You stupid environmentalists!

[siliconmom]

I got this e-mail from my grandfather-in-law today and this article straight up pissed me off.

---------- Forwarded Message ----------

Comments

[nymphatacita]

I really don't see what's wrong with paying $10/gallon for gasoline. I mean, it'll suck, and the faster it happens, the more it will suck... but so will the air in 10 years if we keep polluting at a $4/gallon rate.

[brokenhallelu]

The problem is that our public transport system is crap outside of major cities! And even in DC, the system is not that great; its constantly breaking and no one wants to give the money to the system that it needs for repairs needed now even as ridership keeps increasing rapidly.

Unfortunately our country is not designed for public transit, but we have to figure out something soon.

[painangrrfear]

Agreed! I take public transport whenever possible, but I live way out in the 'burbs and have to drive to get to it. I'd love to bike to work or to the store, but that's not an option since I'm not suicidal. (Narrow, winding 'country' roads with no shoulder, traveled by a high volume of SUVs and pickups going sixty--no thanks!)

[the_questess]

Hopefully that's where things are going to change soon. Hopefully

[nymphatacita]

the faster the price of gas rises, the more motivation everyone will have to increase fuel economy of gas-powered motors, to improve the efficiency of public transportation, and to develop/adopt alternate means of transportation, such as bikes and electric cars.

[cutelildrow]

except that the rise in oil prices are not confined to the US alone, nor is it limited to affecting the price of gas consumption only. Cost of...well, everything... goes up. Food, utilities...that's just off the top of my head.

Not everyone has access to sustainable (read: they can eat all they produce and it produces every day) gardens, and for people who rely on public transport already and are faced with a compound of higher bills, higher food costs AND higher fare costs but NOT a raise in salary? Or, even more, do not have the idyllic option of getting a job that pays better than minimum wage closer to home?

What about those people who are dependent on providing privately owned public transport services (They don't exist in the US, but they're THE major form of transportation here; and no, they're not limited to taxis, but are more commonly varieties of buses capable of multiple passengers) for their source of living? 10$ per gallon fuel costs would be crippling, if not outright a death sentence.

[nymphatacita]

Although it's not the most drastic example, living in alaska and working at a restaurant, I know firsthand how food prices go up when gas goes up (because the cost of transport is greater). I've seen energy bills "skyrocket." I know the price of gas doesn't affect only gas.

I'm really sorry that some people are going to have a hard time with the ramifications of increased fuel costs, but I still hold that it'll be a good thing.