Hey Maw! Shut yer ears! Michelle is bitchin' again!

Yes. You see it. And you want it to be true. Michelle is finally keeping up with her blog. Now what to write? I only ten minutes before my self-designated studying time.

Let's talk about gas.

I recently received two emails in the same day about the issue of gasoline and its cost, not only to our wallet but to our economy and our dependence on it, which is very, very real. Here are what the two emails were about and below them is my response to them:

1. The first email was a petition to send to Mr. Bush. It talked about him doing something, stepping in or intervening on behalf of the US citizen to lower gas prices and that oil companies are making too much of a profit.

2. The second email was one I had received before; this one declared a certain day to be a day of boycotting gasoline, which is fine. It stated that if the majority of people didn't buy gas for that day, then the market would suffer serious losses and have to lower prices.

Response:

1. An internet petition seems sketchy. One just types their name and where they live into the email. I was under the impression that for a valid petition to go through, it had to contain a signature or something a little more valid than just a name. ALSO, I believe since Bush has major and extremely close ties in the oil business, he really isn't going to be moved by a petition unless you get some very big deal names onto a valid petition. It's great that people are trying to get Bush to lower prices, but they need to do it for another reason besides just being tired of how much it costs to fill up their huge SUVs.

2. The second email...sigh...here is my beef with that. If we pick just one day to boycott, everyone who participates but needs gas, will just fill up the day before or immediately after. SO....we are still buying the product, just not on that day. So, say you get everyone in the freakin US to participate, then there will be a run on gas the day before and therefore the market making the same amount of money they would without the boycott.

My solution: Don't use your freakin car so much! Seriously. Combine errands or even carpool with neighbors to the store or offer to pick things up for them so they won't have to drive. Ride your freakin bike! I know some of us live in rural areas and it is impossible to do (I know, I grew up in a small hill country town and it was next to impossible to just ride the bike on the road, are you kidding, I would have been run over!). BUT, if you live in a city or even a medium size town, it is possible to do.

Live where you work and work where you live. We should return to how we lived before cars. Near the things you visit most. Whether that is near family, the store, your job...Stop moving out of town. Stop commuting in or carpool to work. Better yet, write your congressperson, legislature or even local officials and advocate for better public transportation. It doesn't state you are poor if you ride the bus. Really. People won't look at you and think "Oh, what a poor person to be riding the bus."
Screw that.

We are too dependent on our cars, especially here in the southwest. Our towns were built when land was cheap and unappreciated, and when they grew, they just grew out and they are spread so far out it is ridiculous. Houston for example. The worst city for pollution. You know why? Because it takes an hour to drive across the city. An hour!? Just to get across the city. Damn. If there was a train following IH35, I could be in San Antonio in a hour and reading a book in the meantime.

As far as the boycott, we would need to boycott for an entire week to actually make an impact. To boycott for a week would mean that we have dramatically changed the way we commute and then, only then, would the oil market feel it in their pockets.

If we don't start using alternative sources, then our whole lives will be affected. For example, produce. The cost of produce and food will go up as fuel prices keep rising. Another solution to that is to buy local or grow your own. The best produce is produce that is grown in your area and didn't travel 3000 miles just to go into your mouth and it is healthier. Why is it healthier you ask? Well, because then the growers don't have to spray everything just so the produce can survive the 3000 mile journey to your door. Plus, it is cheaper to buy in season produce. And herre we come around in a circle. It is just cheaper and better for one to buy produce regionally or locally.

So, I have gone way over my ten minute limit and I am tired of being such an activist in the morning. It is too early. But I guess I never really stop being progressive. Who knows?

Peace for all, yo.

Michelle