Killed"-! But I
knew--"That It Could have been Me--& almost
was"-! Through the early years of my life--I've
always used the Principle that--to find Jobs was
like "Opportunity Knocks--but Once"-! If you
really want a Job--"Don't think--that they 'need
More Chiefs'--but that 'Chiefs' always need more
Indians"-! "Presto--You'll 'find' a Job--that
'Nobody Else' Wants"-! "Common-Sense"--will
always "Win" that Day-& You'll get Paid in Bucks-!

POST American| 3.29.12 @ 4:15AM

"Understand, there's oil ALLLL over
the place. Ontario alone has over 200
wells discovered, capped and hidden
since the 1920s. ---The whole oil
'issue' is a CON and has been since
the days of son of a snake oil salesman
John D Rockefeller took over the business."
-Informed online

SO --enjoy your capstone 'authorized'
engineered and directed 'ROCK-efeller
and Roll' ---'POP' ---cull---T--your.

UNLIKE 'NEW'--remberg, in this set up
everything OLD isn't even OLD
----------it's just ---------STALE!
-----then --now ---and -----ALWAYS.

Chef Schnauzer| 3.29.12 @ 9:45AM

Hey, Ben - you and Rush are right. Gratitude and humility are essential to forging ahead and trying to do well by doing good. Why seek and assume unnecessary personal burdens. Bless you.

Owen K| 3.29.12 @ 1:37PM

I wonder how many times Ben has been noted for that line "Bueller?" Probably more than he can count. But I agree that Ben is a very smart and savvy guy. Take heart, Ben. You have a lot of fans. One, as such, is me.

richard szathmary| 3.29.12 @ 2:34PM

As always where Ben Stein is concerned, beautifully put.

Jim Swavely| 3.29.12 @ 2:42PM

Yes, Ben, we do have a lot to be grateful for. But it would still be nice if our freedoms weren't being purposefully eroded by the group of America haters that have somehow gained control of our government by lies and deception. To get rid of them would be TRULY gratifying.

Joe R| 3.31.12 @ 12:47AM

Come on Ben, you know you have plenty of time left. A good 10-20 years, mostly likely.

Hopefully the latter of that, you're good people to have around.

Doug| 4.2.12 @ 2:15AM

You got it, baby. Gratitude is the key to happiness, but you have to be grateful (almost) all the time.
You ( we ) have much to be thankful for.
Thanks for the example, clear thinking and fun. Best to the wifey, Doug

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http://spectator.org/archives/2012/03/28/another-evening-in-paradise

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