Will Americans Continue to Guzzle Gas and Pretend Everything is OK?

[beetbox]

Guzzle Gas, and Pretend

by Derrick Z. Jackson


....Americans probably know this deep down. It is almost as if we are binging to distract us from the needless killing. We build bigger subdivisions as far out as we can, no matter what it means in commuting time and $2.55 gasoline.

Even though the average size of the American family has shrunk, the average size of a new home has grown from an average of 983 square feet in 1950 to 2,330 square feet today, according to the National Association of Home Builders. The percentage of new homes over 2,400 square feet has zoomed from 10 percent in 1970 to 38 percent today. The percentage of new homes with two-car garages has grown from 39 percent in 1970 to 82 percent today.

In a New York Times feature this week about ''living large" in the exurbs, a sales representative joked with a family that was looking at a model home, ''Lots of places to hide, aren't there, boys?" It is mathematically impossible for the rest of the world to live like this. As the boys play hide and seek for a moment, the parents play out the fantasy that hiding from the reality of consuming a quarter of the world's energy and producing a quarter of the world's greenhouse gases is an all-American right.

Unfortunately, it is difficult for a populace to be enlightened if its leader keeps leaving it in the dark. President Bush, according to the Times, is planning to leave out mega-SUVs such as Hummers from new fuel economy standards, apparently to ease the competitive strain on Detroit, which has invested far more in selling gas guzzlers than foreign automakers. With the explosion of SUVs (trucks now account for 50 percent of light-duty vehicle sales), the nation's average fuel economy has been flat for a quarter century and has actually fallen slightly, from 22.1 miles per gallon in 1987 to 21 miles per gallon today.

http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0817-22.htm

[ironman202]

1. there's not a problem in the world that Americans, when we roll up our

sleeves and concentrate, cannot completely ignore....

[MadHound]

7. Oh, I don't know

Having lived through the oil shocks of the seventies, when the pinch is on, Americans can come through in suprising, innovative ways. The trouble is that these ways don't provide profit for the corporations, so they get their government lackies to put the clamps on.

I live in Missouri, quite the conservative state. But the problem of rising gas prices isn't being ignored here. People are already looking around and starting to commute with each other. SUVs and pickups are being traded in for smaller cars, Hondas, Toyotas, and hybrids. We've got a bio-diesel refinergy that broke ground last spring and will be finished by next spring. Ethanol blends have been a big seller here ever since the seventies oil shocks. And we have had a number of cities and towns push through ballot resolutions for a number of municipal energy saving measures, including forcing city utilities to get certain percentages of their energy from renewables like wind and solar.

Yes, Americans can be a complacent, care-free lot. But when push comes to shove, they can, have and will roll up their sleeves and really truly innovate for the better. But once that happens it is then a question of whether or not the government and their corporate masters will allow those innovations to flourish. Sadly, most of the time they don't.

[RaleighNCDUer]

11. It just occurred to me that here in NC ethanol blends were required

during the summer by the state for several years, due to pollution concerns, but in the past couple years, well, they vanished. Don't recall hearing anything about them, or why they didn't revive them.

[thereismore]

2. Yes, but the pressure is mounting. nt

[maxsolomon]

3. yes.

yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes

[GreenPartyVoter]

4. Yes. Welcome :^)

[Cobalt Violet]

5. Those who can afford to will.

[Tyranny_R_US]

6. The people have no choice

Sadly alot people work sometimes hundreds miles away from their homes so they have to fill up rather they like it or not. The media on the other hand always pretends and put people on who pretend everything is fine when it comes to Gas prices, I guess they said if it worked for Bush it can work for the major oil companies too.

[PATRICK]

8. Iraqis before shock and awe

were just getting on with their lives even though they knew exactly what was coming. Human dump anxiety even if they live in fear. They also live lives seeming without a real place in the MSM forums or any control of events. Fatalism? Comfort zone? Despair? You think they haven't sacrificed their vacations, but they already have over the years gradually. If they price jumped to 10$ a gallon, yes that would have a smashing immediate effect. Until then I think even the greediest oil SOBs
know some of the parameters of choice for consumers. If they have the money for vacations in the first place they can be squeezed. Poor commuting workers don't enter into the consideration of press or politics.

People who know cars are dangerous, absurd and draining are forced to reinforce the idea that we want this as much as we need this at the moment. We always pretend to some extent that things are OK. Are the newspeople amazed at the suffering of the deer in their headlights? When is the press going to stop pretending it plays a large role(unwilling?) in all this too as it preaches responsibility out of the weak side of its mouth.

[livetohike]

9. Welcome to DU!

:hi:

I don't see Bush asking Americans to conserve gas, or anything else.

Perhaps his "base" would listen to him, or maybe not :-(.

[beetbox]

13. Thank You

for your welcome.

I have reached my own tipping point with SUV's. Having always loathed them and all that they represent I am now in total outrage mode at these two-story gas guzzling rubber wheeled yachts and have zero patience with any of the gluttonous petrol-consumers, regardless of their politics, who drive one.

[livetohike]

14. Same here

I drive a 1990 Geo Prizm (4 cyl, manual) and still get the same gas mileage I did when it was brand new (39 on the highway - 32 in town). I have 195,000+ miles on it without any engine work, clutch work, etc.

My neighbor is crying about the $450 worth of gas they put into their 3 SUVs last month. Yes, 3 SUVs.

[beetbox]

17. $450/month on Gas!? 3 SUV's!?

In a just world these people would do penance in the gluttons gaol. That's gross. What's worse is that these people probably feel entitled to their lifestyle and only get upset when gas prices go up. Totally self-absorbed.

[imperialismispasse]

10. I don't know.

I hear people rumbling. I think this gas business is going to start people looking at the truth.

[newyawker99]

15. Hi imperialismispasse!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[Bloggodocio]

12. AAA Fuel Price Finder

AAA's website has a fuel price finder that will locate the cheapest gas within 3, 5, or 10 miles of a city or zip code. See it here.
Every little bit helps.
Bloggodocio

[newyawker99]

16. Hi Bloggodocio!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[bpilgrim]

18. GAS Prices are all over the news... of course M$MWs are try'n to put a

happy face on it :argh:

but weTHEpeople have little say in the matter apparently, they wont give us a real public trans sys :shrug:

peace