RichardC3; friends that work in the oil patch confirm that $44 is the point at which companies consider "shuttering" operations rather than operate at a loss until price per barrel is profitable at around $50.  Speculation in the futures market put oil at $140 a barrel.  Friends owning oil company stocks made money; but certainly not double or triple their investment.  My premise is that the spike in price per barrel caused the economic crash because when people were paying $1.50 a litre, they stopped making major purchases.  Lower F 150 truck sales meant layoffs, leading to mortgage foreclosures etc.  (simplistic, I know, but you get my drift!)Europeans laugh at our refusal to pay what they pay for fuel, forgetting that our chosen lifestyle involves far greater reliance on gasoline.  Governments may try to tax us into switching to electric vehicles; they will not be in power long.  We should refine oil in Canada even though we will "pay" at the pumps.  I support local jobs first!