August 07, 2006
I've been thinking about things that I could write about that I know would get in Oz's grille. I could write poetry here, or analyze a sypmphony, or rave about the most recent opera I have seen, but that would just annoy him. I'm not here to deliberately bait him. And we're not really all that far apart on most issues that are important. I like to think that we're both intelligent people, and when people think about the issues---really think about them---they're bound to come to reasonable conclusions.
But I read this morning about the gas prices that are due to rise at least $.05 in the next week, I can't help but wonder about the people who will suffer most from it.
It surely won't be me. I'll roll my eyes as I fill the gas tank and cringe when I get the bill, I'll watch the tank full indicator creep down as I drive my daily 100, I'll complain more about the commute. But I can handle it. (My friends who have to listen to me bellyache might not appreciate it, though!) It won't be Ozarkyn, even though it will cost $75 (more? I don't know) to fill a tank of gas on his very necessary behemoth of a truck. But he won't lose his house over it. Sleep he might lose, maybe, but he won't have to file bankruptcy.
Now don't get me wrong, I think this country has lived far too long on cheap gasoline. I am utterly thrilled that this recent gas spike has multiplied the interest in low gas mileage cars. I love that every third car I see in Silicon Valley is Prius or a Hybrid Civic. I am tickled pink that when I read that a new Corvette will be announced this year, one of the selling points is great gas mileage. Someday, I am sure, the combustion engine that runs on carbon-based fuel will become a relic, like leaded gasoline. People will be able to have their power trucks and fill them with deionized water and be able to leap tall mountains in a single tank. We will get there, no question. We have to. Oil won't last forever.
And I wonder how long it will take for these new technologies to come. We're beginning. But how long will it take for the lowest income bracket to get their hands on these vehicles? The price of gas is only going up. How long does it take for a new technology to become old, old enough for everyone to have access to it?
I worry for the single mother with a 1985 Accord and can't afford to fill the tank to [get to the job interview, get to work, take her child to daycare, insert any daily necessity here]. I worry for the independent trucking company that has to shut down due to gas prices. I worry for the most vulnerable. Public transportation is an answer, but it's not THE answer---not until developing a reliable public transportation system becomes a priority for every city. But that's a subject for another rant.
What can be done? Do I dare suggest that developing a food stamp kind of system for gasoline might be something to consider? This would mean an increase in the social services budget. And it might mean a (relatively small! especially when comparing it with the, say, military budget) increase in taxes. And in the grand scheme of things, it's very small. Social services really get the short end of the stick these days.
Now, when it comes to things like the food stamp program and the welfare program, I'm glad they're there. Perhaps it isn't run as well or as efficiently as it could be, but I'd rather it be there than not. It's a security net. I'd rather have people be tangled up in the net than be a stain on the sawdust floor. They can climb out, and the system is designed for just that. (It's when people don't even try to stay on the tightrope and dive right into the net that I get irritated. But again, that's a subject for another rant.) Sure, a "gas stamp" kind of system runs the risk of becoming similar to welfare, but isn't it better to have it and keep the shipping company in business? Isn't it better to keep that working mother earning a living than to have her tumble from the tightrope and onto the floor?
It's something to consider.
Meera, the Proper Voice of Liberalism...
But I read this morning about the gas prices that are due to rise at least $.05 in the next week, I can't help but wonder about the people who will suffer most from it.
It surely won't be me. I'll roll my eyes as I fill the gas tank and cringe when I get the bill, I'll watch the tank full indicator creep down as I drive my daily 100, I'll complain more about the commute. But I can handle it. (My friends who have to listen to me bellyache might not appreciate it, though!) It won't be Ozarkyn, even though it will cost $75 (more? I don't know) to fill a tank of gas on his very necessary behemoth of a truck. But he won't lose his house over it. Sleep he might lose, maybe, but he won't have to file bankruptcy.
Now don't get me wrong, I think this country has lived far too long on cheap gasoline. I am utterly thrilled that this recent gas spike has multiplied the interest in low gas mileage cars. I love that every third car I see in Silicon Valley is Prius or a Hybrid Civic. I am tickled pink that when I read that a new Corvette will be announced this year, one of the selling points is great gas mileage. Someday, I am sure, the combustion engine that runs on carbon-based fuel will become a relic, like leaded gasoline. People will be able to have their power trucks and fill them with deionized water and be able to leap tall mountains in a single tank. We will get there, no question. We have to. Oil won't last forever.
And I wonder how long it will take for these new technologies to come. We're beginning. But how long will it take for the lowest income bracket to get their hands on these vehicles? The price of gas is only going up. How long does it take for a new technology to become old, old enough for everyone to have access to it?
I worry for the single mother with a 1985 Accord and can't afford to fill the tank to [get to the job interview, get to work, take her child to daycare, insert any daily necessity here]. I worry for the independent trucking company that has to shut down due to gas prices. I worry for the most vulnerable. Public transportation is an answer, but it's not THE answer---not until developing a reliable public transportation system becomes a priority for every city. But that's a subject for another rant.
What can be done? Do I dare suggest that developing a food stamp kind of system for gasoline might be something to consider? This would mean an increase in the social services budget. And it might mean a (relatively small! especially when comparing it with the, say, military budget) increase in taxes. And in the grand scheme of things, it's very small. Social services really get the short end of the stick these days.
Now, when it comes to things like the food stamp program and the welfare program, I'm glad they're there. Perhaps it isn't run as well or as efficiently as it could be, but I'd rather it be there than not. It's a security net. I'd rather have people be tangled up in the net than be a stain on the sawdust floor. They can climb out, and the system is designed for just that. (It's when people don't even try to stay on the tightrope and dive right into the net that I get irritated. But again, that's a subject for another rant.) Sure, a "gas stamp" kind of system runs the risk of becoming similar to welfare, but isn't it better to have it and keep the shipping company in business? Isn't it better to keep that working mother earning a living than to have her tumble from the tightrope and onto the floor?
It's something to consider.
Meera, the Proper Voice of Liberalism...