Re: Meat Prices Going Up

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:

"Pete C." <aux3.DOH.4@xxxxxxxx> wrote in message
A lot of people actually need the large vehicle for other activities and
the added cost in taxes, maintenance and insurance for a second small
vehicle that would be used for commuting and groceries is vastly higher
than the potential gas savings.

Sorry, but I cannot agree. Have you been to Europe? You won't see many
SUVs, no full sized pickups, etc, yet they manage to exist comfortably.
Sure, the price of gas (I paid $6.50 a gallon two weeks ago) is a factor,
but most of our "needs" are really "wants". Two and four seat cars such as
the Toyota Yaris, Smart, assorted Fiats are the norm. For the upscale
crow, this is a common Mercedes for the family
http://www.mercedes-benz.it/vetture/gamma/berline/classe_a/default.htm

You can't make valid comparisons with Europe as they do not by objective
measures have the same standard of living as the US. They also in
general are in a much more urban environment which means beyond the
standard of living issue, they simply don't have the option to do the
kind of driving travel we do in the US. That urbanization also means
they are able to have more viable public transportation systems that
simply aren't practical for most of the US.



Not everyone can afford to throw money away to make an eco-social
statement, nor are they willing to throw away their personal activities.
I did the math a while back when I was commuting and found that getting
a small car to use for commuting instead of my big truck would cost me
something like $1,500 a year more in extra taxes, maintenance and
insurance vs. just using the truck for everything and that figure didn't
even include the cost of that extra vehicle.

What did people do a few years ago when only tradesmen used trucks? We
survived very well. Try re-figuring and just rent a truck when you really n
eed one and see how that works out.

A few years ago? Try a few decades ago. A few decades ago as noted in my
other posts, people had big ol' station wagons with big V8 engines and
seating for 9 that were very much equivalent to the SUVs they have
today.

The bottom line is that there really hasn't been this mythical fad of
people buying much bigger vehicles like the eco types try to claim.
People simply went from big station wagons to big SUVs when the big
station wagons stopped being made and the SUVs were the only equivalent
option.


Oh, and to stay relevant to the food theme, the same factors that are
preventing development of spatial skills are also some of the big ones
behind the obesity epidemic.

If we all drove small cars and scooters, we'd probably cut back on food so
we could fit into them.

If we all drove small cars and scooters we'd end up fatter since they
would help eliminate many of the activities that give us what little
exercise we get. Try towing your camper with a scooter or putting your
kayak on it.

Not to mention that kids no longer walk two houses
down to get on the school bus. It has to stop at each damned house.

This is a function of safety more than anything else. Kids also don't
walk to school anymore in a great many areas. Getting them walking and
getting exercise would be a great thing, but when some small fraction of
a percent of them are being kidnapped by pedophiles or shot in gang
crossfire which gets lots of media attention then the 99.9whatever% of
them don't get their exercise due to the resulting paranoia.

Pete C.
.

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