Shut Up and Pay

The whining coming out of United States citizens over gasoline prices is enough to send me screaming to my death.  Really?  Shut up.  

The rest of the world pays $6+ per liter of gas.  As Americans, we are so entitled that we think we should pay less.  We should pay less for gas because we are so short-sighted we never developed any good framework of mass transit except for the automobile and the interstate system?  Suck it up.  

We have come to believe that every family member 16 years of age must have their very own vehicle, adding to the problem of greenhouse gasses.  My own (deeply entitled and supremely ignorant) sister had 6 cars parked in her driveway at one time.  Get the hell out of my town.  I am so very SICK of these entitled, whiners bemoaning the price of gasoline.  

I just have to laugh when I see these giant trucks all the redneck white boys drive around in the State of Louisiana.  Usually they are speeding, usually they are reckless, and usually they are the cause of fatal accidents, (combined with alcohol consumption).  And also, quite usually, they don't need these trucks for any viable reason, it's just some sort of penis envy thing.

When I moved to a metropolitan area (and granted, had retired from the workforce), I gave up my car.  I took the bus or streetcar.  I also was financially able to ride an Uber now and then.  I am not saying people should give up their cars, I know that's not feasible in this society.  But the mindset has to change a bit here.  We need smaller cars.  We need hybrid cars.  We need to say, "gee, I can get their on public transportation" once in awhile.   We need to go through the withdrawals of our oil addiction because we are not only killing ourselves, we are killing future generations with our careless consumption of fossil fuels.  Meanwhile, the Oligarchs here and abroad get rich.  Doesn't that make you just a little angry?

I am not alone with wanting to be free of tyrannical regimes like the Saudis or the United Arab Emirates.  I am not alone when watching a dictator like Putin destroy people's lives because his powerful ego trip is off the rails.  At the same time, I am not convinced we are any better than them in many, many ways.

But, I digress.  Please stop whining about gas prices.  I've been advocating for $6 per gallon since my first trip to Europe.  I saw how most families had one car and managed quite nicely.  I saw how mass transit was well planned, efficient, affordable and lovely to use.  I saw smaller cars and better, safer roads.  

SO SHUT UP AND PAY.  Don't be another entitled UGLY AMERICAN.  Stop electing officials who give the oil industry carte blanche to get away with killing the planet.  Get rid of the John Kennedys, the Ted Cruz's, the Steve Scalises.  Put an end to congress being in bed with the mega rich.  But for now, just shut up and pay.  

Don't forget to vote in the midterms.