Suicidal Tendencies
-- 6/27/08
(www.mountainsentinel.com)
Why
does it seem that every time the price of gas goes up, motorists
respond by
driving faster? Is it some misguided belief that if they reach their
destination quicker, they will use less gas? Or are
rising
prices and desperation invoking some lemming-like instinct to use up
our energy
resources as quickly as possible, accelerating global climate
instability as we
make a mad rush toward oblivion. Slouching toward Bethlehem
could not be farther from the truth, we are racing toward it.
Back in the 1970s, when U.S.
oil production peaked and started to decline, sparking the oil shocks
of that
decade, the government responded through gas rationing, lowering the
speed
limit to 55, and a host of other measures designed to spur energy
conservation.
Then Reagan came along and denial and conspicuous consumption were
elevated to
patriotic duties.
Now, as oil prices aim for the stratosphere, there is no
talk of rationing, or even slowing down. But wait, Fulton "Jay" Hanson (not the Jay Hanson who established the dieoff.com website that first woke up most people to the idea of peak oil in the late 1900s and shortly after the turn of the century) is trying to
start a
grassroots movement to spur motorists to drive more sensibly and save.
Hanson maintains a blog urging people to make a
difference simply by slowing down. Greenslowmovingvehicle.com
makes a very good argument for the savings that accrue from simply
driving a
little slower. I urge everyone to visit this site and consider taking
an active
roll on the slow movement. The site draws a lot of its information from
government studies that deserve to be loudly trumpeted.
Continued at The
Mountain Sentinel
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In memory of George Carlin and Utah Phillips
In the past month
two great entertainers have passed away. Both were men with the
ability to
help us see how things really are through humor.
The following videos
are presented in
remembrance of George Carlin and Utah Phillips.