There was a report yesterday [article link] that oil prices had risen to $82.00 a barrel. In the report, they state that the world economy is improving. Thus, the reason for the continued rise of oil prices and gas at the pump. What also was surprising was investors celebrating "only 36,000 jobs were lost" in February. I can't help but wonder if those 36,000 Americans who lost their jobs felt like celebrating. Anyway, the jobless rate remained at 9.7%, some 15 million unemployed Americans. This doesn't take into account the people working part-time or those that have given up searching for employment.

I noticed just yesterday that gas had risen 7 cents over the past week in my area. With school letting out in about two months, gas prices will continue to rise. But, just how much? I don't anticipate we'll see $4.50/gallon gas this year. I sincerely hope not. I don't think this "recovering economy" could withstand that kind of shock. I don't agree with President Obama on much. But, his desire to find alternative energy sources is an area we need to continue to explore. I just don't agree we need to increase taxes on energy consumption by 200% or more.