The Price of Gasoline

We live in an oil-rich, debt-free province. What is going on with the cost, to consumers, of gasoline? Our premier has, on many occasions this past year, gone on national television and bragged about how we are a debt-free province. This is, in great part, due to gas and oil revenues and to the Heritage Trust Fund. Over the past two or three months we have seen a steady increase in the price of gasoline. From about $.80 a litre to $1.13 per litre. A price hike of over 40%. (For you Americans, that is approximately $5.60 a gallon USD).
Where is the justification? We have gas and oil fields and production facilities right in our backyards. They are blaming this last $.13 on the catastrophic damage to the Gulf of Mexico's Oil Industry. What about all the reserves??????? What has happened to them? Why is it when there is an indication that the price of oil is rising, the increase comes into effect almost immediately? Yet, when the price of a barrel of oil goes down, it takes weeks or months to see any decrease to the consumer. We all know from experience, that the price will never go down as much as the decrease, as it did when the prices went up.

What is this drastic increase in oil price going to do to our economy? This is scary. Costs for food will increase. It now costs more for transportation. Costs for all other goods and services will go up for the same reason. Never mind that winter will soon be upon us. What will we be paying for natural gas and electricity this winter??????????????????????????? Who knows? How are the people supposed to pay for all these increases in their living expenses? Will there be a 10 or 20% increase in wages? That will never happen.

Alberta, a debt-free and oil-rich province!!!! At what cost???????