07-17-2013, 08:52 PM
Helium is a finite resource. The US oil fields happen to have a bunch of it, actually most of the world's known supply, which is why the US stockpiled it during WWII. (they thought that lighter than air vehicles would figure more prominently in the war effort.) After 70+ years politicians got involved and stupidity resulted. They mandated that the US get out of the He stockpiling business. They flooded the market and all kinds of stupid Helium businesses popped up. Now the He market is starting to drift toward a real market economy. You'll find that Helium balloons will soon cost $30-$50 to inflate (I'm just pulling the number out of a rear facing orifice, but you get the idea)