We all know gas prices are continually rising due to many factors, such as supply and demand, middle east politics, etc.  Many of us have no choice but to fill up our tanks, while absorbing these higher prices because we rely on our cars as a means of transportation.

What Can I say?  Hummer’s really suck ass.

I was recently forwarded an email from a friend containing tips on how we can stretch our gas consumption, especially without buying a new car or electric hyrid.  Perhaps you save a couple of dollars by following these simple tips:

Check out the following email.

“…I don’t know what you guys are paying for gasoline… but here in California we are also paying higher, up to $3.50 per gallon. But my line of work is in petroleum for about 31 years now, so here are some tricks to get more of your money’s worth for every gallon. . .

Here at the ******** Pipeline where I work in San Jose , CA we deliver about 4 million gallons in a 24-hour period thru the pipeline.! ! ! One day is diesel the next day is jet fuel, and gasoline, regular and premium grades. We have 34-storage tanks here with a total capacity of 16,800,000 gallons.

Here are the instructions: 

Only buy or fill up your car or truck in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold.  Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground the more dense the gasoline, when it gets warmer gasoline expands, so buying in the afternoon or in the evening…  your gallon is not exactly a gallon.  In the petroleum business, the specific gravity and the temperature of the gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products plays an important role. A 1-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for this business.  But the service stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps.

When you’re filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode. If you look you will see that the trigger has three (3) stages: low, middle, and high.  In slow mode you should be pumping on low speed, thereby minimizing the vapors that are created while you are pumping.  All hoses at the pump have a vapor return. If you are pumping on the fast rate, some of the liquid that goes to your tank becomes vapor.  Those vapors are being sucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you’ re getting less worth for your money. 
  
One of the most important tips is to fill up when your gas tank is HALF FULL/HALF EMPTY. The reason for this is, the more gas you have in your tank the less air occupying its empty space. Gasoline evaporates faster than you can imagine.  Gasoline storage tanks have an internal floating  roof. This roof serves as zero clearance between the gas and the atmosphere, so it minimizes the evaporation. Unlike service stations, here where I work, every truck that we load is temperature compensated so that every gallon is actually the exact amount.
 
Another reminder, if there is a gasoline truck pumping into the storage tanks when you stop to buy gas, DO NOT fill up–most likely the gasoline is being stirred up as the gas is being delivered, and you might pick up some of the dirt and WATER that normally settles on the bottom.
NEVER …..this is a fact. 

Hope this will help you get the most value for your money.

DO SHARE THESE TIPS WITH OTHERS”

Sex and Politics is a nasty combination as evidenced by the New York Governorship.  Like a Soap Opera getting weirder by the hour, newly sworn Governor, David A Paterson, openly acknowledged his own extramarital affairs during a 15 year marriage.  This stunning admission comes a little more than a week after his predecessor, former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, resigned amid allegations he spent thousands of dollars on a prostitute.  

To be honest, I Feel Relatively Neutral About New York
And yes, I already bought this T-Shirt

Paterson admitted to the Daily News of New York City that his fling with another women occurred between 1999 and 2001.  Apparently, Paterson’s wife also had an affair during this stormy part of their relationship.  A wacky situation indeed!

As a legislative member, Paterson claims those extramarital romps came out of his wallet and not at the tax payers expense.  If caught using State funds, his tenure as Governor will be less than a New York minute or worse. 

Given the weirdness of the past week, I really hope Gov. Paterson is telling the truth because I don’t want to know what other skeletons may be hiding in his closet.

Arab terrorists, international assassins, and corrupt politicians, welcome to the world of Vince Flynn, a New York Times Best-Selling Author.  His political thriller novels delve deep into the world of Black Ops professionals and the non-stop political wrangling against the war on terrorism.  As a government insider, Flynn’s sources allow him create a world that seem almost too real.

I’ve spent the past month finishing off his first 5 novels.  Wow!  What a roller coaster ride.  His latest novel, “Protect and Defend, is scheduled for release on October 30, 2007.  I’ll be first in line to pick up a copy.

The main character in Flynn’s novels is Mitch Rapp, a highly skilled CIA assassin, who will stop at nothing to eliminate any terrorist or group willing to cause harm.  Rapp is seen as a no-nonsense guy who doesn’t take orders too well, especially from politicians with shady agendas.  He’s seen as an individual who is not afraid to speak his mind, no matter the consequences.

In Flynn’s fictitious Washington, politicians are seen as corrupt, self-serving individuals who stop at nothing to maintain or increase their powerbase.  Democrats are looked upon as ”Nut Hugging” Liberals with a “peace at any price” attitude, which is apparently, not far from the real thing.

In light of the real war on Terrorism, the violent measures embraced by Rapp is used without conscience.  Moreover, Flynn’s writing allow various scenarios seem possible and all too real.  Laws must be broken, enemies must be tortured and people must be killed in order to prevent a wide-scale catastrophe from taking place.  This “win at no cost” attitude is  prevalent in Rapp’s actions in order to defeat terrorism, and, ultimately, save innocent lives in the process.

If you love reading political thrillers, I would definitely recommend Vince Flynn and his Mitch Rapp series.  His attention to detail, knowledge of high technology, and military hardware will keep you reading throughout the night.  You will not be disappointed (unless you’re a bleeding heart Liberal who believes in everlasting world peace).

To learn more about Vince Flynn and his Mitch Rapp series, feel free to visit TheThirdOption.net.

Is this bold marketing or sheer stupidity?

I’ve seen some pretty ugly race cars in the past.  But the 2007 Honda F1 Race car takes the checkered flag as the most unappealing livery ever produced.  The team recently revealed a green and blue “map of the world” to underline Honda’s desire to be viewed as an environmentally friendly car company.

“We hope that in raising awareness and highlighting the issues we will encourage members of the public to come together and help take on the challenge of climate change,” said the team’s chief executive Nick Fry.

From Cancer Stick Promoter…

…to Saviour of the World!

This marketing ploy is equivalent to a Tobacco Company building a Cancer research facility.  What I really find funny is this very same team was sponsored by a tobacco company from 1999 to 2006.  Pretty ironic isn’t it?

Automobile manufacturers and their financial stakeholders are not guys, whose morality lies with environmental concerns.  By boxing up the word “Environment”, this sleazy marketing campaign is simply about dollars and making money.  

It seems that every car manufacturer wants to jump on the environmental bandwagon these days.  From Hybrid cars to Penis Envy gas guzzlers, the automobile is still nowhere close to maximizing the energy they are producing.  Did you know that only 13% of the energy produced by an internal combustion engine is used for propulsion?  Even though fuel efficiency for passenger cars has improved 39% in the past ten years, fuel consumption increased by 19% and rising.

Vehicles contribute to an estimated 60-70 percent of urban air pollution.  And yes, the Honda motor company still produces cars that burn gasoline and pollute the air (hybrid or not).  Carbon dioxide produced by these (Honda) cars are still the leading cause of the greenhouse effect and global warming.

I look forward to the next propaganda campaign set forth by these car companies.  Will they help save the whales from extinction? 

Perhaps one day they will actually build a REAL electric car?  Oh I forgot!  They’ve already pulled that scam.