Gas Problem

After suffering through exposure to numerous lists of how to survive the current gas-price crisis, through local news programs, newspaper articles, chain emails, and radio sound bites, I decided to write an entry expressing my frustration that I wasn't hearing what I thought should be the number one tip: don't drive! A quick internet search and it seemed like my frustration was going to be validated. In this list of "30 Gas Saving Tips," there is not ONE mention of "not driving" as a way to decrease one's spending on gas! I expected that if a list of thirty tips wouldn't provide the answer for which I was hoping, none of the more popular "top ten" lists would. Interestingly, the thirty-tip list included a link, immediately under its own article, to "45 Professional Tips to Cut Big Gasoline Bills." This would be the clincher--if I couldn't find a recommendation that not driving was the answer, I could rest (un-) easy that our society was mentally screwed by the automobile industry. Alas, the TOP TWO suggestions were these:

# 1. Before getting into your car, ask yourself "Is this trip necessary?"!
# 2. On short trips, try walking or bicycling. It's good exercise.

What a relief! This is the promotion I was hoping to see. To figuratively "pinch myself," I decided best-out-of-three would afford me real hope. Back in the search engine, I clicked the link to "Top Ten Fuel Saving Tips." After each tip, my heart sank a little lower. Was our country destined to be enslaved by the automobile? Finally, seconds left on the clock, in overtime, and the hail-Mary pass was received in the in-zone:

#10. Don't drive. Not a popular thing to say on a car site, I know, but the fact is that if you can avoid driving, you'll save gas...

It's not too often when I feel okay about being wrong. I'm glad to know that at least some journalists--more than I expected--are willing to slip in an endorsement that really tackles the bigger issues at hand. I'll admit, all of the lists--whether they promote alternatives to driving or not--are useful for helping to conserve gasoline and make driving more efficient which is relatively better for the environment. However, I "personally believe" that it's essential to promote alternative forms of transportation and really revolutionize the way our towns and cities are structured--to benefit communities and the environment, rather than cater to out-dated, out-of-scale industries.

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