With the price of a sweet crude oil barrel climbing to more than $110, with no end in sight, some predict gasoline will cost $3.50 per gallon by July 4. That would be economic travesty.

The sad reality is we had the chance to control it when it approached $2 per gallon, and we dropped the ball.

While it bounced away, oil magnates lined their pockets with profits.

We used to be a mobile society, traveling for vacations, pleasure, going to the ocean. Now, gasoline price is dictating lives. It affects every aspect of our daily routine, from the price of food to the cost of a haircut.

If there is a crisis, it stands to reason oil companies would suffer as well. That they are not says this is a manufactured issue. The government should regulate the price of oil, thereby regulating the price of gasoline.

Is it too late for this solution? Can we turn the clocks back, put our pride in our hip pocket and admit that we made a judgment error?

Given that the dollar’s devaluation is affecting worldwide oil prices, I feel it’s too late to stop the ball from rolling. If the government mandates oil companies charge only a certain fee per barrel, would that make the dollar stronger?

We should try and see.

It would bring the price of oil products down. That, in turn, would lower the price of transporting goods, so prices would come down. It would be a positive snowball effect.

Kenneth Chances, Lewiston