trouble in the middle east brought inflated gas prices--AND rationing. We could only buy gas on certain days, determined by our license tag number.

I lived 35 miles from where I worked, one-way, and even though I drove a VW, many was the time I rolled into a gas station running on fumes only to have to wait in line for my turn at the pump for a measly 5 gallons. I learned my lesson.

When gas prices came down, and I had a little cash in my pocket, I didn't rush out and buy that big sports car I wanted, and for the rest of my life I made it a point to move as close to work as I possibly could. Since then, I've never lived more than 10 miles from my job. And I've always driven a compact 4-banger with a stick shift.

Sure, sometimes shit happens and sometimes we can't help where we live or where we work, or even what we drive. But when you CAN do something about it, there's no excuse for taking advantage of a temporary low gas price to cash in. I'm not knocking folks like Pebble who have been forced by circumstances beyond their control to hemorrhage cash to keep the car on the road. But let's face it, the average motorist has no one to blame but himself when the inevitable energy crisis rears its turbaned head. New Zealand has to import its oil. But America is supposedly "energy-independent". Yeah, right.

Sure, the poor always suffer more when hard times come, and I feel sorry for them because its not their fault. But the extravagant need to suffer a bit, too. After all, it is their fault.
Look at the traffic on the roads today, after half a century of undependable energy supplies and volatile prices; muscle cars, SUV's, monster trucks... It's not like we couldn't see this coming. I'm sorry, but I just can't feel sorry for them. And I feel completely justified in blaming them when transport costs and inflationary energy prices bite me on the ass, no matter how small my carbon footprint is.