Fuel prices in the San Francisco Bay Area have reached historically high levels. With supply chain constraints, increased demand, and California's already high fuel taxes, gas prices in the Bay Area have risen as high as $5.85 per gallon at certain Bay Area fuel stations.
On a recent fillup of my Honda Odyssey minivan, the total price for a tank of gas was over $70. Again, those are historically high prices, and something that Bay Area drivers haven't seen before. High prices for fuel are reportedly driving overall inflation in the country, and in this part of the US, the prices have been especially high.
The fuel price increases especially sting since many people are traveling for the Thanksgiving holidays. The return to working from offices has also meant the return of commutes, further driving up Bay Area residents' fuel prices.
Amid this challenging energy environment, people are looking for someone to blame. At least among the region's more conservative set, American President Joe Biden has become an easy target for ire about increasing fuel prices and their outsized impact on the cost of living here in California.
In response to this perceived fault on the part of the President, unknown people in the Bay Area have begun to place satirical stickers on many Bay Area gas pumps. The stickers depict President Joe Biden with an amused expression and a somewhat carefree look, with his finger pointing to the side. A comic book-style speech bubble from his mouth reads "I did that."
The unknown person or people place these stickers on gas pumps so that Biden's finger points towards the total gas price that the pump's user pays. The political message is obvious--whoever has been placing the stickers on pumps in the region wants to communicate that the high price a pump user has just paid (no matter what that price might be for them personally) is the fault of the American president.
The stickers appear to use a stock photograph, likely where Biden was pointing to some other person or object. They have appeared on gas pumps around the Lamorinda area, as well as elsewhere in the Bay Area. The stickers are part of a viral trend that is reportedly occurring nationwide.
Whether the stickers will have any impact in the extremely progressive Bay Area remains to be seen. Placing the stickers may count as defacing property, so whoever is placing them may be taking on some risk if caught. Either way, the stickers reflect a hard reality, no matter who Bay Area residents choose to blame--gas prices are higher than they've ever been, and that hurts each time residents visit the pump.
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