Doing What is Right!

Joan Ryan aska: Why should Americans be entitled to cheap gas? and then gives a sarcastic answer!

When asked to rank the importance of 56 characteristics they considered when buying a new car, Americans ranked fuel economy 44th. This explains why sport utility vehicles, minivans and light trucks accounted for 54 percent of all new cars bought last year.

"It's still more important to have the right number of cup holders than high fuel economy," said Art Spinella, director of CNW Marketing Research, which conducted the survey.

... "It's kind of amusing,'' Spinella said. "When we do an international wish list, it's remarkable how similar people are in the kinds of things they would like to get their hands on.''

See? There it is. We would be as responsible as the rest of the world if we had the benefit they do of high gas prices. The low price of gas in the United States enables our SUV indulgences. To put this complex social dynamic in the parlance of the latest psychological research: It is not our fault.

Therefore, since this situation is not of our own making, we should not have to pay higher gas prices and give up the big-car life to which we have become accustomed. That would not be right.

:-)