More gasoline ridiculousness

I would link to this article I read in the Bradford, PA, newspaper, but they don't archive their articles online, so I will just reproduce it here. It is just plain silly the level of silliness that is going on with the rumors of gasoline supply in the country. Don't we have more important things to worry about?

Saturday, September 3, 2005
Local refineries: We're staying open
By SANDRA
RHODES/ Era City Editor
The hysteria concerning oil and gasoline supplies
throughout the country have hit closer to home with two local refineries Friday
quashing rumors about shutting down.
American Refining Group President and
Chief Executive Officer Harvey Golubock called The Era Friday afternoon to
reassure the public that despite the rumors circulating that the refinery was
shutting down and there would not be gas in Bradford, they are still open.
"I wanted to reassure (the public) that the refinery is not shutting down,"
Golubock said. "The crude oil comes in locally and we are running about as fast
as we can."
Golubock added that ARG was "producing as much gasoline and
diesel as we can to supply the local market ... and we will continue to do so
during this difficult time."
Larry Loughlin at United Refining Co. said
there were rumors about the Warren facility shutting down, but it was business
as usual.
"We have been for years working at maximum capacity," he said. "We
have not increased our crude runs."
The petroleum-supply throughout the
country has been affected in the days after Hurricane Katrina hit earlier this
week.
On Friday, U.S. and European governments agreed to release 2 million
barrels a day of oil and refined products from their preserves.
Refineries
in Ohio have reportedly been running at a reduced rate or shut down because they
don't have the crude oil.
"Every refinery in the country has been impacted
by Katrina," Loughlin said.
ARG is working 24 hours a day, seven days a
week, but that is nothing unusual.
"That's the nature of refineries,"
Golubock said.
"There are some stressful things going on, but nothing that
should affect the local gas supply.
As of Friday, ARG was paying $66.50 per
barrel of crude oil.
"As far as this refinery is concerned, we are running
as hard as we can," Golubock said. "We are operating as close to full capacity.
That is the best we can do."
Over in Warren, Loughlin said the refinery had
"not changed any of its operations on the retail side" and was looking into
maintaining its inventory.
Some 1.8 million barrels a day of U.S. refining
capacity remained shut down and it will be weeks before the extra gasoline from
Europe arrives. Pump prices were above $3 a gallon in many places and motorists
have been urged to conserve fuel by everyone from President Bush to Exxon Mobil
Corp.
Locally, the gas pumps were the subject of rumors also as residents
scrambled to fill their tanks before a rumored stoppage in gasoline deliveries.

There's some more in the article but it really isn't important. In so many areas of this coutnry right now, the gas shortages are created because of rumors of, get this, gas shortages.
My head spins.