the worst holiday. ever

I was incredibly disappointed by the proposition of and reactions to the bullshit gas tax holiday over the last few weeks. So much so that I've already ranted over at MOMocrats about it but I can't help myself from talking about it here too. I can't believe anyone really thinks this is a good idea. The fact that most Americans would save about $30 all summer long (if indeed, they filled and filled and filled their tanks) while costing the government millions of dollars and will hurt individual states with a loss in revenue for highway and bridge repairs as well as the jobs associated with that work makes this a no-brainer. And yet somehow some folks still think it's a good idea.

Why do we think we are entitled to cheap gas? America pays less for a gallon of gas than many other countries around the world and yet we are still batshit over it. But we are complaining about the wrong thing. We should be complaining that we are not developing strategies to replace oil consumption fast enough. We should complain that car manufacturers are not producing affordable hybrids. We should complain that public transportation is not sufficient in many parts of our nation which forces the highways to be clogged with individual drivers. We should complain that our politicians treat us like infants, tossing spare change at us to shut us up. Time and time again we are watching these bad decisions being made, ideas designed to bandaid a severed leg. The days of low gas prices and clean air are over. It's time to buckle down and find comprehensive solutions for lowering emissions, reducing oil dependency, and lowering our carbon footprint. I know you know this already and it's one of the many reasons we are blog-kin but I'm ranting just the same.

And for the record, we have two cars. But like many others we are changing how we use them. We walk whenever possible. We carpool. It's not enough, and we are working towards a longer term solution that involves only one car and even less driving, but we won't be able to do that for a few more months. Living (and having to leave your house to go to work) in this society generally means you have to transport yourself somehow. I see how we've gotten ourselves into this, but this sort of pandering only adds insult to injury. So I'll pay the gas prices and I'll do so without complaint because I am complicit in this. I am a part of the problem as an oil consumer and I am complicit in this. And I would gladly pay more in taxes instead of less if it meant it was going into a fund to reduce oil consumption nationwide. Now that would be a holiday I could get behind.

So quit insulting us already. We already feel bad enough as it is for falling for all of this bullshit in the first place.

respect your mother

Dear Mother Earth,

I am humbled by your majesty. The turning of the seasons, the rain and sun and wind, the natural wonders and all your creatures great and small. And yet I do not respect you. I do not respect you and I kick you in the shin. I use you. I climb your trees and walk on your mountains and breathe your air and swim in your oceans. And yet I do not respect you.

If I respected you I would not have bought those bananas today, bananas that came from Ecuador because bananas are all my child wants to eat and instead of teaching her to enjoy local produce I bought bananas that were shipped thousands of miles. My lack of discipline causes you to suffer.

If I respected you I would take public transportation. I have a million excuses about why I cannot take public transportation every day but the truth is I am weak, and my weakness causes you to suffer.

If I respected you I would grow my own food. I've tried to grow my own food in the past but I've become too busy and it's been too difficult to manage in the last few years. So I don't grow my own food because I am lazy and I don't prioritize well. My laziness causes you to suffer.

If I respected you I would never buy anything made of plastic. But I do buy things made of plastic, things that are often completely unnecessary like the plastic blocks I bought for M. She wanted them and I bought them. My lack of commitment causes you to suffer.

Forgive me mother, for I continue to sin. I continue to widen my footprint and live larger than I need to. I continue to blame others and point fingers and wait for Them to do Something. But something begins with me. I am sorry, Mother. I will miss the polar bears when they are gone and I will have no one to blame but myself. But I promise you yet again, one last confessional on the hill that I will try and try again to do right by you, to show you my respect.

There's a review up over at my other spot today too. A review of a product that comes in handy when I am taking long road trips. Forgive me, Mother, for the gas I waste on those long road trips. I am selfish and that selfishness causes you to suffer.