I share a garage with a SUV (largest model ). Sometimes I have to move it to get my car free. The owner asked me once what I thought of driving his vehicle. I answered, " It was like backing up a stagecoach but without the fun".
Turtles have sucessfully evolved inspite of large and heavy shells. They gave up agility and speed but like the tale of the tortoise and the hare have adapted with other compensations-patience for example. They made the most of the evolutionary hand that they were dealt.
What about homo sapiens dealing himself the burdensome hand of the SUV ? The recent energy bill just passed by congress had every special interest group's wish answered. The worst provision was tax credits for ethanol consumption. Maybe you didn't know that ethanol's production requires more energy to produce it than it provides in use ! Cars and trucks consume 40% of the 8.5 million barrels per day use of oil. Mileage standards issued by congress have been stuck in neutral for twenty years. This fact is because of oil and car lobbyist's influence. The latest energy bill did nothing to raise fuel economy standards. Overall Ford mileage per gallon is less than Henry's original Model T. And this is after the invaision of the low-cost high-mileage imports of the '60s.
The US is fighting a wrongful war in Iraq partly because of our addiction to oil. The reality of global warming is in large part caused by burning fossil fuels. The cars and trucks today are heavier and faster. This means more expenses for tires and more expensive repair costs.
And we call ourselves homo sapiens? How about the frivolous primate ?
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