$3.35 A Gallon

Look at that- Bush and Cheney syphoning gas out of some poor, unfortunate citizen's car. Sure, they can afford these exorbitant prices, but, as they would tell you, stolen sweets taste sweeter.
As for the oil companies and their record profits, well, you take what the public gives you, and the American public would give you their second-born child just to keep driving. The words "price gouging" just don't seem to register with the drones anymore, and the idea of alternate-powered cars still seems as distant as Pluto. It's a long-standing love affair that we have with driving until we drop. But, the one thing that won't be dropping, at least until the next election, is gas prices.

Occasionally, someone does reach a boiling point, and does their part to inspire rebellion, but it's short-lived at best, and the thought-police are quick and severe in dealing with such uprisings.
Sure, we could all cut up our Exxon credit cards and deal only with, say, Arco, but the lines at the pump would be long, and that would be making some serious incursions into our quality time, and who's willing to make THAT kind of sacrifice? Thus, the big smiles on oil executives' faces. The rationale for high gas prices is in place, and they've got us right where they want us, and there doesn't seem to be much anyone can do about it, except for moving to San Francisco, growing dreadlocks, and driving a granola-powered Volkswagen. Watch out for Muffy and Buffy in that big SUV, though. They'll run you off the road so fast, you'll think it was 1906 again. And, you've got to watch for those graduates of the Paris Hilton School Of Driving. They're out in force on the weekends, and their tanks are full. Just ask any cabbie.