Goombah, what is scary for the our working poor hard-working, tax-strapped middle class is that these gas price increases spill over into other consumer goods. Look at heating bills, electric bills, increases in the cost of food, school taxes will increase because it will cost the schools more for heat, etc. DC mentioned the price of corn in an earlier post. I have a friend who raises cattle, and the cost of feed has doubled in the past two years. He'll have to raise the price of his beef accordingly. Rents that include heat will increase when leases are up, and the rising cost of housing is going to hurt the working class as well.

When you think about how much our country relies on trucking as its major form of shipping goods in this country, you'll see the cost of everything skyrocket, and that's going to force other industries, like stores, restaurants and movie theaters into a downward spiral, as people will already need to conserve their money for necessities like commuting and food.

These gas price increases are going to have a far-reaching effect on our way of life, and we already haven't even have begun to feel it.