Jerilynne1965,
You folks in Europe are much more aware of what's coming than we Yanks on the other side of the pond. We've long been insulated by policies that mask the true cost of oil. With China emerging as an industrial power and their resulting demand for oil, combined with the fact that we have probably crossed the upper threshold of oil supply, I see no end to high oil prices in the long term. It isn't just oil. Have you checked the price of steel lately?

Mike A