There a quite a few diaries on the rec list discussing the horrible oil spill. It is a disaster and our environment will suffer for it. There are also diaries on Obama's statement.
"President Barack Obama on Friday directed that no new offshore oil drilling leases be issued unless rigs have new safeguards to prevent a repeat of the explosion that unleashed the massive spill threatening the Gulf Coast with major environmental damage." - HuffingtonPost
My diary is on something different. It's about how do we wean ourselves off oil.
We are all outraged but should we be? We have oil rigs sitting off our shores because we as American's cannot be bothered to cut down on our consumption.
This is neither a Democrat nor Republican issue because all American's use up a larger portion of oil consumption than anyone else in the world.
Here are some questions to think about?
How many cars do your family own?
Do you really (and I mean really need more than one car)?
How likely are you to use alternative modes of transportation to get to the store for errands?
Would you consider a carpool?
Do you drive an electric or hybrid car?
Do you drive a car with more seats in it than you have members of your family?
Would you support high gasoline taxes to discourage driving?
Would you consider downsizing and moving closer to work in order to be able to walk?
For full disclosure, I haven't owned a car in close to a decade. I have lived in cities (SF, NYC, London) where having a car was not necessary. At first I missed my car but as time went by I realized that I didn't really need one. Sure public transport is annoying. Don't get me started on the rude people on the underground in London. But it's actually faster and I get some exercise for my very lazy arse walk to and from the station.
I actually support super high gasoline taxes. American’s complain about the cost of gas but it isn’t anything compared to European countries. European’s think we are silly to complain about high gas prices. They also drive much smaller cars.
I also support public transportation. It’s a great way to get caught up on books and newspapers. I do like compressing on the tube by reading a good book.
We are also giving our money to a bunch of people who don’t like us. I can’t think of a better reason to lower my consumption if it means fewer wars.
I think we (and I mean all of us) really need to sit down and think about ways that we can change our lifestyles. That means maybe cutting down on how much we drive. Maybe invest in a green technology, not because we are getting a government subsidy, but because it’s the right thing to do. I think one of the big problems with green technology isn’t the lack of it but the lack of people willing to put their money where their mouths are.
So while it’s good for our government to support alternative forms of energy, it’s also up to us to make sure we aren’t part of the problem and more of a collation looking for a better way. We can’t complain about off shore drilling and then drive our 2 SUV’s to the grocery store two blocks away.
Or maybe we can, after all a huge pickup truck is the American way.