The Price of Gas in the World.

The average retail price of a US gallon of gas is now $3.00 up nearly 70 cents from a year ago, according to a weekly U.S. Energy Department survey but Americans still enjoy some of the cheapest gasoline on the planet.
It is about:

• 4.00 (US) a gallon in Canada
• $4.50 a gallon in Japan
• $5.80 in France
• over $6 a gallon in most other major European countries.
• $6.73 a gallon in the Netherlands

The reason for those differences is obviously taxes: the Dutch pay a 158 % tax while the US only pay 15% at current prices, making it the lowest tax on gasoline of any industrialized country. So from a European perspective, the Americans sound like a bunch of whiners!

By the way, if you want comparions from a European measurement (there are 3.785 liters in a US gallon and about 1.24 dollar to the Euro) but to avoid any arithmetical headache, let's make it simple:
US drivers pay about 64 euro cents a litre. The price in the UK is 1.40 euros a litre, and the average in the euro zone is 1.28 euros. (Euronews)

Sure in Iran, gas is only 35 (US) cents a gallon... and in Venezuela people only pay about 12 cents a gallon but really.... who would trade their life here (i.e. Europe or the US) for cheap gas there?

NOTE: to put things into perspective, just a couple of historical footnotes (here):

In 1979 (during the Iranian crisis) the oil price was $88.72 (U.S.) (inflation adjusted) while it is now (during another Iranian crisis) about 74$. Getting close but not there yet.

On the other hand, the U.S. relied on imports for 43 % of its oil needs in 1979, when now it is about 60%.