The Chainlink

Brian Kennedy

Single-Occupant SUV's

For some reason, on my way to work today, I noticed a lot of single-occupant SUV's.  So, for the rest of my commute, I decided to stop thinking about how frustrating it is when Jewel has buy-one-get-one-free sales only to have one item left in stock when I get to the store and, instead, pass the time by counting how many single-occupant SUV's (I also included vans and pick-ups but it's much more fun to pick on SUV's) that I encountered.  I assure you my count is accurate even though, for the first time since March, my glasses fogged-up on my ride.  Sheeh!  Nice weather, aye?  Since when did I wake up in a Costa Rican rain forest?  Anyway, I digress. 

 

One after another, I saw these smog pukers pass me by or cross in front of me.  My mind went back to the chart somebody posted on here not too long ago which showed SUV's having the worst passenger mile-per-gallon of any other mode of transportation, including 747's.  Pretty depressing.  So what was the final tally you ask?  Check this out...I saw 78 of these vehicle types on my commute this morning and 77 of them were single occupant.  How miserable.  Also alarming is the sheer number I saw given that I only commute 5.5 miles.  Extra credit for anybody who calculates the average SUV count per mile and single occupancy percent.  Then I hear on the radio today that this April-June was the hottest in recorded history.  Frustrating.  Sure, maybe a few of said vehicles were actually on their way to pick-up passengers, but c'mon!

 

I mean, I guess that's really it.  Wonder what I'll think about tomorrow moning?  Perhaps why the word "abbreviated" is such a gosh darn long word... 

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Permalink Reply by mike w. on July 17, 2010 at 6:26pm
Thank you, Ryan. i was too annoyed at the moment to take the time to look up the exact quote. i was remembering another's paraphrase, i think...

Tank-Ridin' Ryan said:
"Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." (from a House of Commons speech on Nov. 11, 1947)

mike w. said:
BENEVOLENT DICTATORSHIP??!! R U serious??

i agree with Churchill who once said something along the lines of : Democracy is a terrible system -the worst system there is, except for all the others.


Clark said:
.... I guess this is one example where a benevolent dictatorship beats a democracy...a democracy that only votes for its own immediate satisfaction and comfort.



Permalink Reply by Lee Diamond on July 18, 2010 at 10:11am
And they say Mussolini made the trains run on time.

Clark said

So yes, right now, I'm afraid I admire the Chinese. A 40% tax on these things sounds about right to me.
Permalink Reply by mike w. on July 18, 2010 at 10:28am
i think you're confusing "freedom" with a sense of entitlement (aka:license.)

Too much freedom? okay, i'll remember that next time i look up and grin at a surveilance camera, or the day when we all need internal passports, or give a DNA swab to board a flight... do i paint a grim picture, or do i exaggerate? i think that many Americans suffer from freedom from thinking. We suffer from an Illusion of Freedom, reinforced by apathy and lack of participation in democracy (look at the election turnouts.) Freedom here isn't being so much taken away, but given away- traded for the privilege of TV saturation of titties & beer,"reality" shows, NFL, and NASCAR -among other things. Bread & circuses.

But that said, there is still some ability in this country to, say, hold mass demonstrations without a fear of the army sending in tanks to crush the demonstrators into greasy red spots on the pavement, unlike in that "Benevolent Dictatorship" of China, which you so much admire.

Bottom line, if our democracy isn't doing the job, one need look no further for blame than the nearest mirror.

Good luck. Peace. Out.

Clark said:
mike w. said:
Thank you, Ryan. i was too annoyed at the moment to take the time to look up the exact quote.

Funny that you two were both thinking of the same silly quote, from a guy who'd just spent six years beating back an invading totalitarian scourge at his doorstep. Do you think Churchill might have been a bit biased? How about quoting Plato, the Greek who invented Democracy instead:

"...Dictatorship naturally arises out of Democracy, and the most aggravated form of tyranny and slavery out of the most extreme liberty..."

IMO democratic action hasn't worked for this country in many expanding areas: environment, deficit spending, economic stability, energy policy, waging war around the world, etc etc. Don't you think that a majority of Americans are dissatisfied with this country's efforts in these areas? Our corporations, special interest groups, and yes, us citizens, have TOO MUCH freedom. And as a result we've become enslaved...why can't the majority get ACTION?

The plethora of Single-occupant SUVs on the highways is only one small indicator: we must stand outside breathing their exhaust, watching those SUVs despoil our air and water, unbalance our economy with their wasteful mileage, and jeopardize our safety, all so that a single individual can drive to the corner store with SurroundSound and in air conditioned comfort inside his padded cage.

So yes, right now, I'm afraid I admire the Chinese. A 40% tax on these things sounds about right to me.
Permalink Reply by Michael Perz on July 18, 2010 at 3:03pm
Clark's position is reflective of a sadly all-too-common disbelief that millions of people making millions of individual decisions is a vastly superior societal mechanism than a small group of "enlightened" individuals making decisions for the masses. While some of us may not participate in political elections, we nevertheless vote hundreds of times over each day we step foot outside of our homes. This is only possible in a free democracy.
Permalink Reply by Old Tom on July 18, 2010 at 3:39pm
"How about quoting Plato, the Greek who invented Democracy instead:"

Sorry Clark, Plato didn't invent democracy. Athenian democracy was in place long before Plato; ever hear of Solon, Themistocles and Pericles?

Given you're so profoundly wrong on such a simple subject......
Permalink Reply by David P. on July 18, 2010 at 5:41pm
How did something about "SUV"s turn into a barely-informaed argument about taxing behaviors of which one disapproves, notions of democracy and the (dis)advantages thereof? Other than that this is the internet, where these things just happen.

Are our choices of bicycles (I mean the choices of which bicycles we ride, not that we choose to ride them) dictated strictly by need? I'd be willing to bet that the answer, in virtually everybody's case, is "no." If not, why are we (some of us) concerned by others' choosing their vehicles by influences other than need?

David
Permalink Reply by Bryan D on July 19, 2010 at 3:54pm
All this 'democracy' and plato shit aside (because that's not what this thread was about)...

I drive a Forester, technically an SUV, I think. It's the only car we own (my fiance and our 4 year old son). Most mornings, she drives him to day care, and then to work. I bike to work. There's a good chance that you'd pass her driving after she'd dropped off our son, and would be considered a single passenger SUV.

We are not selfish, arrogant, environment abusing people. We happen to make frequent trips to the Detroit area, to the Twin Cities, or just out to the suburbs for a weekend. We need a car (SUV) that can carry all our stuff, plus some bikes.

Point is, an SUV may not be the most fuel efficient car out there, but to demonize anyone driving one is just short sighted.
Permalink Reply by h' Zerocats on July 19, 2010 at 4:07pm
Curious-- what are all these trips to other cities for?

Bryan D said:
All this 'democracy' and plato shit aside (because that's not what this thread was about)...

I drive a Forester, technically an SUV, I think. It's the only car we own (my fiance and our 4 year old son). Most mornings, she drives him to day care, and then to work. I bike to work. There's a good chance that you'd pass her driving after she'd dropped off our son, and would be considered a single passenger SUV.

We are not selfish, arrogant, environment abusing people. We happen to make frequent trips to the Detroit area, to the Twin Cities, or just out to the suburbs for a weekend. We need a car (SUV) that can carry all our stuff, plus some bikes.

Point is, an SUV may not be the most fuel efficient car out there, but to demonize anyone driving one is just short sighted.
Permalink Reply by Bryan D on July 19, 2010 at 7:38pm
Have friends/family all over the midwest. And when you have a 4 year old, you better damn well keep him busy, otherwise you lose your mind.

H3N3 said:
Curious-- what are all these trips to other cities for?

Bryan D said:
All this 'democracy' and plato shit aside (because that's not what this thread was about)...

I drive a Forester, technically an SUV, I think. It's the only car we own (my fiance and our 4 year old son). Most mornings, she drives him to day care, and then to work. I bike to work. There's a good chance that you'd pass her driving after she'd dropped off our son, and would be considered a single passenger SUV.

We are not selfish, arrogant, environment abusing people. We happen to make frequent trips to the Detroit area, to the Twin Cities, or just out to the suburbs for a weekend. We need a car (SUV) that can carry all our stuff, plus some bikes.

Point is, an SUV may not be the most fuel efficient car out there, but to demonize anyone driving one is just short sighted.
Permalink Reply by Julie Aberman (Hochstadter) on July 19, 2010 at 10:09pm
Brian- Link to discussion about SUV vs. Boenig 737

And I can't find the exact quote, but I remember reading somewhere that the only thing that oil folks and environmentalist have in common is that they both like high a prices.
Permalink Reply by Old Tom on July 20, 2010 at 3:32pm
An American without a car is like a Comanche without a horse.
Permalink Reply by h' Zerocats on July 20, 2010 at 5:07pm
Thanks. I used to travel much more-- definitely feel better about myself since I learned to live small.
Regarding kids necessitating a certain vehicle or mandating automobile ownership-- I can't speak from personal experience but I know lots of folks who prove you can raise kids just fine without a car; it may just be that those people I happen to know are amazing, super-capable people and not representative of the population at large, I don't know.

Bryan D said:
Have friends/family all over the midwest. And when you have a 4 year old, you better damn well keep him busy, otherwise you lose your mind.

H3N3 said:
Curious-- what are all these trips to other cities for?

Bryan D said:
All this 'democracy' and plato shit aside (because that's not what this thread was about)...

I drive a Forester, technically an SUV, I think. It's the only car we own (my fiance and our 4 year old son). Most mornings, she drives him to day care, and then to work. I bike to work. There's a good chance that you'd pass her driving after she'd dropped off our son, and would be considered a single passenger SUV.

We are not selfish, arrogant, environment abusing people. We happen to make frequent trips to the Detroit area, to the Twin Cities, or just out to the suburbs for a weekend. We need a car (SUV) that can carry all our stuff, plus some bikes.

Point is, an SUV may not be the most fuel efficient car out there, but to demonize anyone driving one is just short sighted.

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