Flippin’ the Word

There’s a hum on the blogs, growing steadily into a buzz, about how a gallon of gas costs more than a gallon of milk.

Apparently I am to understand that gas costing more than milk is some incredible inequity. Ever the contrarian, I have to wonder: In what divined scripture can I find the guarantee that Americans shall not pay more for their gas than for their milk?

For one, I’m flummoxed as to why milk and gas are even being compared. Sure, they’re both available by the gallon, but outside of the metrics they’re just not comparable. That’s like complaining that a pound of gold costs more than a pound of silver: Of course it does!

When asked why gas should cost less than milk, people generally respond that we use more gas than milk so therefore it should cost less. That may sound like deductive reasoning, but it’s actually devoid of even a scintilla of logic. Since when is quantity of use an absolute determinate of price? The truth is that gas is more expensive than milk because it is simply more valuable than milk - which is why people pay for it, even as its price rises. It’s just that valuable.

Now that I’ve set out the above logic for those intent on comparing gas to milk, I’ll now state the fact that gas doesn’t actually cost more than milk. At least that’s what USDA says in their most recent consumer price index, plus I got milk while filling up today and I paid $4.39 for the milk and $3.98 for the gas.

Apples ‘n oranges, people. Apples ‘n oranges.