My Novels

Monday, August 29, 2005

Hurricane & Gas Prices

Wow, the hurricane is FINALLY dumping some rain on us. While this is NOT exciting news (like most of the media hasn't gone nuts over the potential ruin of New Orleans!) it is welcome here. We've been so dry, parched really, that a day or so of steady rain will truly help us recoup some much-needed moisture. And right now, it IS raining. There has been some wind, but nothing serious or damaging, so far.

The hurricane may seem the most important news event in the USA, but there's another one that is not getting as much attention: gas prices. Waaaay back in this blog I mentioned the dwindling world's gas supplies and the havoc this would eventually wreak with our way of life. I guess no one was paying attention though, and now that it is actually happening (gas prices rising steadily, NEVER to return to prior 2005 levels), most people seem genuinely shocked. I wonder why?

If you missed that entry, you can take a quick refresher course at this URL:


Life After the Oil Crash

Or for the truly uninitiated:

Wolf at the Door --The Beginner's Guide to Oil Depletion

Not a happy report, but very, very close to what you can expect in the coming years. If you have a long drive to commute to work, or just like the convenience of having a car to get you around, then your lifestyle is going to change. Biking may look good (though I can hardly see a bunch of fat Americans peddling to work!), or some alternate transportation...but don't expect that kind of amazing invention any time soon. No, this isn't "Chicken Little Saying the Sky is Falling," ... it really is slowly happening. Gas prices will rise, and as such, our lives will change. Some for the better, some for the worse.

I believe it was President Carter who TRIED to warn about this impending problem, but no one listened. I did. We moved to the city, and still have a house there; if we need to, we can move back. But even if we don't, we live within 2 miles of a mall where we can get necessary supplies -- though I do wonder how anyone will survive as inflation takes its toll. I think for most of us the idea of our way of life being based on petrochemicals is astonishing, but soon, we will all get a lesson in it.

Awww shucks, I guess I'm just a pessimistic person...but then again, I'm also a realist.

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