Honestly, the end of oil is going to cause our economy to crash and burn sooner or later. I would rather that it burn slowly than all at once. With economic forces pushing us to ween ourselves from oil over time, at least we have a chance to change the way we build communities, change the way we think about where we live, and change the way we transport ourselves. This is a much prettier picture than a sudden end-of-oil scenario that leaves everyone screwed, save the farmers and gardeners who, with foresight, made a decision to install solar panels to pump water from the ground.

Me, living in a large city with no ground to call my own, I would starve pretty quickly; the least we can do is be happy that rising gas prices might buy us more time to teach our kids how to grow tomatoes.

My hope is that we can have compassionate city-planners and organizers that will seek to reduce the fuel and car dependence of the poorest of the poor, to increase jobs where affordable housing can also be found, to provide strong affordable public transportation… But I know there are a lot of people who fall outside of the help of even these ideas. Honestly, I only agree to myself to a point… and I don’t know how to balance our fuel consumption with the needs of the poor. But yes, rising gas prices that are crushing struggling families do not make me happy at all… and I know, I work with these families every day.

Thanks Dave!

Good post, and I’ve felt similar sentiments with the rising gas prices. But, I’ve also realized that the only reason I feel this way is because I am pretty privileged and wealthy. I live in a situation where we only need one car, and we only need to drive a minimal amount. If gas jumped up to $10 a gallon, it wouldn’t cripple our budget, because we don’t drive that much. Like you, I’m in a position to look to the long term benefits because the short term consequences are really just an inconvenience.

But, a lot of people don’t have the luxury to feel this way. Rising gas prices means that they can’t afford to get to their job (or there second or third job) or don’t have money to put food on the table. Kids go hungry, can’t get to school, etc. For a lot of people, this will undoubtedly negatively affect their quality of life. It is much more than an inconvenience for this subsection of society.

So, I agree with you to a point. For the average middle/upper class person who drives a gas guzzler and whines about gas prices, it will hopefully cause them to rethink what and how they drive - and hopefully the inconvenience will be great enough to cause some short and long term change. But for those in the lower class who struggle to make it as it is, and don’t have the luxuries and options that we have, this can be a crippling situation that endangers their well being. In this sense, rising gas prices really are a terrible thing.

So, yes, hopefully rising gas prices will necessitate change. But I don’t know if it’s the kind of change that will help those that will actually suffer because of rising prices. I’d love to hear your thoughts and push back if you disagree!

that said here in Chicago I do feel a certain sense of promise with creating new bus lanes and the express busses… at the sametime, citizens will be up in arms about losing valuable parking space…

but there definately a delicate balance in rolling out policy like this… we have our work cut out before us too… just see the outrage here: http://www.topix.com/forum/chicago/T4HFDO5LS70ASMSCM