Oil prices soared above $78 a barrel in mid-July and are now hovering just above $60. At the pump, the U.S. average gas price has dropped below $2.46 a gallon. Gas under $2 can be found in Kansas, Missouri and South Carolina and soon may be available in other states too.

Funny, none of the politicians who screamed about the "evil" oil companies when prices were rising now seem ready to award the oil execs the Medal of Honor. (Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., did issue a press release saying "we shouldn't take any comfort" in falling gas prices.)

There's nothing really remarkable about this swift fall in prices, just as there wasn't anything remarkable about their dizzy rise. The changes reflect market forces. The summer was filled with fears about potential supply disruptions — from the impact of potential economic sanctions on Iran to political unrest in Nigeria to a repeat of last year's devastating hurricane season.

Those forces and fears drove up the price of oil; pump prices followed. Now, the fears have faded and the forces that drove oil up have reversed. The tensions surrounding Iran still simmer, but haven't reached boiling. Nigeria has calmed some, and this year's hurricane season — so far, thankfully — has been more miss than hit.

Consumers did their part too. Gasoline consumption edged up in the first eight months of the year, but by less than what was expected. The number of miles driven in July actually dropped 1.9 percent from a year ago. The summer driving season is now over and so is the federal mandate for more expensive summer-blend gasoline. That, too, has helped reduce prices.

Perhaps the market has reacted to a bit of good news too. Chevron announced this month that it has successfully tested an oil well — the Jack well — five miles deep in the Gulf of Mexico. This could be the biggest find since the discovery of Alaska's Prudhoe Bay oil field 38 years ago. If the Jack well ends up producing oil at the upper end of the estimated range, it could boost U.S. reserves by 50 percent.

Oilman Boone Pickens told Business Week "there no doubt will be other discoveries in the deep water." Cambridge Energy estimates that within seven years the product of this find and others in the gulf's deep waters could account for 11 percent of U.S. oil production.

Deep waters are not the only potential source of oil close to home either. It can be extracted from the vast oil sands of Canada. BP said Wednesday it is going to spend $3 billion to upgrade its Whiting oil refinery in Indiana so it can process heavy Canadian crude oil. That investment will allow BP to boost the amount of gasoline and other motor fuels it produces at the plant by 15 percent. Increasing production from Canada's oil sands deposits diversifies supply and could have a "profound" effect on U.S. energy security, Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said in July.

The forces that are now moderating energy prices are welcome as a temporary boost to the U.S. economy. But keep in mind that lower prices will likely spur greater consumption, and that could help to reverse the price trend. Remember, too, that over the long term, higher prices encourage companies to do more exploration and production — and lower prices discourage that exploration and production.

The potential threats to disruption of the oil supply are still there as well.

So it's still a good idea, if you can, to walk or take the bus. But no one should begrudge you a little smile if you see the corner gas station advertising a lower price tomorrow than it did today.