however I remember reading a series of articles about the price of oil frm the chicago Tribune that suggested that the "real" price of oil to the US economy was something like twice the actual recouped price at the pump. Which suggests to me that the direct costs of securing energy supplies has never been factored into the price and so shouldn't be now.

However, an interesting way is to ask how much additional cost the US is paying compared to europe. In 2002 the price of oil in dollars and euros was actually the same, 25. Since then the price in euros has tripled to 75, but the price in dollars has increased over SIX times. So I suggest that this would imply that at least half of the price rise at thep ump is a  direct consequence, even if it is only discerned by the fall of the dollar

keep to the Fen Causeway