Are high gas prices really bad for the economy?

In November of 2008, I was asked to be a panelist at a Chamber of Commerce event dealing with the financial meltdown (both Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers had just recently gone under, housing prices were in a tailspin and many 401(k)s had been nearly cut in half).  I asked the audience members in the crowded room to raise their hand if they would happily trade $4.00 gasoline for the prospect of having their 401(k) plans whole again.  Nearly every hand in the room shot up! 

The last time gasoline was above $4.00 a gallon, the economy contracted sharply, taking the global markets south with them (gas prices too fell by more than 50%).  Will this time around be any different?

Mark Scheffler