As if paying the high price for gasoline isn’t insane enough, trying to figure out why prices are so high is a maddening ordeal.

Robert Novak (anal, polyester king) seems to think that it stems from simple supply and demand:

The problem is massive global demand overpowering a finite supply, aggravated by uncertainty about oil supplies in the Middle East, Nigeria and Venezuela.

Others blame it on speculation:

Speculation does sometimes carry the price of commodities and stocks to extreme levels. This happened to stocks during the Internet boom of the 1990s, to gold during the inflation era of the 1970s, and to real estate during the boom up to 2006.

Yet, others are saying it’d directly related to peak oil. What do you think?