SUVS AGAIN

Thanks for the mounds of email. Some points: yes, there are many other reasons for our over-consumption of oil. But transportation is the main one and the massive rise in the use of SUVs has made a difference. Here’s a chart of oil usage from 1950 – 2002. Transportation is the biggest drain and is becoming more so. Levitt and Dubner also cast doubt on the efficacy of those cumbersome child seats in the back of cars that make SUVs the size of a 1950s ranch house. Here’s their debunking. In general, I favor the market figuring these things out. With any luck, as gas heads toward $3 a gallon, hybrids will see more growth in sales. But shaming SUV-owners is still a good option. SUV-owners and sellers are indirectly weakening the war on terror, by financing the enemy far more than anyone needs to. If young men and women can sacrifice their lives for our security, can others not buy a different kind of car? Or is that too much to ask?