Gas Station Owner Stops Selling Gas in Protest

By: Konrad Holden

In Brief: 
A Massachusetts gas station owner has decided to stop selling gas as a form of protest against the skyrocketing gas prices. The owner says that gas companies are “robbing the public” with the high-gas prices. As of Friday, the current national average price for a gallon of regular gas sits at $5.00 with some states like California seeing a state average almost hitting $6.50. Massachusetts currently averages $5.03 per gallon.

The Background: 
“This is the biggest ripoff that ever has happened to people in my lifetime,” said Reynold Gladu, the 48-year owner of Ren’s Mobil gas station in Amherst, MA who has decided to stop selling gas in protest. 

Gladu is upset about the high gas prices currently scarfing down Americans’ paychecks each week. The gas station owner rests the blame squarely on gas companies which he claims are “robbing the public.”

For now, Gladu plans to continue offering automotive services to stay afloat. The last time he sold gas, he charged $4.75 but said he wouldn’t go above that.

Some commentators have said that the gas prices have been driven up by President Joe Biden’s economic policy, citing rising gas prices even before the Russian-Ukraine began in February of 2022.

A representative from ExxonMobil said that gas prices are set by local business owners based on “local market competition and other business factors.” The representative also said gas prices are “influenced by the price of crude, and wholesale price of products which fluctuate according to demand and supply factors — such as economic conditions and seasonal factors, fuel production, inventory levels, storage and transportation cost.”

Notable Quotes: 

“Dealing with Mobil, they don’t think through their pricing policies anymore,” Gladu said. “I’ve served their product, but I refuse to do it anymore, because they’re only getting richer.” - Reynold Gladu