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Thread ID: 68823	2006-05-12 01:50:00	Cheap Petrol?	nzdrifter (10264)	PC World Chat

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
454262	2006-05-15 01:29:00	Just a quick note from me . . . A friend's mom, living in Mexicali (just South of the US/Mexico border, reports that they have not had any gasoline in the stations there for a number of weeks now . . . at any price! Seems that the Mexican Federal Petroleum Company (PEMEX) has been selling their product to China . Since all the oil in Mexico is state-owned, they can do that . Unfortunately, the oil from Mexico is not sweet . . . it is very full of sulfur and needs better refinement to meet US standards . Thoughts have it that the US, which is bankrupt (really), is just raising the prices of petroleum to shore up the economy in the form of taxes on the fuel and transportation and storage of it . Gas stations here have to pay an in-ground tax on fuel in their tanks; taxes on transporting the fuel to their stations, and then there's the good ol' "temporary" taxes that were levied a dozen years ago that were supposed to run for only a year or two to finance highways and the California Highway Improvements Act . Fuel taxes here in California are about 40% of the price of the fuel . . . and this is just the STATE TAXES . . . then there's the Federal Taxes . . . . . but that's another story . There is no Portland Cement available . . . at least not for a decent price, and the same's for the cost of aluminum, steel and wood for construction . Re-bar is in short supply and fasteners (screws, nails, staples and adhesives) are also in short supply . Pipe, pipe fittings, electrical wire and copper are hard to find at decent prices . Wallboard has gone up 6X for price! Plywood has "shrunk" to lower metric thicknesses, while still being called "5/8ths inch, 1/2 inch, and 3/4 inch", but they are seriously thinner than that . Maple and Hicory, walnut and ash are all but impossible to find in decent quality, although verneers are plentiful . Seems China is in a building frenzy . . . and, OK . . . . . . . it wasnt'a short note after all! Sorry! :rolleyes:	SurferJoe46 (51)
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