Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Enough with the gas complaints!


OK, check out this quote that I read in the paper last week regarding gas prices when they were higher. "When you have to go to work, you have to go to work. When you have to take your kids places, you take them places. You do what you have to do to cut back in other places." This is all well and good, except that the lady who said it was driving a 2008 Toyota Highlander (the non-hybrid)!!! Are you kidding me?!?! Most people who complain about gas prices had a choice when they bought their vehicle. If they chose a gas-guzzler - too bad. Especially a 2008 model gas-guzzler. That means she even bought it when the prices were sky high. If this lady could truly afford a Highlander, she probably didn't have to cut back like she said, and if she couldn't afford it, she shouldn't have bought it in the first place.

Only under 3 circumstances do gas price complaints seem legitimate to me.
1 - People who truly cannot afford gas and/or a family member or friend gave them a ridiculously good price on a less efficient car.
2 - People who need a larger vehicle for work reasons.
3 - People who have more than 3 kids.

And there is my rant about gasoline. That's why I have a Hess credit card which gives me a 5% discount and drive a Corolla and bought a house 3 miles from work!! I am just as happy as anyone that the prices are starting to drop, but these decisions have helped the fluctuations not have such a huge impact. You can leave a mean comment if I've stepped on your toes because I probably have, but I just think that we as Americans have some serious entitlement issues. And don't tell me I will buy a bigger vehicle when I have kids because I won't. We never had a mini-van or SUV growing up and we managed fine. Maybe we should just be thankful for what we have. Gas prices in Amsterdam hit over $10/gallon this year, and many developed countries still pay over $5/gallon on a regular basis. And don't tell me to go live there (Aaron, because that's what you would tell me) because I'm not the one complaining.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hmm. Since you've called me out... I agree with your post.

I would, however, add one thing to list of three: people who must travel a lot for work, not due to a commute, but due to the nature of their work. Guys like Mark who are self-employed truckers and are still paying over $3 for deisel. Laura, for example, sometimes drives 100+ miles a day going to see patients. We thought about buying a smaller car for her just for work, but then we'd have three cars sitting in the driveway, which is certainly not good stewardship. Yeah, she's got the mommy van, but she bought it with work and kids in mind (she's gotta haul a ton of medical crap around). And I do have a Ford Explorer... but it's 100% ours, it's reliable, and I don't drive it that much. To ditch it and trade it in for another car payment, even a small one, just so I can get a few more MPG is stupid.

Even with your rant, gasoline demand is still dropping, which mean supplies are growing, and thus prices have fallen every day for two months. Which means, for now, it looks like we're not going back to hoggin' up gas (although, when the economy improves, that could change).

Still... good post.

Anonymous said...

Oh... and you need to go move to Amsterdam. And tell them Amsterdamians about Jesus.

Mz. Cribb said...

Maybe we will...actually when we got the email about the Vegas project one day going global, Reber and I already talked about it! Except I would be a crappy Amsterdamian because everything there is expensive...like gas!!

And I understand that everyone has their own reasons for "needing" whatever car they drive, I have just gotten tired of people complaining. Truckers definitely count in my exception of needing it for work. They are the ones who can probably complain the most. Actually, a train company has been running ads saying that trains are way more fuel-efficient than trucks for transporting goods. I hate waiting for the train at 7:55am when I'm almost late for work, but I thought that was interesting...although then we have the problem of a bunch of unemployed truckers. And that is why I will never run for president...too many dilemmas!

Anonymous said...

Heck yeah. There's been a movement for years to get a railway installed near I-81 for that purpose... but then you have the unemployed trucker guys. No way I'd want to pull the trigger on such a decision.