The Green

A very simple idea that we could use right now and one that doesn't require any new technology is the "unleaded right foot". At a time when we can see the various countries on the planet maneuvering and drawing lines in the sand to stake out their future oil reserves, we can have a 20 to 50% instant drop in consumption. This does not seem to be a very popular idea since it would mean sacrificing something that is completely unnecessary and that is a mindset which has been out of control for decades. Many "eco-friendly" organizations who say that it is time to get serious seem to shy away from being really serious by supporting a national 55 mph speed limit. The replies I get from them suggest to me that they feel their meager website contribution of suggesting that drivers slow down is enough. Well I don't see that happening on the interstates. What they are not getting is the bigger picture. A new paradigm that says to auto manufacturers, "We don't need autos with more horsepower. We don't need autos that can go faster than the legal limit. We don't need autos that accelerate like rockets. We need efficient eco-sensitive vehicles." If these out-dated and wrong headed parameters were trashed, maybe we would see some really efficient designs both in alternative energy and conventional energy vehicles. The big objection is that people claim their time is too valuable to slow down, but time is running out in more ways than they think. The idea that speed is the way of the future is getting us nowhere fast. What we have now instead is another economic travesty with ethanol demand and production creating hardships for many less fortunate peoples of this world and rainforests once again under assault of speculators clearing land to raise crops all so we can keep our pedal to the metal. How bad do things really have to get before we honestly take this problem seriously? The problem of climate change that we are attempting to solve is a serious crisis that requires that we see it in realistic terms. Speeding through a limited recourse that largely contributes to global warming doesn't make sense. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.