One theory I heard on NPR yesterday about the discrepancy between the falling price of crude and the rising price of gas is that it may turn out to be gas station owners holding the line trying to claw out some profits since people are still driving as much as ever. One of my best friends grew up in the gas station business—his dad owned three or four and he inherited and ran one in his late 20s. For him selling gas brought little profit. It was his two-bay garage that made money. He got out because he wasn’t cut out for that world, but also because he realized that to really make money he needed to convert into a convenience store operation and he didn’t want to deal with it. So I guess I can see the temptation to keep prices high (though I’m not sure the theory holds water at all).