Cited: Forbes

Every summer gas prices go up, this summer is no different. The cost of a gallon of gas is probably going to average about $2.92 between April and September. That will be $.45 higher than last summer’s $2.44 per gallon and even higher than the $2.83 that is the national average according to the Energy Information Administration’s Short-Term Energy and Summer Fuels Outlook.

Oil industry analysts say 46,000-square-mile oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico won’t inevitably affect pump prices in June, although it could interfere with crude prices later this summer if oil deliveries to Gulf coast refineries are disrupted, or if the spill leads to increased drilling restrictions in the Gulf.

Crude prices play the biggest role in determining gas prices: They typically make up between 65% and 70% of the total cost of one gallon of regular gasoline. State and federal taxes contribute about 15% of the cost, distribution and marketing contribute 10%, and refining contributes about 6%.

It’s also a question of supply and demand. Summer weather means people drive more (according to AAA’s annual Memorial Day forecast, 32 million Americans will travel away from home that weekend, with 87% of them driving a vehicle to reach their destination, up 5.8% over 2009), and higher demand for gas leads to higher prices.

Tropical storms can also affect prices because they disrupt distribution channels and drilling conditions.

“Hurricane season has been playing a toll on gasoline prices just since hurricane Katrina,” says Patrick DeHaan, the senior petroleum analyst and lead blogger for GasBuddy.com. “In the last five years we’ve seen a lot of storms that have done quite a bit of damage to the oil industry, so it’s something to keep an eye on now.”

But there are plenty of things drivers can do to reduce how much they spend at the pump this summer. Using cruise control on the highway, babying the engine and driving smartly can all add multiple miles to a single tank of gas–and save hundreds of dollars over a year of driving.

Choosing Wisely

We consulted Gas Buddy’s DeHaan and reports produced by the United States Department of Energy in compiling ways to save this summer. All fuel-economy benefit data and equivalent gasoline savings estimates are from www.fueleconomy.gov. We talked with spokesman Dave Engelman about what the Stuttgart, Germany-based company is doing to improve efficiency in their racecars. We also consulted Christie Hyde, a spokeswoman for AAA, about how fuel efficiency affects depreciation rates and the best way to increase gas mileage during summer driving.

Have you get into trouble with the law? Whether it’s a criminal charg hime or a traffic ticket there are often more options than you may realize. You may need to hire an Ottawa criminal lawyer if you have been charged with crime. If you have gotten a speeding ticket Ottawa, then you may need a lawyer who can handle provincial offenses.

The biggest gain in fuel economy is a one-time decision with far-reaching consequences: it involves the type and size of the engine in the car itself.

Smaller engines (4-cylinders and V6s) need less fuel than larger engines (V6s and V8s), which can mean a 20% difference in the amount of miles sucked from one tank of gas. Assuming a year of 15,000 miles, on fuel that costs $2.86 per gallon, the difference between getting 20 miles per gallon on the highway and one that gets 30 mpg is more than $700.

According to a AAA depreciation report released last month, the prospect of saving money at the pump–or not–affects not just what vehicles people choose, but the depreciation of the cars themselves. Last year small sedans were the only auto segment that decreased the amount they depreciated. He

Hyde knows why: “We really believe it is being driven by this desire for more fuel-efficient vehicles. Even though gas prices had dipped for awhile, they’re starting to come back up, and people are starting to look for more fuel-efficient vehicles and realizing–whether for financial reasons or environmental reasons or both–the benefit of those.”

Certain types of engines also get better mileage than others. Diesel-powered vehicles offer a fuel-economy benefit of 40% better mileage than gasoline-powered engines. They do cost a bit more up front, but they save money in the long run: the $22,830 Jetta TDI gets a whopping 42 miles to the gallon on the highway and costs less to own over the long run than the base $17,735 Jetta, which gets 30 mpg on the highway ($35,021 over five years, versus $36,220).

Details Matter

After that initial purchase decision, it’s the little things that add up to cheap driving. Shedding ski racks, tow apparatus and old luggage is one of them.

Even the pro racers do it: “We’re spending lots of money trying to reduce the weight everywhere we can, every place that we can,” says Engelman, who heads communications for Porsche’s racing team. It’s one reason why the company developed a unique flywheel system for its 911 GT3 R Hybrid racecar, rather than using a heavier hybrid-battery system. This is a power generator fitted inside the car, next to the driver, delivers energy to electric motors near the wheels.

Just using the correct motor oil affects gas mileage and is something very simple to do. Using the correct oil may only give you a gain of about 2% or $.60 per gallon on the highway, but combined with everything else, it will add up.

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My Take: I definitely agree with this article. Saving money on gas allows people to put it in other areas of their life that is actually more important to them. Being able to afford birthday party invitations for their kids or getting a Greek shirt for the man of the house on Father’s Day. These things may not seem important to some people, but buying things for family members is important to others.

Greek apparel and communion invitations are just minor purchases in people’s lives. With this tough economy some people need to hire a bankruptcy attorney. Of course, before this economy gets better it may be that a lot of people needed to hire bankruptcy attorneys.

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Other Resources

Construction Receivables Factoring and Working Capital

As it is common in the construction business for a general contractor to wait a month or even two to see a paycheck from a job or project, delays in receiving currency can make the process of fueling growth for your business a difficult one if you’re unable to cover payroll, lack the cash to grow your business, can’t take on new jobs, or are drained by the cost of new, large jobs. Construction receivables factoring is a process wherein you are able to pay the businesses with whom you contract like suppliers, excavators, and contractors through subcontracting financing options.

What You Need To Start Polishing

The easiest way to dive into the appeal and simplicity of using the “One Handle Does It All!” system is to get a car polisher, which has been featured on Ship Shape TV. Each of the three types of handles are equipped with the exclusive SHUR-LOK quick release system that positively locks the handle to the desired attachment quickly and easily, making the cleaning process simple from start to finish.  There are two ways to assemble your dual action polisher system – creating a custom kit or using a ready-to-go kit.

Cited: Associated Press

Just hours after being arrested in a suburban alley, Vincent Smothers told an investigator, “I don’t have a profession,” he said calmly. “I kill people for money.” He then told the police in detail, how he accomplished in murders he was hired to commit. He first stalked his victims before shooting them at close range. Apparently, he killed while talking on his cell phone and shot others as they appeared to lay lifeless on the ground.

Even in Detroit, which had more than 300 slayings last year, Smothers’ case is notable: Rarely is one person charged in so many deaths. On Friday, his lawyers planned to ask a judge to have the confessions thrown out, arguing he was worn down while in custody. Police deny it.

“He’d been accused of doing so many, he just wanted to get it over (with),” said Detective Sgt. Ken Ducker of the Michigan State Police. Police say the work paid $60,000 over two years, although Smothers did one job for as little as $50. All but one of his victims were involved in drugs. The exception was a police officer’s wife.

At 6-foot-1 and less than 150 pounds, Smothers said he didn’t raise suspicion, according to a police account of the confession. He was able to walk up to two Chicago men in town for a drug deal in May 2007 and ask if they needed help with their car, which was parked with the trunk open near an interstate.

“He said, ‘Naw, young fellow.’ … Once he turned where he couldn’t see me, I pulled the pistol out and shot him in the head,” Smothers told police.

He said he fired through the windshield and the passenger window while the other man tried to honk the horn to attract attention. Smothers changed weapons without hanging up the phone with the man who hired him. The pay: $15,000.

His last alleged slaying-for-hire was Rose Cobb, the 47-year-old wife of a Detroit officer, on the day after Christmas 2007, according to the confession. She was sitting in her van outside a pharmacy when Smothers, wearing a ski mask, broke a window with a tire iron and shot her in the head.

“My stomach was in knots,” he told police. “I felt like she was innocent. … All the rest were dope dealers.” Smothers said Cobb’s husband, David Cobb, arranged the killing while having an affair. The sergeant was never charged but hanged himself in September.

The confessions were evidence at a series of hearings over the past year where judges found probable cause to put Smothers on trial. Police also have tapes of the interviews.

Defense lawyer Gabi Silver doesn’t dispute the words but claims Smothers, 28, was coerced with promises that his wife would not be charged with helping him.

“The interrogation was extremely long and unfair. … The confessions were the product of duress,” Silver said in a recent filing in Wayne County Circuit Court, where Smothers faces six trials.

He spent nearly four hours in April 2008 confessing to Cobb’s death, then went on to talk about the other killings, chief investigator Ira Todd said. Smothers seemed remorseful.

“I knew at the time these crimes were committed, they were wrong and that there would be a price to pay,” he wrote. “After Cobb’s wife, I could no longer have anything to do with murdering people. “I can’t bring them back,” Smothers wrote, “But I hope this will allow their families to know that someone is going to pay behind what happened to their loved ones.”

Judge Craig Strong began hearing testimony last month until appeals were made concerning police testimony. On Friday, July 17, it was reported that Judge Strong had resumed hearing testimony over confessions made by Vincent Smothers who has been described as a “killer-for-hire” in eight different Detroit murders. His lawyer, Gabi Silver, claims that the police coerced him after hours of interrogation to confess and has requested that the statements be thrown out.

Apparently, the judge has disagreed and began hearing Officer LaTonya Brooks on Friday in Wayne County Circuit Court. Vincent Smothers is facing 6 trials on 8 fatal shootings based on his confessions that police say were detailed and voluntary. The confessions also state that he was paid $60,000 over a two-year period.

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My Take: I do not think I will ever understand how anybody can take the life of another. Apparently, the pay must be good. He definitely did not need employee payroll services. Although, he probably could have utilized online payroll services to get paid. Seriously, I really do not understand. Life is such a precious thing.

Life is hard, money is tight, but that does not make it right for someone to take a life for money. I do believe he did the right thing in confessing. Although, he was misguided in the idea that he was only killing bad people. I am very sure that there are a lot of bad people that should not be living right.

Maybe taking the life of an innocent person made him realize what he was doing wrong. The ironic thing is he could still have been a killer by going into pest control. He could have been killing all kinds of things, bugs that is. However, using roach killer may not have given him the same satisfaction or the income, it still would have been killing. He could have been using do it yourself pest control and still make money.

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Related Resources

Criminal Assistance

Although this is not considered “legal advice” per se, there are a number of things you should do if you have been charged with a criminal act. Contact an Ottawa criminal lawyer, even if the charges are only Ottawa provincial offenses that you were charged with. Write down everything you can remember about the day you were arrested, signed and dated and keep in a safe place.

Court Reporting

LA court reporting services usually create verbatim transcripts of speeches, conversations, legal proceedings, meetings, and other events. Sometimes written accounts of spoken words are necessary for correspondence, records, or legal proof, and court reporters provide those accounts.  They play a critical role not only in judicial proceedings, but also at every meeting where the spoken word must be preserved as a written transcript. They are responsible for ensuring a complete, accurate, and secure legal record such as a disposition.  A disposition reporter Los Angeles does just this.  In addition to preparing and protecting the legal record, many court reporters assist judges and trial attorneys in a variety of ways, such as organizing and searching for information in the official record or making suggestions to judges and attorneys regarding courtroom administration and procedure. Increasingly, court reporters provide closed-captioning and real-time translating services to the deaf and hard-of-hearing community.