Congress is looking into regulating oil speculation which is the cause for the sudden increase in price per barrel. I’ve read that experts believe oil shouldn’t be more than $60 U.S. even though it’s close to $140 right now. This is because demand in the U.S. is actually down probably because of the poor economy and high price of gas.

It’s good that gas surged this year because it lets people know how vulnerable they are to this sort of thing should relations with a large oil exporter such as Russia or Saudi Arabia go sour.

Oil companies should hate these surges because it gets people thinking more about alternatives. While they may rake in the profits now, they may see a sharp decline if alternative power sources get cheaper, more efficient, and feasible.