For the past five to seven years, the American people have had to pay outrageous prices at the gas pumps, swinging wildly from less than $2 a gallon or less to paying $4 a gallon gallon. gallon or even higher for gasoline. This problem of paying unreasonable and unpredictable prices at the pump stems from higher oil prices. Many will say that oil prices fluctuate the way they do because of conflicts in the Middle East or oil shortages, but the simple reason oil prices rise so high is because of oil speculation. Oil speculation is the biggest problem, as rising gas prices cause further economic problems and aggravate the lives of middle and lower class individuals and families. The economic truth is that speculation is not necessary. In fact, it inhibits the nation's economic growth and will stifle or completely suppress any economic growth or recovery. The solution to this problem is essential to the survival of the future economy and industrialization of the United States. Oil speculation is based on future demand for oil supplies and current world events. Basically, what this means is that if a crisis breaks out in a region where most of the current oil supply is produced or exported (the Middle East), then the price of gasoline in the Western world will rise. Currently, the civil war in Libya, as well as other uprisings in the Middle East, have contributed to increasing prices from a pre-revolution low of $2.50 per gallon to the average of $3.57 per gallon in a period of just a few months . This increase has been attributed to the conflict in Libya and other countries currently engaged in political upheaval. Libya produces only 2% of the world's oil supply, which... middle of the paper... due to market contango [meaning spot oil prices were lower than the contracted price on the delivery date ]." (Wallace,5) With the issue of the price of oil continuing to rise, it continues to cause the price of gas to rise which causes the consumer at the pump to use more money while the oil speculators continue to profit. savages. The whole problem causes the economy to stall and fail to accelerate. By eliminating speculators, the fixed price of a barrel of oil will cause the economy to accelerate and prosper could be prosecuted and jailed for stock speculation and trying to make more profits by increasing the shares of her own company to suit her needs, why can't big oil companies and their speculators have the same punishment? It all depends on who wants to rock the boat or turn their heads the other way.