Gas Station to Gas Station
There are a lot of emails going around complaining about the rising cost of gas. People are suggesting that not buying gas on certain days or not patronizing certain gas companies will lower the prices. Maybe it will, but not for long. The issue is not that gas is too expensive. The issue is that we're all too reliant on something that is both limited and destructive. The sooner we address our dependence and put quality of life before convenience, the sooner we'll be free from the whims of corporations like these. Gas prices will continue to rise as supplies dwindle and demand increases. At some point we'll have to awaken to the fact that 600 million cars burning oil is a folly we cannot afford. Then maybe people will start taking public transportation, bicycling or walking to work. Maybe someone will even seriously start developing and marketing engines that run on something that doesn't poison the air when it burns. Of course all this change will not happen over night. For now, we can try to carpool more, walk to places in your neighborhood, run errands with friends. Let's drive alone only when there's no other option. Stopping buying the oil companies' product IS the right idea, but not just because it's too expensive, but because it's bad for the earth, it's bad for you, and it's going to be bad for your children and theirs.
For a little background on what it "used to be like" in Los Angeles, and what we might want to aim for again, read up on the city's once comprehensive public transportation system. Whether it was dismantled due to issues of cost, or the meddling of GM is irrelevant. The fact of the matter is that L.A.'s streetcars were replaced by a freeway and bus "system" which has proven to be inefficient, noisy, and extremely polluting.