With the price of a barrel of oil reaching $143 as I write this post, I’m reminded of the constant whining and moaning the mass media and general population are doing about having to spend so much on gas! I’m not gonna lie, I bitched and moaned about it all weekend as I drove a total of 350 some-odd miles, but then I realized that it’s really not that bad at all. It could be a true “blessing in disguise!”
So, these are my 5 Reasons why $5 Gas doesn’t suck as bad as we think!
1) $5 Gas is Environmentally Friendly - All those tree-huggers must love what’s going on as their wishes of less cars, more carpooling and an overall smaller carbon footprint per person is coming true. By the way, find out your carbon footprint here with this widget I found!
2) $5 Gas Helps Us Lose Weight - It looks like $5 gas is starting to make people realize that walking a few blocks to the market isn’t really that bad. More and more people are either walking or riding their bike to help them get around. We haven’t seen this much calorie burning since the caveman days when we had to hunt and gather our own food!!!
3) $5 Gas Makes Us More Social - More and more cars are being left in the garage in favor of carpooling, trains and subways. It’s a great opportunity for you to meet new people and helps us realize that “hey, people aren’t as crazy and senile as I see on the news!”
4) $5 Gas Makes for Less Traffic Jams - With less people wanting to drive, there are going to be less cars on the road. Less cars means less traffic. I hope to gain at least ONE day back from the 2 weeks I lose sitting in traffic every day!
5) $5 Gas Improves Local Economy - I’m assuming most of us live in neighborhoods where we can walk down to the local farmer’s market or local restaurant for a night of entertainment. We can probably discover new neighborhood events going on like outdoor movies in the park. Bottom line, we’re not going to be venturing too far away from home anymore, so why not enjoy where we live?
Anything else you can think of? Feel free to comment below and let us know!
Also, don’t forget to check out this great LA Times article “Envisioning a World of $200 a Barrel Oil“
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The other reason why $5/gallon for gas doesn’t suck is because it’s over $1.50 a litre here in Vancouver. For those of you keeping score at home, that works out to over $6 a gallon.
I remembered when someone from england told me they were paying $5 a gallon a few years ago and I was like . . . man, I can’t imagine paying that much. I’d just walk everyone if that happened. . . . being an american, I guess I never realized how much the rest of the world has suffered with these kind of prices!
I’m sure $5 gas doesn’t suck if you are a big investor in the oil and gas companies… they continue to push higher numbers than ever. $5 a gallon gas sucks for everyone owning a hummer though
I’ve heard (not sure if it’s true), that the manufacturing of the parts that make up a hybrid cars actually pollutes MORE than how environmentally friendly it is to drive. But with gas at $5 a gallon, these things are only going to get more popular.
i bet that’s a rumor big oil companies leaked out
Interesting points… yeah, it’s not all bad that gas is so expensive.
Over here in Iceland it’s about 176 ISK per litre - which is about $8.45 USD per gallon - if I got the calculations right
You have a good point - for those who are willing to relinquish the “freedom” of driving, there are benefits. I’ve never driven myself so I’m relatively unfazed. Still, it’s a lot less convenient and timely to walk someplace, especially with an armfull of veggies and I don’t know of anyone - besides you - who actually lives within walking distance from the farmer’s market.
Time to get off the hydrocarbons. The only good reason is it will force us to finally find alternatives for energy.
Reading this post made me realize that the ongoing crisis on petroleum prices has benefits too. You’ve really got the brilliant points.
If only most people think the way you do…
In the UK it is the equivalent of $10 per galon… sparked a few “fuel protests”.
I just get the train to work, cheaper, safer, can work / sleep en route to work… much better, apart from catching colds in the spring
I actually dont have a car anymore. I just walk anywhere. and if it is too far I grab a lift of someone. Saves me so much money each month from fuel.
My scooter does 200KM on around $5 - 6 in gas. It will also run on cheap booze. Gas crisis solved, but I would need to attend AA.
I do agree that $5 gas will help us all in the long run…I can’t say much because all I use is an electric scooter and a bicycle though
That is a great way to look at the situation adding humour to it makes it not seem so bad.