living in big cotton

nah, not so much " The last time a similar pullback occurred was during the late 1970s and early 1980s, when the U.S. economy was in recession, he said.

Some experts read the sluggishness in gasoline demand, which has fallen every week since late January, the same way. They say it has more to do with the national economy than high gasoline prices.

"We're certainly starting to see the American consumer pinched," said Bruce Bullock, director of the Maguire Energy Institute at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.

Weller said the burden of higher prices falls hardest on the working poor, who are seeing as much as 9 percent of their income go to fuel costs. In response, many consumers are being forced to cut back elsewhere as well as adding credit card debt, he said.