Why $8 Gas Would Be Awesome

Gas, as you may have heard, has topped $4 a gallon, and Joel Stein of the LA Times loves it. "Cheap gas is unfair," he argues, tongue mostly in cheek. Heck, why not make it $8 or even $10 a gallon, as in Europe, "where they have fewer road deaths even though they drive like complete idiots"?

The arguments for expensive fuel include numerous statistics, leading Stein to conclude that "apparently, higher gas prices also keep econ professors employed." He makes himself out to be a wealthy telecommuter but does have a semi-serious point: “Sure, $8 gas is unfair to poor people,” he writes, “but so is all of capitalism.” (More gas stories.)