$3.84 Gas... Totally Worth It?

My First Fill-up Since the Iranian War

I just spent almost $72 bucks to fill my tank which was $30 mote than just a few weeks ago. How does this make me feel? 

AWESOME!

Not kidding. Like many older people I remember when Iran took over the US Embassy. It took 444 days for the hostages to be released. Ronald Reagan was President for just 22 minutes. The leaders of Iran have been waging war against the West, Israel and the United States for over 40 years. The absolute destruction of everything associated with Iran's military complex has been a long time coming.

So ya, I'm absolutely 100% percent all for ending the Iranian Regime. Dig a hole and fill it with everyone involved with the beating, imprisonment and killing of their fellow citizen. For good measure toss in anyone associated with the terrorism and random killing of innocent people. Two wrongs don't make a right but in this gas God, the same God by the way, will understand.

Strategic Petroleum Reserve

 Strategic Petroleum Reserve 101

Understanding the SPR isn't hard but one thing people miss is the salt domes can only be emptied and filled a total of five times. 

Here's the "The Merge" rundown (mostly):

The SPR comprises 61 massive underground salt caverns in 4 locations in Texas and Louisiana. A typical underground storage cavern is a cylinder shaped 200 feet wide and 2,000 feet deep, and collectively the 61 caverns can store 700+ million barrels of oil.

The whole thing was developed in the aftermath of an OPEC oil embargo against the U.S. for supporting Israel during the Yom Kippur War. Fuel prices at the pump tripled, so the SPR was created in 1975 to provide a strategic stockpile to guard against future oil disruptions for the U.S. economy.

Normally, the U.S. only releases oil from the SPR when there is a threat to oil import supplies: Desert Storm (1991), Hurricane Katrina (2005), and the Invasion of Ukraine (2022) are stand-out examples.

However in 2022, solely to help President Biden and the Democrats secure the midterm elections (The Dems lost the House but gained one Senate seat giving them a 51/49 majority) Biden authorize a 6-month SPR release of 1 million barrels per day. This was the largest SPR release in history.

Unfortunately the SPR was less than full to begin with. It's interesting to note President Trump tried to fill the SPR during his 1st term when prices hit rock bottom but Chuck Shumer and the Democrats killed the administration's efforts. 

Making matters worse, the SPR is designed to empty much faster than it fills—a deliberate wartime/emergency feature. The system can surge 4.4 millions of barrels per day into the market quickly, but it only refills at roughly 400k barrels a day.

Instead of a few billion basic bar napkin math says it will now take $40B to refill the SPR. Money Congress must appropriate to purchase. Then, it will take almost 4 years to refill it, and that’s assuming max fill rate for 24 hours a day.

Thanks to President Biden using the SPR as his personal political chip that was unwisely played the state of the SPR is now a key national security issue, not just an economic issue.

Based on how the Iran War unfolds in the coming days or weeks, political pressure may lead to more SPR drawdown especially as the situation at Kharg island evolves and you can bet China is watching this closely, knowing that the U.S. oil reserves are in a dire state until 2030.

What is absolutely insane? Duh, Democrats and their TDS driven hateful Trump politics. In March of 2020, Senate Minority Leader Schumer and congressional Democrats effectively prevented the Trump administration from refilling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) with a major purchase that would have totaled $3,000,000,000 during his first term.

This happened in late March 2020, during negotiations for the $2 trillion CARES Act COVID-19 stimulus package which passed the Senate on March 25 and was signed into law on March 27.

The SPR funding provision was stripped from the final stimulus bill. Schumer publicly highlighted its removal in an email to senators, calling it the elimination of a "$3 billion bailout for big oil." Democrats opposed it as corporate welfare for the energy industry. 

Sadly the average price of a barrel in March of 20200was between 27 and 31 dollars depending on the grade. Not only would this have filled the SPR it would have eventually easily created $5+ billion in revenue. 

Trump Did Not Declare War on Iran

It's interesting to note that 47 years ago Iran declared war on America and it took the United States 47 years to properly respond. Just over two weeks ago the 47th President of the United States finally had enough of Iran's BS diplomacy, killing, maiming, kidnapping, holding hostage and threatening the Middle East. I think it's safe to say that Iran for the foreseeable future will no longer be a threat to anyone in the Middle East. Shipping in the Persian Gulf, specifically the Strait of Hormuz... Maybe for a while but that too will end violently for them.

Death to America, Death to Israel, Death to the Infidel will hopefully fade into history. This has been "radical" Islam's battle cry basically since May 14th, 1948. This road to war right now is absolutely paved with the blood of innocent men, women and children. 

For over 40 years Iran has been the world's #1 State Sponsor or Terrorism. The list of Iran's direct and indirect acts of terrorism are absolutely legendary. Their creation and support of Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis (aka Ansar Allah) also shows they have perfected terrorist proxies. 

Over the last 40 years Iran, via its proxies is conservatively responsible for 20,000+ direct deaths and 130,000+ serious injuries. 

According to Grok, Iran via its proxies is responsible for 603 US military deaths and 4,000+ serious injuries in just Iraq and Afghanistan via road side bombs and improvised explosive devices. 

VDH says "Over decades, they killed and wounded thousands of Americans by bombing U.S. embassies, barracks, and bases in the Middle East—without directly confronting the American military. For years, they sent lethal shaped charge IEDs to the Shiite insurgents to slaughter and maim thousands of Americans in Iraq and to the Taliban to do the same in Afghanistan." 

Finally, Iran has directly or indirectly sunk or damaged dozens of ships carrying oil and natural gas in international waters causing death and mayhem for decades.

I'm old enough to vividly remember that Iran started this war when they took over the US Embassy in 1979. I also remembered when Iran released the remaining 52 hostages just 20 minutes into Ronald Reagan first term. The 47th President, after trying for years to reach a nuclear agreement, ended this awful regime and their existential threat to the entire world.

Trump absolutely did not start this war but it's pretty darn clear he is going to end it! 

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Iranian Frigate after stern targeted by MK-48

PS Do you think the Left will acknowledge that "The Doomsday Clock" has improved a bit with Iran being removed from the nuclear chess board?

Note - Iran has never been shy about killing its Own Citizens.

1979–1980s The post-revolution purges and unrest resulted in thousands being executed including opposition groups, ethnic minorities, and leftist/Monarchist protesters including mass executions of prisoners.

1999 Student Protests: official numbers are 9 killed, hundreds wounded and 1,200–1,400 arrested.

2009 Green Movement (election protests): Government admitted to 36 killed. The opposition/activist estimates are higher at 150 or more.

2019 Fuel Price Protests: Amnesty International documented at least 300+ killed (some estimates higher, up to 1,500 in early reports).

2022 Mahsa Amini/Women, Life, Freedom Protests: 500+ killed including many children.

2025–2026 Nationwide Protests (sparked by economic collapse, escalating to anti-regime demands. This has seen the highest death toll by far. Government official figures say 3,117 killed with independent sources at 7,000 verified dead.

February 2026 data indicate 11,000–17,000 have been killed with higher leaked claims up to 36,500 via multiple massacres. International reports of internal health official estimates that so far in 2026 there have been at least 30,000 deaths.

During this latest crackdown the regime "stepped up it's game" executing wounded protesters on the street and in hospitals.