[bratticus]

El Gobierno planea "racionar" los combustibles
Libertad Digital

Industria ya ha activado el nivel 1 del "plan de ahorro energético". El nivel 3 impondría la interrupción temporal de suministro en España. ...

In English:

Industry has already enabled the level 1 of the "energy saving plan." Level 3 would impose temporary interruption of supply in Spain.

Spain is already on alert level 1. The so-called "energy saving plan", which the Government has made to tackle the oil crisis of the Arab countries, includes three levels of alarm, each of which includes various measures to counter rising fuel prices.

For now, the Executive has already activated level 1 of this plan, under the title of "instability in the markets, not supply problems," and the measure includes regulations to reduce the speed limit to 110 km / h, changing lighting of cities, increase energy savings in public buildings and a program to ensure drivers use new tires on their vehicles. But this is only the tip of the iceberg compared to the energy strategy that the Government studies in case the situation worsens.

Thus, level 2 would be triggered if "temporary supply disruptions and imbalances between supply and demand." This would enable security stocks of oil as well as implement measures to temporarily restrict demand.

In case of "serious problems of supply," the executive would impose more drastic measures, such as the activation of strategic reserves and, especially, the "rationing of demand."

The specific measures include the level, on the advice of their own International Energy Agency, would range from banning the use of older vehicles to the restriction on alternate days to move through the center of cities based on odd or even license numbers. The plan also would cut the fuel supply directly to large industrial enterprises. The Government no longer rules out anything.

[Puchica]

I wonder what the different provincias and ayuntamientos will do with this. Spain is pretty fractious. Talk about potential Civil War! Andalucia, Catalunia, Pais Basco, they're all semi autonomous. Unpopular measures really up the ante when there is political friction.

[virgincrude]

This online newspaper is owned and run by a famous political agitator with a visceral contempt for just about each and every politician in Spain, Federico Jimenez Losantos. This is the kind of agit-prop news he likes to put out, stirring up the usual suspects and inciting them to hate-demos and basically behaving just like Rush Limbaugh.

If you read the report dispassionately, it's obvious these are measures no different to those being drawn up and implemented across Europe. We are no more likely to run out of gas than the UK, France or Italy.... or rather, just as likely, once the oil shock hits.

Losantos has been succesfully prosecuted several times for defamatory statements, he has zero profile in the mainstream press and media who prefer to ignore him, rather than appear to be siding with his unsavioury character.

Puchica, as far as I and anyone I know can tell, there is no stomach for civil war here. All my elder relatives remember that time with profound pain and disgust, the younger generation will not turn their hunting rifles on one another if we are rationed.

You misunderstand the fractious and partisan nature of Spanish politics. Applied to the system you know, it looks like everybody is out to rip out each other's throats over one ideology or another. It's like all the Hollywood movies teach us in europe: Americans spends 24 hours a day shooting people on the street, don't they? Well, here in Spain we shout alot and wave our arms about, but there is a vast distance between that, and shooting your neighbour over his politics.

[pup55]

Hey, at least there's a plan.

Could you possibly imagine the uproar if, because of some shortage situation, the government the US had to go back to the 55 mph/88 kph speed limit that was in existence for about 10 years here in the late 70's?

Imagine if our political leadership actually asked the public to "sacrifice".... turn down the thermostat.... drive less... have "no drive" days like they did in Europe in the 70's?

In fact, if you had to start from scratch and re-pass the CAFE standards, by which the government required the auto companies to improve the fuel efficiency of their vehicles, there is a lot of doubt in my mind whether even that would be accepted right now, with the political climate the way it is... general mistrust of the government requiring you to do this-or-that...Yeah, I know that some additional legislation to that effect went through during the chaos in early 2009.....

We're already starting to drill in the Gulf of Mexico again.... not even a year after the biggest or second biggest offshore blowout in history.... because the oil price is near 100 and no one wants to be blamed later on for not trying to increase supply....

[Puchica]

Thank you, Virgincrude, glad to hear it. Though from what I read, Spain sounds more like a coalition of semi autonomous regions more than a single homogenous polity. But you're there and I'm not; I've only been to Spain once and spent a mere year studying the Falange's use of art history to promote their ideology. But on the other hand, these rabble rousers sometimes stun the peaceful majority by gaining power when conditions deteriorate. Ojala que no.

[Keith_McClary]

Hey, at least there's a plan.

There is supposed to be a plan according to:
[PDF] Agreement on an International Energy Program

Article 12
Whenever the group as a whole or any Participating Country sustains or can reasonably be
expected to sustain a reduction in its oil supplies, the emergency measures, which are the mandatory demand restraint referred to in Chapter II and the allocation of available oil referred to in Chapter III, shall be activated in accordance with this Chapter.
...
Article 14
Whenever the group sustains or can reasonably be expected to sustain a reduction in the
daily rate of its oil supplies at least equal to 12 per cent of the average daily rate of its final consumption during the base period, each Participating Country shall implement demand restraint measures sufficient to reduce its final consumption by an amount equal to 10 per cent of its final consumption during the base period, and allocation of available oil among the Participating Countries shall take place in accordance with Articles 7, 9, 10 and 11.

The "restraint measures" must be implemented before supply sharing kicks in.

Does the US have a plan, or will they just wing it?

[bratticus]

This online newspaper is owned and run by a famous political agitator with a visceral contempt for just about each and every politician in Spain, Federico Jimenez Losantos.

I must say I'm amused by your pathetic little ad hominem attack on the plain and simple truth. Don't feel special, almost everyone who argues with me these days tells me my sources are flawed rather than that my information is untrue. It sickens me to thing that anyone would be so small-minded as to not even notice that they have used a common fallacy.

Why don't you get a free education by memorizing this page:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem

Then you can tell your mommy you learned something today.