It only seems honorable to me that the oil company that made this contract sell her the oil at the present price. They won't be losing any money. It's a heinous crime to prey on the fear that drove most people into this same situation. Come on oil giants; PLAY FAIR! To freeze poor people into these bogus contracts is sinful price gouging at its worst. It's completely unethical. SHAMEFUL PROFITEERING will not pay off in the end. You reap what you sow. You will harvest a crop of $$$ that comes in on the backs of harmless, innocents whom you have enslaved at unfair market practices. GOD says, "LET MY PEOPLE GO!" To harness them to contracts that net nearly 100% clear profit above that to which you are entitled is completely WRONG. Rev. Dawn Coffin Columbia Falls.

OK, then the futures investors should release some of the extra money they are hauling in. So, if it isn't the local companies, it is someone and I am calling on them to not enforce these unfair contracts! I had not read the entire article until I had finished my reactive comment. But please somebody, this isn't fair!!!!!

Well now, with all the talk of 'global warming' why would anyone have thought it would be cold this winter? Thank the media for the usual panic reporting they were doing back in the spring and summer. Much of the blame for high prices lays right at their feet. Just as they made headlines about pellets being scarce caused 'shortages' in pellets and pellet stoves, it also caused people to buy oil way earlier then oil was needed. Those who bought then were buying oil the oil dealers had to purchase at the price it cost then. We all had the option of agreeing to a price. anyone who locked in a price was doing it hoping the price was going to go up and the dealer would have to take the hit on the other end. When they guess wrong the first thing they think of is to get out of the contract because the dealer might actually make money. Now, had it gone the other way and heating oil was now $10.00/gallon, how many would be saying 'poor dealer' and offering to sign off on the contract? Few, if any, I'd say.

But don't worry. soon we'll seat the Messiah and everything will be free in America...

I blame the press for this. The BDN and other failing media were selling papers by scaring people last summer about winter oil proces. It was clear to any educated observer that oil prices went up because of a speculative bubble. It is also well knows to any freshman economics 101 student that speculative bubbles always burst. Rather than scaring people about $5, $6 or $10 per gallon fuel prices, the BDN should have educated its readers about the nature of markets and about how speculation in oill markets by pension funds like the Maine State Retirement System was behind the price spike.

Absolutely outrageous! I understand contracts, but come on, these aren't just signitures on paper, they are real people! I think it is a crime that local oil dealers can't adjust their contracts. I know that locally a couple of years ago, you could lock in and you were guaranteed the lower price if oil dropped. They could do it, they just don't want to.

Oil companies should be limited to contracts whereby an amount of oil earmarked for a customer will be at the price per gal. on the day of delivery.

If I ask an oil company to earmark 5,000 gallons of oil for winter, on the first delivery, if the oil is $4.00 per gallon, that is what I will pay. On the

other hand, if the oil goes down to $2,00 per gallon for the second delivery, that is what I will pay. Oil companies will still make a profit and I will

pay a fair price.

What a bunch of spread the wealth wackos! If the shoe was on the other foot none of you would be saying a thing!-The only statement here that makes any sense is from rklindell.

I love these people like Inland who make snide remarks about global warming every time the temperature drops. Ever hear of Noah's Ark? Re myrtatelson, that is exactly the way my fuel contract was laid out and that is fair. Those one-sided contracts need to be re-negotiated.

I don't know what your physical condition is but I wouldn't be sitting around all day at age 65 bemoaning my situation. Get out and get a job. There must be places that are hiring at this time for the holidays. Don't think you can't do that. I wanted to have more money at the end of the month so I searched for a full time job and even though I am 70 years old I am now working every day and bringing home a paycheck every two weeks to supplement my social security. It didn't happen overnight but I was persistent and got a great job.

Noah's Ark didn't exist. It was someone eating too many mushrooms.

I am tired of seeing the same old advice touted by the media, the oil dealers, and the governor himself - they advise we have an energy audit and tighten up our homes. During times when many of us are having difficulty putting three square meals on the table, where are we supposed to find the money and the workers to purchase the materials and install them. I know that there are programs that provide these services to people with very low incomes, and that's great, but there are many, many people in the "working poor" category that don't qualify for help and simply can't afford severl hundred dollars to follow the official recommendations to get an audit and tighen up. For every story of hardship we read in the paper, there are hundreds of more stories of people living on the edge that don't get published and are falling through the cracks.

My mother, a widow, also locked in at a high price. In following the suggestion of Susan Collins, she purchased and installed a gas fireplace. However, she cannot get gas from Dead River because she locked in her oil from another oil company. She was told by Dead River to get her money back from the other company, and they would "Sell her the LP tank, (that way they do not have to service it if anything goes wrong), fill out a credit application, and lock in at their oil price and LP gas price. The oil company she locked in with will not refund her money so she has a fancy gas fireplace that she cannot afford the tank or gas for. They want nearly $1300,00 just to get her started. We contacted Susan Collins office three weeks ago today and were promised a response in 24 hours. Still waiting.....so Mith Collinths, don't look for the 24 votes coming from this family that supported you on Tuesday. You have lied for the last time to us.

If I were them I would call around and fill up with another oil company..

The BDN should be publishing the names of the oil dealers who are doing this to their customers.

Oil prices don't lock people in, people lock people in. Choices have consequences, no matter how difficult and seemingly unfair sometimes, and individuals are responsible for the choices they make--whether they are well thought out or reactionary.

I locked in at $4.69 per gallon on a budget planwith a price cap on it too. That made my payments $450 a month. Upset?? Bet your boots. My oil company will renegotiate in January if the price goes lower according to my contract. But last year I locked in at $2.65 per gallon and paid it all up front. The oil company bought their 75% of it and I watched the price go over $3 here. Mobil did not renegotiate? It worked out for me the last 3 winters. So now it's going in the opposite direction. It's a gamble. Most folks I know here are going with the budget and hoping prices go down.

I do feel bad for folks with no pot to piss in though. They suffer for food, taxes, heat, all of it. But I don't like the socialist idea of giving my money to everyone who thinks they deserve it. Too many loopholes and abuses.

Don't be fooled by these local dealers for a second. They are making money hand over fist because of the recent plunge in oil prices and aren't passing the savings to the consumers. The price of a barrel of oil has dropped over 50 % since July yet the price of heating oil and gasoline have not dropped close to that.

Nobody ever has to lock in any price or amount at any time. Nobidy ever has to sign a contract with any oil dealer unless they want to. Every single person is free to pay cash price on the day of delivery, from whichever dealer is cheapest.

No one would be complaining if the price of oil was now 10 dollars a gallon now would they. I am doubting that Freindly woud be suggesting that anyone give the difference back to the oil company. Freindly, how can you say that the oil company won't be losing any money when the article states that the Oil company was mandated by law to purchase 75% of the gallons sold as pre-buy right away? That's how the program works, like it or not, some years you win, some years you lose.

Also, this woman is only 65, why can't she get a part time job instead od sitting home complaining about how cold it is?

It's very unfortunate but we all make decisons that we regret and it's not up to the individual oil companies to give back because the price is lower. When the prices were higher and we bought lower we didn't think about paying the extra money. Can't fault the business.

It is just a terrible situation. If the oil company bought the oil at the locked in price, it isn't fair for them to have to eat the price difference. A question that comes to my mind, did the local oil distributor have enough capacity to actually take delivery of the oil? I doubt it. I would think it would be fair to have the oil company talk to their supplier to negotiate on behalf of the home owner. The only one winning people in this are the speculators, and the oil companies - not the local distributors. I think we should take a look at price controls of some sort for basic necessities. It's not very American, but neither has the behavior of Wall Street, banks, and the Investment firms been very American lately. But then, maybe they are, but greed isn't an appealing American quality. A good example, the price of crude has fallen right at 50%, but is gas $2 a gallon? Of course not, once prices are elevated and consumers pay, the prices are never reduced to their original level. It's taken about a month to reduce gasoline prices to even close to the price of falling crude. Seems to reason that same month could be used to allow the falling prices and inventoryof fuel oil to adjust the lock in price accordingly.

This is a NON-STORY. I bought a new pick-up last year, and this year it would be $8,000 less because of the down economy. Where's my refund? Come on, people. You locked in at a certain rate, you agreed to the monthly payment (and presumably could afford it) and now that the price has gone down, quick crying. If it had gone up, would you have helped the oil company make up the difference? Hardly not.

Reading some of these comments is really, really scary. The complete lack of accountability of some of your people is what's ruining this country. Don't always look to blame someone...unless you're looking in the mirror.

Why would you want to lock in on a price when it is at an all time high! ? With prices that high was time to find another lower cost heating source. we need to rid of our dependence on foreign oil!

No sympathy for anyone who is complaining about locking in, you made the decision. If the tables has turned and you were now locked in at a lower price you'd be happy you made the decision. People need to make rational decisions, and can't blame their inexperience or quick emotions on a corporation.

Like other people have stated, its a gamble, when I went to lock in my propane it was clearly explained to me the risks that I was taking IF the price went up. We also decided that this year was a good time to put in a wood stove, which we did and the furnace has yet to kick in for the past 3 days...wood heat...mmmm

Oh Pahleeez....if oil was at $6.00 a gallon and she locked in at a lower price, we wouldn't be feeling bad for the people who didn't lock in. It's friggin business, not a social program. It's capitalism, not socialism (which everyone seems to think is a bad idea) which would ensure that basic needs are met. This article is indicative of the election: people letting their emotions dictate their actions. If the BDN highlighted a cracked out young man on a fixed income instead of this sweet old lady, people wouldn't give a crap if he froze or if the oil companies made money from him....c'mon, use your head, not your heart.

good call changeneeded. This blame everyone else syndrome is exactly why Obama is so popular. Masses of people giddy at the thought of getting something for nothing. No work or effort on your part and the government just gives you what you need, it came out of thin air! NOT. The more we let the government do for us the greater ability they have to take it all away. We are not a country of Sheep. People that do not have anything (work) vested in something have no reason to see it succeed.

In yeara past I locked in oil, BUT if the price fell below the contract price my company would give it to us at the cheaper proce. This seems aweful that they are making people pay almost double the price it is now!

I agree that it is unfortunate that these people locked in at the highest amount to get fuel for the winter, thats the consequences, but for the elderly living off of SSI, and can't work, something should be re-negoitated. It doesnt mean you have to offer them the going rate, but I'm sure some of these contract signers would love to have pay 3 dollars after 4.94, or whatever it is they locked in on. She may be 65, but maybe she can't work. Did you ever think of that? Have some respect for our elderly. They worked their tails off in their younger days much harder than anyone in this time has. I'm 24, and I appreciate the way the old days were. They worked for what they got, and now they cant thrown in the back, as if they don't exist. This poor woman is freezing her ass off. It's people like her I would LOVE to help if I could afford it. Have a little bit of compassion.

She is living off social security at 65. Where's the 401k, the IRA, the perpetuity, the savings? Maybe she's been making irresponsible decisions for a long time, but now because she is old were somehow suppose to feel bad. Personally I don't, you have to work hard as downfleeced stated.

I also love all of the comments about how only the "speculators" are getting rich. This woman purchased her oil in the summer at $4.69 a gallon, betting that in the winter the price would be higher. Um...what does that make her...that's right a SPECULATOR. DUH.

RE MAine62.... not everyone her age was afforded 401ks Ira.... they have only gotten popular the last decade +.... We need to take care of the elderly it is the young babymakers that we need to boot out of the system and make them step up and earn $$ This lady worked for years suppoirting herself. Who are you to judge a person that age that worked all their life... She is from a generation the the wife's place was in the home raising children ~ Not out making a career!!! THESE ARE THE PEOPLE WE SHOULD BE TAKING CARE OF!! NOT THE IRRESPONSIBLE 'KIDS' OUT THERE!

Because of my date of birth, I can not get Social Security until 661/2 and full retirement at age 70, if there are enough people still working to provide me a monthly check. Prior to the late 1940's there was no Social Security and very few pensions; people saved for the future and most people did not "retire". I get tired of hearing the "woe is me" stories. If someone can't meet their needs, get a job, any job or search for a higher paying position, and/or perhaps develop a self-employment side business. It's too bad if people "locked" in an oil price and that it is now lower; it's too bad people are loosing homes to foreclosure because they borrowed 110% of the value at varible rate mortgages. We all make our own choices in life; stop whinning and learn from your mistakes and don't repeat them. I believe many people like chaos in their lives, and wouldn't be happy if things were fine.

I agree with MrNixxon ....Too long have we given the socialist millionaires all the money they want. Then when they screwup..we bail them out. Who bails out the poor?

I get so tired of the mean spirited comments that some people post. Our Lord Jesus Christ said we should love one another. Rev. G

Although I'm an Obama supporter, I have to side with the oil dealers in this case. We are all given the choice to lock in at a given price per gallon, and we choose to either pre-buy or not pre-buy depending on our aversion to the risk of future price fluctuation. The fact is that the pre-buy price should reflect any known market conditions and be similar to the average spot price during the length of the contract (winter). That all assumes that the "experts" are correctly anticipating what will happen in the oil market, about which they appear to be clueless. The fact is that when you pre-buy you are paying to eliminate risk, not to get a bargain on your oil. I've never pre-bought and sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't. I really don't understand how you're suddenly unable to pay your heating bill because you pre-bought. The cost is exactly what you budgeted, so how does that affect your ability to pay? I think the bottom line is you don't want to pay because you feel cheated, but that's just not the case.

Both sides here have valid arguments but what it always boils down to is Social Darwinism. The strong and the smart will always prevail over the weak and stupid. All this talk of 401k's, retirement accounts...etc. What do you think those things are ? savings accounts? You give your money to speculators at a return rate and hope they don't go bust and screw you like Enron. The only way to beat them is to stuff the mattress with cash and live below your means. Buy land... and I don't mean some suburban ranch home on a quarter acre with a bank loan. Land that you can live off if times get tough... grow a garden and cut your own firewood. Just like grandma and grandpa did in the great depression. Oh wait... you sold off grandmas and grandpas land to the real estate speculators so you could go to colage and work for Enron have a nice suit and tie job and keep up with the Jonses. Nothing wrong with bettering yourself but you gotta lay by some protection in case things go south. Ah well... I think I will toss another log in the woodstove and kick back now.....it's all too much to clutter up my brain with.

I feel compelled to address pandaslady's post. I am very sorry that your mother is caught in the situation she is with the oil company and the gas company. It appears Senator Collins was trying to help with her suggestion. It is then up to your mother to thoroughly research the situation and make her decisions accordingly. The blame, as some have stated, needs to be owned by the person who bought into the deal,regardless of how the circumstances change. But my real indignation is with your very childish and personal attack on Senator Collins' speech. That kind of statement is what I spent nearly 40 years as a teacher trying to teach children not to do, make fun of others. It shows a lack of maturity! If you did not receive a call back from Senator Collins' office, you need to remember that the phone works both ways. Call again and see if there is anything they can do. However, if you talk to them as you did in your post, I would not expect them to be helpful. I am sure their office is very busy as the election gets closer. A missed call is hardly something to react as irately about as you have done. I would have to agree with Rev. G that the posts here reflect a serious lack of love and compassion, as well as to accept the blame for our own mistakes. You have a right to your anger, but it is misplaced.

What in the hell happened to people's compassion? This woman is 65 and the money she is getting from SSI she or her husband paid in. This society and the way this state gives money out is absurd. They give less and less to the elderly who have worked all of their lives and will give huge sums of money, food stamps, tanf...etc. to all of these younger people who decide to pop out one kid after another so that all of us can pay their ways. That is ridiculous. I feel sorry for this woman who has to shut off her upstairs and bundle up just to stay warm in her own home.....while all the oil company owners get to go home and be comfortable.

Well, that would be the Maine way. Everyone out for themselves. If the woman could afford wood, or any alternative source of heat, I think she would have implemented it. So, part of the winter she will just freeze. A contract is a contract. Very nice. Someone's grandmother, retired, perhaps (I don't know for sure) somewhat frail, possibly ill... will be seriously cold because she opted to try and pay early for oil. Contract or no, it is just despicable that an elderly woman will be very cold this winter because of this. Shame shame, Maine. Shame shame.

This is a pty, but she made a bet and lost. Had oil been $10 per gallon this year she would be ahead. The oil company took significant risk in offering this contract and won.

This is the same as the sub-prime mortgages that stupid people took out. This kind of betting on financial instruments you don't understand gets you into this kind of trouble. I wonder if the moron Republicans who call Obama a socialisim would mind if the government helpd this woman out? I wonder if they would be smart enough to realzie that that too amounts to SOCIALISM? I doubt it. That's why we have Bush as President. Stupid people who vote.

Jeez, every time there is an article such as this in the BDN, it becomes a personal attack of the people in the article. Things happen, situations happen. True, most people are SOL, and obviously this woman knows that, but to kick people when they're down is quite mean. Maybe she is unable to work for some reason not stated in the article, maybe she didn't have a job with the luxury of a 401(k), maybe she had a pile of children to support as a widow and was unable to have a savings account. Who the hell knows? Have some compassion, the woman took a gamble and she got screwed - no skin off your back.

I'm sure someone else must have posted that these oil companies don't pay the same price for the gallon of oil in advance as the customer. There are some companies, like DEAD RIVER, I think, that will give you the price of the day even if you're locked in. A global crime is at hand... EXXON made billions this quarter. This raising of oil price was pure PRICE GOUGING. A good lawyer could win this case. If WallST can get help... this woman should be writing Collins and Snowe to help her.

"There are some companies, like DEAD RIVER, I think, that will give you the price of the day even if you're locked in."

Yes they will -- if you choose to sign that type of contract with them.

If you choose a different type of contract, like this lady did (at a lower per gallon price) you don't have that protection.

Oh how ExxonMobile must have been sooo proud of themselves when the headline read this morning "Exxon Mobil posts biggest US quarterly profit ever" of 14.83 billion, shattering the U.S. record.

This lady made a decision to purchase oil at $4.69 based on the information she had available at the time, which all rumors pointed to the price of oil being around $7-$8 a gallon by winter. Yes, she made a bad decision, but the oil companies are in a much better position to speculate the price of oil than the average consumer. They're not going to lose money. I feel very bad for this lady and others that made the decision to lock-in at these high rates.

This has happened to people in other states as well. I read another news story about the same thing three week ago. The local oil companies are not ripping people off. It is amazing that most of you choose to ignore the fact that they had to purchase the oil at a higher price by law. The local oil companies have contracts with their suppliers. Their suppliers are not going to give them a break on a contract they already signed. If the price of oil had not dropped this would not have become an issue, but it did. Don't sign a contract if you cannot afford the price you are agreeing to, it's that simple. Nobody was forced to lock in at a price, they choose to.

I suggest all those that are complaining take their hard earned money and donate it to this woman that states she is already freezing when it is not even cold outside yet. I doubt you will though and sadly the oil company will most likely give her some sort of break because of the bad press they are getting for no reason at all.

Other news articles...

http://wcbstv.com/topstories/home.heating.oil.2.846664.html

http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081015/GJNEWS_01/710159859/-1/FosNEWS

Hey you are you calling an old woman, I am the same age as Mrs Goode, at 65 I don t class myself as old even though I get SS and medicare.

No I won t lock in, I ll take my chances with the price of oil, gas. the reason fuel has escalated is because of the price gouging , there is no need of . I live in the Upper Michigan area and just as cold as Maine is, We have a gas furnace and gas fireplace. Husband is is in ill health also.

.

Regards,

Exxon Mobil also paid the highest record income taxes as well, I bought 700 gallons and I will pay cash delivery at a lower rate before the pre-buy truck comes to visit, then I'll be looking a refund. Two years ago I gambled and lost, last year I gambled and one. Who was to think that the price would drop so much?

This is a 65 year old widow---shame on every person who said anything mean spirited about her.She is on social security---not welfare and she has every right to worry.Shame on those who can help but don't and shame on those who condemn her or those like her.No one knows her situation but I'm sure she's never asked for this to happen to her.At $800.00 a month where's her fuel assistance? These single mothers who are living what they were taught get much more from the state and other agencies than this person gets. It's time to help the widowed folks,the elderly and the truly disabaled.Take all the freebies away from the people raised to cheat the system and give it to those who need the help.As for the oil company in question folks should find out which one it is and make their rippping off the needy public knowledge and boycott them.I bet the greed would quickly ease up some.

My theory on this issue is, if her only income is $800 a month from SS then wouldn't she be elgible for the LI-HEAP program or one of the other programs?

We bought our contract insurance, so that if the price drops we pay the price of the day + $0.10. I got cught in the fixed contract 1 time. The local retailers also lock in those gallons at the agreed price ( or so they say ). To all getting contracts, find a company with a cap price plan.

The BDN beats the bushes to find a sad story, but misses the larger point.

Suppose this now-unfortunate woman, and others like her, had gambled and won: locking in a contract as oil prices kept rising and betting it would continue. The BDN would've run front-page pieces about what geniuses these folks were. Why, these canny Mainers beat the market while their brethren suffer, paying the exorbitant market prices charged by the evil oil companies.

Instead, the worm has turned. The oil price bubble broke a month ago. Anyone paying attention would've known that.

How well I remember the oil crisis of 1973-74, when I set my evening thermostat at 55 degrees, scraped together enough $ to buy 100 gals. for the month and closed off all the rooms except my kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom.

Meanwhile, Maine politicians are the slaves of the well-off, comfortable, from-away, trust-fund, powerful environmentalists, who dictate whether Mainers shall be warm or freeze this year. The BDN should challenge them on their castles-in-Spain theories of how people should heat their homes, provide energy for businesses, and make a go of it in high-tax, heavily-regulated, anti-business, clueless Maine. So sad.

How about the BDN set up a fund for this lady so those of us who feel compassion for her, and others like her, can contribute to help her with her heating costs. I know I could send $10 and I bet others would too. It's time that we got down to what we are so good at doing here in Maine, helping one another. Every single day there is some kind of pot luck supper for a family in need, every day people in this state pull together to help one another, let's challenge the BDN to set up a fund to help people like the lady in this article. I'm sorry, I can't stand the thought of someone spending her entire social security check to keep from freezing - what's left for food? My family is fortunate, my 82 year old father lives with my husband and I and doesn't have to worry about how he's going to stay warm and eat. Not everybody is so lucky. Come on Maine, let's pull together and help these people!

oil prices ? cold weather ? what do you expect living in Maine, there's a road out of maine. take it, i did and can live on my retirement now.

The BDN set up a fund...is this a joke...honestly is this a joke? How about this, I am 25 and social security isn't going to exist when I am older, so why don't we set up a fund for me. I'll sit back, work as a teachers aid, or maybe collect disability for the next ehhhhhh 30 or so years, then expect other people to take care of me, because hey that's what compassion is right? I mean no one feels bad for me that I have more 100,000 dollars in debt because of graduate and undergraduate, but if I was 62 they would! Amazing, absolutely amazing the age bias that exists.

Maine62, YOU are a joke. Feel sorry for you? Pleeeeze! You incurred your debt, obtained an education, now pay for it. And no SS will not be there for you, so deal with and plan ahead.

Ok, I got it, here's what I'll do. Next year I'll throw a few blankets over my shoulder, lock in at a stupidly high price, and then I'll have the BDN do a story on me...everyone who is screaming compassion will hopefully donate. All kidding aside, I do feel bad for individuals that can't afford their heating bills, but this person is just one of thousands in Maine. For a fund to be set up for this individual is a slap in the face to every other person out there who is experiencing a similar problem. Shouldn't the state be stepping in to help these people? No one should be going to bed cold at night, does helping this one person really get to the root of the problem?

>Mike Shea, the president of Webber Energy Fuels, said his company would work with customers to help them manage their oil budget.

>

>“We’re a very customer-friendly company,” he said. “We don’t want to lose customers. We’re not doing anything intentionally to hurt them.”

So, filling my tank with nearly $5.00/gallon oil in June, AFTER heating season, may not have been intentionally hurtful, but it sure wasn't helpful!

Perhaps Webber needs to tweak their automatic delivery algorithms.

iTS AN EASY FIX. TELLYOUR LOCAL OIL COMPANY THEY CAN COME PUMP THEIR OIL BACK AND BUY FROM SOMEONE ELSE. THE FEE TO HAVE THEM COME GET IT IS WAY LESS THAN THE COST OF INFLATED OIL PRICES.

I'm from RI but the story is the same here. I locked in at $4.19. As mentioned above, a cap based contract is the best option. It might cost something upfront to get a cap (my company offered one for $145 up front) but then you have the best of the both worlds. I gambled and lost but... as also mentioned above, at the time I locked in I knew what my 2008/2009 oil heating costs were going to be which is why I like to have some form of a cap or lock vs. being fully exposed to potentially unlimtied rising market prices.

The lady in question should have known at lock-in time if she could afford the contract.

I do feel the government should step in to help stabiize the oil market. It doesn't make sense for prices to drop so dramatically especially just as the demand is rising as we head into the heating season. Clearly there are external factors from normal supply/demand economics happening and likely this is excessive greed on wall street that the government should seek to curb.

That being said, I'm taking advantage of a bad situation to finally do what I've been contemplating for a few years now... getting an alternative heat source to oil. I'm investing into a pellet stove (picked up a year old stove on craigslist for $900 (new was $1800), install of venting will probably be another $700 (using a licensed installer), a seasons worth of pellets will be about $1200. So for roughly 900+700+1200=$2800 I am getting a 2nd fuel source option for years to come instead of sending that $2800 to the oil company. The key for this is I didn't lock into how much oil I need to buy. Granted I have the means to make this investment up front along with the physical ability to manage a pellet stove and I'm not suggesting this solution works for everyone.

In summary my points are this...

1) get a cap, not a lock

2) talk to your local govt reps to seek to stabilize oil prices like electricity and natural gas prices are

3) be creative and seek alternative solutions to problems vs just complaining about them or looking for someone to let you off the hook.

Some suggestions for this lady...

1) get an alterative heat source

2) move south, it's cheaper and more comfortable for older people

3) find someone to move in with her and split the bills (she has at least one bedroom she's not using)

4) get an appropriate job (or volunteer), lower the thermostat, and spend more time at the job and use their heat.

Cheers from RI!

The moral of this story is don't be a dummy, and if you are, that's ok because other dummies will set up a fund for you! Maine, the way life should be...if don't like to work, or are on disability!