Gas prices are rising again in the Portland Metropolitan area, leaving many people unhappy for the holidays. A decade ago this time of year, the average gas price for a gallon of unleaded gas in Vancouver, Washington was $1.11. This year the price has risen to $3.58 for one gallon of unleaded gasoline.
Many people are claiming this is an outrage because now they have to choose between filling up the car or filling up Christmas stockings. The price of gasoline has risen 223% in 12 years, a price that nobody should be paying for when America has their own oil they can drill from on, many people think.
Most everyone has been affected by this increase in gas prices. Many companies are having to charge more for shipping costs because it is costing more for getting the materials to their locations.
Every year, the dictionaries teams at Oxford University Press in the UK and the US put their heads together and come up with a Word (or Phrase) of the Year.