I Hate CNN

Why? Because of this article. What it’s attempting to do is make it seem like Americans are being pathetic babies about the gas price thing. What’s the problem with that? Well, first off they say in the article that the prices shown don’t reflect wages…so my question is this: how can you presume to know whether Americans really don’t have anything to bitch about if you aren’t even taking into account the difference in wages from country to country? My girlfriend is from England, so I decided to use that as a basis, since it is often said that England has such ridiculous prices for gas (or petrol, if you will).
Minimum wage in England is about 5.60 pounds. Roughly converted to U.S. dollars, that is $11.20. That’s MINIMUM wage. For most states in the U.S. minimum wage is well under $7.00 (all these are based on hourly wages). Some states the minimum wage is still under $6. So, when CNN tells us that gas is about $8.36 per gallon in the UK we’re supposed to think, “Wow, they’re really paying out the butt for gas.” The reality of the situation is that with average gas prices in the U.S. at $3.45, it’s really not that different. Seriously. Yes, they are paying more than us, but it’s not as drastic as the article wants to portray. They want us to look at it as if UK people make the same as we do. But they don’t. Not when you look at it in direct comparison. If anything, the pound is just inflated due to its value and a lot of the products in the UK reflect that (minus the book industry, which is a bit pricey).
So, you have every right to bitch and moan about gas prices, my fellow Americans. Why? Because gas is EXPENSIVE. Just like it is most anywhere. The CNN article is basically a bunch of bullcrap. Look at what it says on the images: “Prices not adjusted for cost of living or exchange rates.” That should say it all about the statistics.