The Global Penalties for Oil Consumption Continue

No, this isn't a post about global warming. Nor about how the US feeds billions of dollars into the economies of nations it would tell to f*** off if it weren't for the addiction.

This is about our inability to stop guzzling gas. To stop buying & driving those hummers and suvs. Lester Brown has a good piece in the Washington Post Outlook section today that points out a very basic fact of global economics. The more food we turn into fuel to replace oil consumption, the less food is turned into . . . well, food, for global consumption. As Brown points out, "it is a battle between the world's 800 million automobile owners, who want to maintain their mobility, and the world's 2 billion poorest people, who simply want to survive." And just think of how that balance is going to be worsening as millions and millions of Chinese realize the dreams of car ownership for the first time. They won't be going back to their bikes.

Brown also notes that "the grain required to fill a 25-gallon SUV gas tank with ethanol would feed one person for a full year."

Take a moment and think about that. The search for alternative fuels in agriculture isn't the holy grail to solve our problems. We must look long and hard at our fuel consumption. Stop telling yourself all those rationalizations for your gas-guzzling car. Think about yourselves, your family and the world. We're all in this together.