Mess will probably continue, but let’s fix it

Last Friday, the AJC printed a rebuttal by state government employees Chris Clark and Carol Couch criticizing my editorial from Sept. 24th. About one thing they were right, and that is that even I am fed up with seeing me on TV.

It concerns me greatly that I am the only one doing it. Where are the other so-called “industry experts” saying the same things I am saying? It is obvious that we are all desperate for some input from a higher level and that input has been weak at best.

I have gone out of my way to assure the public that there is gas in the system, although at a significantly reduced amount. I have also asked you to stop “topping off” and cancel or postpone unnecessary trips. From the sheer spike in retail gas sales, my suggestions have fallen on deaf ears.

And it does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that my suggestion that the UGA football game be canceled was not taken very well. Although my thanks to the gentleman who said that in hindsight, with he and his wife now out of gas and unable to find any, and considering the outcome of the game, perhaps I am a “visionary.” His words, not mine.

The governor was quoted that same day as saying there was plenty of gas in the system. Perhaps not choice words as we all drive around looking for gas, the few stores that have it and the huge lines at those who do are indications enough that there is a huge shortage of gasoline.

And it is not likely to get better in the next several weeks.

Whether I am an “industry expert” can be debated. But one thing must be set straight, and that is while I have been labeled a “distributor,” that is more an acronym for a ?wholesaler who sells gas to your local retail outlets.? I own a transportation company with about 20 trucks and we distribute loads of fuel throughout North Georgia and the entire Southeast to gas stations and numerous other end users.

That said, my trucks are in every terminal in Atlanta everyday, we know who has gas and who does not. We see the demands on the system and we see where it is being utilized well. We are the foot soldiers on the ground, not the generals on the hill overlooking the battle.

I am not a “big oil executive” as I have been referred to and am very much a working guy just like everybody else who is reading this. I have bills and taxes, and right now business is horrible because we cannot find fuel to deliver to our customers. The dynamics of my business are impaired like everyone else’s.

All of my customers are desperate for my help and to try and find them fuel, but there is very little fuel to get and it is extremely limited as to how much we can get for each customer. It is being rationed at the terminals for good reason.

Both I and my employees have to find a gas station like everybody else, and I do not fill up cars off the tankers, although if it gets much worse I may likely have to do that, simply in order to keep the tanker driver with enough gas to come to work.

So you can decide for yourself if I am an expert or not.

And believe it or not, I am now talking with the governor’s office hopefully trying to help them form some type of solution to deal with this mess.

No matter what solution is suggested, and what if anything is implemented, the first course of action has to come from us, the general public.

There is no one to blame at this point, and it is ridiculous to even go there. We are in a mess and it will likely continue in some form or another for several weeks, perhaps longer. I doubt if it gets worse, especially that the refineries are slowly coming up.

I implore of the retail stores to limit sales to eight gallons, not only to conserve what you have, but to make your few available gallons available to a broader cross section of the general public.

And I ask the same of you, the general public. You do not need to top off; we are not going to run out of gas. And if you wait until you are at a quarter tank, and only buy eight gallons, many of you will be good for several days, and it will make it so much easier to buy gas for us all, and make more to go around.

We need to slow the system down, and we, the public need to do it, not the government and not big oil.

And if anything, having now gone through this twice in three years, will you please start pushing government for alternative vehicles like hydrogen fuel cells so that we can stop going through this.

Now please excuse me, I am still dodging flaming arrows from my football comment.

Tex Pitfield is president and CEO of Saraguay Petroleum in Atlanta.