you're talking about a week ago in downtown los angeles, four buck phos a gallon of regular unleaded, that's now spread to a large part of california. and you could also look across the country and you will find there is no longer a $2-gallon of gas. virtually everywhere, virtually every station, is $3 above. and california, the all-important state for gasoline and driving, is now an average of 3.78 a gallon for regular unleaded. so bottom line, bill, we've got inflation, right here in america, you can feel it, you can see it, that may well result in a slowing of the economy, but it's a direct result of what's been happening in the middle east. bill: just underline the point, when you're trying to get a recovery and solidify it, this is not what you want. stu, thank you. arthel: in spite of that news the top money man in the country, federal reserve chairman ben bernanke, is saying that rising gas prices are not yet posing a threat to the u.s.: >> the increases that we've