Guest Editorial - Lyle Chausse

"Lookin' At The World Through A WIndshield"

Welcome to history folks!

As of today, mankind has never paid more for oil.
Never.
Is it going to stop going up?
You know the answer.
In fact it probably has not even started to hit close where it's going to go.

But the real question is based on today, not tomorrow.
Have you made changes?
Will you make changes in how you consume oil and petroleum tomorrow?
I don't mean the tomorrow where you say "ya I am going to do that (thing)"
I mean what are you going to do to cut your consumption.
you know you have to.
you know EVERYTHING will cost you more because of high energy costs.
Everything.

What's odd about gas prices is watching people's daily driving habits.
And this is where the thought occurs of prices not being high enough to change people.
Tonight while driving with my father home after he had helped me with some work, we drove a normal suburban road.
there's 2 lanes in each direction.
I was travelling aprox 60km in 50km zone.
Three times this 30 something guy, came running hard up behind me.
getting as close as he could to my bumper.

when I was traveling down a hilled spot on the same road my car was no going 70 ish km in the same 50 km zone.
buddy still has his foot down on the gas trying to kiss the bumper, like it's going to force me to rush outta the way for he who is late, overcommitted, and under-planned.
the truth is we all deal with these jack asses on the road all day. too often.
we as a society have been forced to be late, overcommitted, and under-planned for so many reasons.
now we just hit the accelerator a little hard to make up for it all.
we burn more gas than ever because of it.
consumption is not just up because of all the manufacturing jobs we have exported to China, India, and the like.
take a look in the mirror folks, it's you who is driving up prices in the way we consume.

in this high tech world of mobile email, text and phone calls, have we slowed down at all on the road?
No.
Faster, do more, buy more, get to more places, hit the pedal, go , go, go.
There's a Big Box Store only 10km away selling, tampons, toilet paper, and new tv's and they are all on sale!
Hit it!
we act like everything is a crisis.

Further, fuel use has become the new smoking.
You can't smoke anywhere now, or at least there's rules that say you can't but they will never get enforced. (another topic for another rant)
But you can still fire up a car, any car, big or small 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
No one can stop you, no law will.
it will crush the economy and your investments.

why are there still so many people driving their car so hard?
It's because there's a new macho-ness to the whole thing.
fuel prices don't bather me...VROOOOOOOOM!
I can afford it...VROOOOOOOOM!
I am so cool..VROOOOOM!
how's that any different from sitting there smoking your brains out for 25 years of your life as the price goes through the roof, and then never think that the money spent or the smoke from it was not going to affect your life or others around you?

people hit the gas pedal all around us all today as it sits at RECORD prices, and they are still driving like it's 1955.
.23 cents a gallon then too by the way.

http://www.fiftiesweb.com/pop/prices-1955.htm

gas prices can't be high enough...they have not changed enough of what you do.
but they will, in time.
like everything.
time changes everything.