agil, actually, I wasn't so much thinking of the transportation numbers, but the other ones....so when you said Cato, I also kind of questioned that, since they started as a Libertarian-leaning think tank that became, when popular, a shill for big business (who now provides most of their funding). But that's neither here nor there; I agree that SUV energy usage is not that aggregious; truly, my studies of energy useage show the VAST majority of energy useage is in buildings, rather than transportaion. I was under the impression that something like 60% or more of all energy was used by buildings (industrial, commercial, governmental, and private homes), which I think most people would accept.

Just for fun, I wonder how numbers (both environmental ones such as emissions), and oil usage would be effected if every SUV were suddenly turned into, oh, say a small diesel car or one of the hybrids?

And I completely agree with DNT; I'm hilariously amused by what people pay for such an instantaneously depreciated item. It's like getting a gold bar and as soon as you walk out of the store, whacking off 20% of it and throwing it in the sewer.

Yes, the Cato institute is a libertarian think tank and prone to be anti-govermental regulation and pro free markets, thats why I tried to verify with the other sites mentioned.

And yes, replacing every SUV with a hybrid would make a bigger dent, but still probably not earth shattering. For instance a full 6% savings in oil usage (replacing SUVs with nothing at all, i.e. walking/biking) would mean (if I'm thinking right) that a 100 year oil supply would then last 106 years -- significant but not likely to matter much if we don't figure out how to harness a replacement fuel/power source.

Better than replacing every SUV would be to replace every car made before 1980 (particularly for the emmissions numbers) -- again to my point that its not just SUVs.

Eventually I imagine every new vechicle will be a hybrid and that will be good for all of us.

Finally, I also totally agree with DNT about new vechicles. I've never bought a new car in my life and I never will. Why? When I can buy a three year old vehicle for half the price that it was new. And I always find one well maintained such that no one will know the difference. (But I don't see what that has to do with SUVs. I bought our Toyota 4Runner used. My other vehicle is a 4 door sedan, 1 SUV serves our purposes well enough).

Thanks for the good posts.

P.S - I'm starting my own blog. Would you mind if I cut and paste your comments on my blog if I post my original post. I could post as anon if you would like. Or is that cheating in the blogsphere world?

Parking lots should be regulated/law;
If I had a retail business, I would have some signs made and designate SUV/Van parking only area. Keep those big arse wind & vision blockers parked away from normal sized cars.

One nice thing about SUV's is the advanced in braking being developed to lessen roll overs. They're learning a lot quickly.

Not all cars depreciate as quickly as others. Lease payments are calculated on residual value and they vary drastically. ..we bought a leftover '04 passat w/a manual tranny in Mass. for what they were selling a two year old "certified" for in Maine. You couldn't get a 4motion stick anywhere in Maine. They were all gone. Supply and demand....We could get very close to what we paid for ours if we sold it. I remember my cousin's year-old Civic getting totalled and her getting an insurance check for more than she paid for it (but I think that's probably a rare occurance)

I can't speak to how prevalent the practice of auto manufacturers choosing to pay CAFE fines as opposed meeting the standards was in 1980 or is now, but one somewhat obvious remedy to that situation would be to increase the fines until they hurt sufficiently enough to stop the practice.

As for CAFE standards in general, there are some who argue that they aren't needed and have unintended and deleterious consequences. This Heritage Foundation article recommends removing them altogether: http://www.heritage.org/Research/EnergyandEnvironment/BG825.cfm

Among their arguments is that making cars lighter ( a chief method of meeting the CAFE standards) has contributed to increased accident fatalities (up to 4000 a year), including accidents not involving other vehicles, such as guard rails and trees. Such single vehicle accidents make up 50% of all fatalities. (So you can't say that lighter cars only contribute to higher fatalities when they are hit by SUVs.)

They also argue that manufacturing the lighter materials, plastics, alloys and composites, merely shift energy usage from fuel efficiency to the energy cost that it takes to create these lighter materials in the first place.

The Heritage Foundation is a conservative group and may well be biased in the presentation of their data.

While I generally believe that free market economies have created the best quality of living for the highest percentage of people than other economies tried to date, I am very skeptical of removing all regulation as history has shown that corporations have not been great at regulating themselves (and consumers often are not able to find out about dangerous products or practices until it is too late).

Just food for thought. As in most public policy debates, I suspect that both sides are not being totally honest and bias data towards their own agendas.

"but one somewhat obvious remedy to that situation would be to increase the fines until they hurt sufficiently enough to stop the practice."

What's obvious is whatever fine is imposed will simply be added to the cost of all the products the company sells across the line to cover it. Might as well just save the nonsense and write the governement a check yourself for the hec of it when you buy any car. The result is the same. The obvious solution for the suv hating socialist types is to just flat out make them illegal to be built, owned or operated in this country. Make the company pay. Yeah right. Where does the company get money? From you, the consumer. The options are you pay more, or take away the right to choose. Pick one. Just remember those of you who'd pick option '2'. Tomorrow it will be something you use, want, like to do, ect. that will deemed evil for some half phony reason. Then you'll be the one that has to just deal with it because some group of clowns somewhere decided they don't like what you do.

One correction: Hummers ride great. Especially on the washboards.

I'd rather ride in a LeSabre on a trip, but the car-based cosmetic SUV's ride well too.

The popularity is about style. Nobody remembers when mini-vans were the newest style; they were "cool" and station wagons went out of style. Now SUV's are considered "cool" but I believe SUV's are becoming passe, fashion-wise, and so station wagons are coming back - but the term station wagon isn't used.

By the way, all the SUV-bashing that takes place seems based on the premise that all SUV's are big truck-based gas hogs, which is nonsense of course. Look at Chevy Equinox for example. It's a front-wheel drive car with truck sheet metal. Should make everybody happy, off-roader wannabbee and environmentalist alike. Trouble is that, no offense intended, but the modern liberal is reminiscent of the old Puritan. If something is enjoyable then it must be evil. Broad brush, I know, but you understand what I mean.

i like some of the car based suv/wagon things reminds me of the old amc eagle wagon i had for a company car back in the early 80s, that was a really good vehicle. not too big,car based, nice ride, and for the yr good mpg. and was really good at getting back into construction sites.

I believe most SUV bashing is based on the ignorance and stupidity of a minority of SUV drivers.

-They are higher and feel they can cut off a car without regard.
*** Have you ever seen a slow slow performing SUV cut in front of highway traffic causing a near collision?
-They think 4x4 prevents hydroplaning or they can brake quicker in bad weather.
*** Have you ever seen the SUV pass you in a snowstorm on the highway at 75 and 2 miles later you see them flipped over.
-They can't see around them (Napolean complex) so they change lanes poorly, park poorly and most can't take a parallel parking space if they had a bet on it.
*** Ever watch a Hummer H2 or Cadillac try to park in an urban area.

And finally, waiting behind an SUV at a gas station as it sucks up xx gallons of fuel which can barely get it 300 miles doesn't help its cause either.

One can only hope gas prices hit $5 p/gallon in this nation and this craze will evaporate.

I agree with you, Roosevelt.
What gripes me is our out-of-touch government allowing the high bumper heights of the oversized SUV.
This can turn a $1 scratch into a $1,000 or more collision.
This is no excuse for such a stupid situation.
I feel that ALL passenger vehicles must abide by a reasonable CAFE fuel economy standard - something like 25 mpg - maybe more.

A Diesel Suburban or Hummer could get close to this - better engineering and a more reasonable size would help..

A $5,000 luxury tax is a good idea - the wealthy are cut too many tax breaks as it is..

Gas mileage doesn't have to be a killer. My Prius keeps company with a 4WD Tacoma. Winter mileage is 23mpg; summer 27mpg. I am not in a hurry. It's my money and God's resources. I don't see me carrying manure or other garden necessities in my Prius so the truck has a home for a very long time.

A Hummer on the washboards? What the heck is a washboard?

**A Hummer on the washboards? What the heck is a washboard?**

A washboard refers to a very rough road, usually gravel or dirt. A car or probably more often something larger like a log truck hits a soft spot creating a bump. The tire hop makes another bump for a total of two. Next truck comes and it's three. Over time it can be hundreds. Rain gets channeled between the high spots and makes it even worse. The road surface resembles a wash board like your grandma or great grandma might have used to clean clothes, hence the name. Beats the crap out of little cars and their drivers. Doesn't hurt large cars and sport utes that much. There were many such roads around where I grew up. More and more have gotten paved over time but there's still a lot of them.

a washboard refers to a normal michigan road, thats why you havent heard of it jason.

Not to take this too far off topic, but earthworm's allegation "A $5,000 luxury tax is a good idea - the wealthy are cut too many tax breaks as it is.." needs a rebuttal. Consider the following:

Let's put tax cuts in terms everyone can understand.
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for dinner.
The bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:

The first four men - the poorest - would pay nothing;
The fifth would pay $1:
The sixth would pay $3;
The seventh, earthworm, pays $7;
The eighth $12;
The ninth $18.
The tenth man - the richest - would pay $59.

That's what they decided to do. The ten men ate dinner in the restaurant every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement-until one day, the owner threw them a curve.
"Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily meal by $20."

So now dinner for the ten only cost $80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes.

So the first four men were unaffected. They would still eat for free. But what about the other six-the paying customers?

How could they divvy up the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his "fair share?"

The six men realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would end up being *paid* to eat their meal.

So the restaurant owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.
And so the fifth man paid nothing, the sixth pitched in $2, earthworm paid $5, the eighth paid $9, the ninth paid $12, leaving the tenth man with a bill of $52 instead of his earlier $59.

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to eat for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.

"I only got a dollar out of the $20," declared the sixth man.

He pointed to the tenth. "But he got $7!"

"Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar, too. It's unfair that he got seven times more than me!"

"That's true!" shouted earthworm. "Why should he get $7 back when I got only $2? The wealthy get all the breaks!"

"Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison. "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night he didn't show up for dinner, so the nine sat down and ate without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They were $52 short!

And that, boys and girls, journalists and college instructors, is how the tax system works.

The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction.

Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up at the table anymore.

Unfortunately, Liberals and earthworm cannot grasp this straight-forward logic! But, everyone is entitled to his opinion no matter how silly it is. That's the beauty of our country!

Now let the fireworks really begin!!

"..waiting behind an SUV at a gas station as it sucks up xx gallons of fuel which can barely get it 300 miles doesn't help its cause either."

RooseveltL, if you're waiting in line at the Dairy Queen behind a family with six kids, which inevitably takes forever to order their treats, do you whine about that too? Is your time really that much more valuable than anyone else's?? Wow! I'm impressed!

**Unfortunately, Liberals and earthworm cannot grasp this straight-forward logic! But, everyone is entitled to his opinion no matter how silly it is. That's the beauty of our country!**

I don't think earthworm is proposing taking money from party 'a' for the purpose of giving it to party 'b'. He's proposing the tax as a method of social engineering to steer people away from a product he deems undesirable. Earthworm likes diesel vehicles. A lot of people don't like diesels because of the noise and the smell. Say he gets his wish and taxes the suv owners out of existence. Great. Next vehicle someone vilifies is the diesel. Would he then think a $5000 noise and stink tax on diesel vehicles is a great idea because a few unemployeed hippy bicycle riders in the city don't like them? I doubt it. He'd argue that they are no longer noisy and the exhaust smells like a rose garden. The anti diesel group wouldn't care even if true because they don't want to use it, and therefore nobody else needs to either. Got to watch what you wish for because what goes around comes around.

I know this is an ancient post, but I've just gotta put my 2 cents in...

As a kid way back when, while all the other guys dreamed about getting a Mustang or Corvette (as soon as I get a license!!) all I ever wanted was a Jeep. They were different. They were cheap. They could go anywhere. They were wide open without the top. When the time came to buy a real vehicle to replace my "first car" clunker, I looked at a CJ, a Scout, and a Blazer. Chevy got the nod due to more room and a V8(!). The longer I drove it, the more I enjoyed it--especially because I could see further down the road. It was traded for a CJ eight years later because the CJ owner wanted my Blazer badly enough I came out smelling like a rose on the deal. Drove the CJ for 10 years until the family outgrew it. I loved it, and wish I still had it. I was replaced by an extended cab Dakota (because I was tired of borrowing/renting a pickup when I needed tohaul stuff for the house/yard) which is now 15 years old. Having said all that, here's why I still drive a pickup

1. I like having a full frame underneath me instead of a couple layers of tin cans.
2. I still use it haul stuff for the house and garden.
3. I still prefer to be able to see further down the road.
4. My wife has MS, and she can get into/out of the pickup easily.
5. It's paid for!
6. I can feel the road in it, instead of being isolated from what is going on.
7. It's old enough that it allows ME to do the driving and thinking. No iDrive/traction control/anti-think brakes/automatic nothin'!
8. It's old enough that it is still American instead of Mexican/Canadian/Japanese/Chinese.
9. The doors go THUNK! when you close them instead of TING!
10. I am not convinced that all the "safety" doodads are that great. I've always felt that if you killed yourself because you couldn't control your vehicle, then the gene pool is improved.

When it's time to replace it (after our two girls have learned how to THINK and DRIVE in it--why do we put new drivers in something that does everything for them? When are they going to actually learn to be a thinking, responsible driver??), I'll probably get another pickup. I would be happy with a smaller one if it had any heft to it, or maybe even an old '52 era Chevy (that way I'm "recycling"--keep the greenies happy!) and have an even safer vehicle under me.

I grew up in the country and getting a truck was what everyone wanted.
I always wanted car and drove a car as ad aily driver since. I drive a truck for work and like it also but they are not efficient as cars. I think they are wastful as daily drivers for people who dont use them.

One of my friend loves truck and wants one too..

He says that he likes the view of looking down smaller cars,
and he likes being on big vehicle(makes him feel biggger?)

As for me, I want a nice smaller muscle car.. which sucks as much gas as trucks.. so I won't point out the gas :)

I urge all of you to read a book about Global Warming..... Boiling Point by Ross Gelbspan, or The End of Nature by Bill McKibben (any of his books are excellent). You will see that the earth's atmosphere is very small - only a few miles up. That is our ONLY atmosphere, and it is filled with the exhaust from our vehicles and that is what is causing the earth's climate change. The exhaust stays in that small space for 100 years, with only some of it absorbed by the ocean and forests. There are so many potential disasters headed our way (and I mean everyone, not just the U.S.) if governments and industries don't pay attention and clean up their acts.

Have you ever seen the glaciers in Glacier National Park? Or up in Canada in the Rockies? Well, if you haven't, you'd better hurry up and go....they are disappearing! And they won't return.

Most of us have children and grandchildren we love. Do you want them to suffer from nasty insect-borne diseases which will become more prevalent in the coming years? How about skin cancers and lung cancers from pollution and the disappearing ozone? Let's leave this beautiful earth in better shape than we found it. Don't buy an SUV (every gallon of gas you use puts about a 20 pound bag of charcoal into the atmosphere! and there are alternatives!!), Turn off your A/C & your floodlights, build smaller homes,use flourescent bulbs, start paying attention to your energy use. We can make a change!!!!

'Have you ever seen the glaciers in Glacier National Park? Or up in Canada in the Rockies? Well, if you haven't, you'd better hurry up and go....they are disappearing! And they won't return.'

Who says and who's pretending to know? Over time the earth has been both warmer all around than it is today, and colder than it is today. 10k years ago there were glaciers extending well into the continent. Who's fault was it that they retreated? Those damned american natives got better at building camp fires I suppose. Or what made the glaciers form over what had been for the most part a tropical planet before that? People no doubt have some impact on the environment today, but a lot of these temperature changes about has to be part of some kind of cycle don't you think? The time that the issue has been studied doesn't amount to jack. My gosh, we track weather for 100 years give or take and some want to make wild assumptions about the impact of the GM Suburban on the environment while totally ignoring what appears to have happened with the climate over the last billion years! Save the chicken little routine. I'm not ready to panic yet myself.

MotherofEarth in the late 70's early 80's they said we were returning to the ice age.We were having bad winters here in the midwest at that time.So whats the point?They change there mind as the weather pattern changes.If are vehicals are destroying our atmosphere.Then why are we sending up space shuttles to pollute the Ozone and knocking holes in it?Why do so many Tree Huggers earn Frequent Flyer miles?They should be against jet fuel.They also should not be reading all these Planet Earth Books.Because books are made of paper.Paper is made from trees.

Keeping Mine...Comfy as heck,nice lookin,will trade in on another next time.

Have you ever seen the glaciers in Glacier National Park? Or up in Canada in the Rockies? Well, if you haven't, you'd better hurry up and go....they are disappearing! And they won't return.

Sure they will!
But Motherof Earth, I have a question for you and all the "experts" you read:
The earth has gone through THREE ice ages. The earth COOLED and glaciers came. Just 10,000 years ago my home here in Vermont was under a sheet of ice a MILE THICK!! What caused the MASSIVE GLOBAL WARMING that caused the ice sheet to melt? The mountains here in Vermont were taller than the Rockies! The moving and melting ice sheared off the peaks and left rounded mountains, not to mention Lake Champlain! Did the evil Flintstone Flyers cause such massive pollution that all the ice melted? Let alone THREE TIMES????
So what caused the earth to cool AND warm those three times? I'll give you a clue. It wasn't my Expedition SUV!

There will always be people who don't care about humanity - there are a thousand excuses why people "need" their gas guzzlers. And, of course, being an American, it's your "right" to drive whatever you want. It's a free country...don't tell an American what to drive, blah blah blah......

I'll repeat - read a government report or a well-written book about the coming climate crisis. Don't just rely on BillOReilly or Rush Limbaugh to tell you how to think. It's just too easy to say "hey, I've got mine - too bad for everyone else! Start thinking about the earth as One Living Thing - what happens in India or Africa will indeed have an effect on the U.S. The avian flu won't start in the U.S., but its effects will certainly have a huge impact on our population. Coastal flooding in Central America may seem very far away, but the impact it will have on mankind and all living species will be felt around the world.

Educate yourselves about the world around you - just think what this great country could do if we collectively worked on this important issue. I believe we could reduce CO2 emissions, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, increase manufacturing (i.e. alternative energy, alternative transportation, alternative farming, etc.) increase business and stay prosperous while improving the living conditions of all citizens.

Christopher, your Expediton is a symbol of disgusting excess. Yes, it is a cause of global warming and Vermont is going to suffer terribly with Much Less than normal maple syrup production and many fewer tourists to see your less than colorful Fall Foliage. It's a fact!! Your skiing season which is so important to Vt's economy will be in danger of shortening. C'mon.....living in Vermont is like living next to God - you should be paying much more attention to Mother Nature and her wrath.

MotherofEarth, We're still waiting for your explaination of Global warming that occured 10k years ago...and global cooling before that...and global warming again before that...and how you or anyone else can make any reliable predictions based on the very very limited amount of time the earths temperature has been measured at all. A hypothesis assuming that burning gasoline in a sport ute in America is bad and then point to a fraction of a degree global increase in temp over 100 years while it fails to explain the changes that occured over thousands of years before hardly constitutes scientific proof of cause and effect to me. That's ok. I'll enjoy life as best I can. You can waste yours worrying for the rest of us.

BTW, I don't care for Rush Limbaugh at all. IMO he's a complete fool, nothing more than a cheerleader. O'Reilly is more entertaining. But don't think for a minute that the average person doesn't see through his shtick..."I'm an independent, I don't have a dog in the fight, I could vote either way, no spin ect", while proceeding to carry water for GW for the next 3 hours practically every day. I give Rush about the same consideration in his opinions as I do in yours. Is that independent enough for you MotherofEarth?

Far from a wealthy man am I, if I were, never would I drive a truck nor a SUV - unless I was paid to.
Plaidthumb, I must agree with you in part- although I consider the so-called full-sized truck to be oversized and wasteful.. - particularly here in the East - maybe they fit in the West..

IronCity, I take it you are one of the conservatives - a wild guess.
I am surely NOT a conservative nor a liberal......
And that ridiculous tax story - ha! I suppose what the conservatives want is for every man to pay a flat 10% in taxes - regardless if his income is $$$$$$$$ per year or $$$$ per year. But would it not be more fair for every to pay an equal amount say $10,000 per year this would force the lazy bums to go out and work and work hard !
A system very similar to this is now in use for the collection of school taxes !

Mother of Earth, you still didn't answer any of my questions. What caused the massive global warming that destroyed all those lovely glaicers that covered the continent? I help you here. The answer is "NOBODY KNOWS"!

And as far as the maple syrup goes, those trees didn't appear until about 100 years ago because up until 1900 the state was covered with evergreens. The evil LOGGERS came and cut down all those majestic pines for the lumber and the nasty farmers did the same. The sunlight and the absence of trees enabled the maple trees to proliferate. And the colors that now bring the tourists are a result of MAN doing what you would consider criminal today! And the ski resorts have only been around since the 50s. They will come, and they will go.

But I have other questions for you. What's wrong with the earth heating up? What's wrong with a longer growing season in Siberia? Do you have something against feeding people? In the 9th century Greenland as well as Iceland were crop growing regions. But that's wrong in your book. Why?
The climatologists that I read say the polar ice cap is indeed melting. And it has many times before. That water at the north pole has happened numerous times so it's no big deal. And that's according to people without an agenda.

But try this experimant will you? Take a glass of water and fill it with ice cubes. Then fill the rest of the glass with water to the brim. Let the glass stand and the ice melt. You'll notice the glass never overflows as the ice melts. That ice represents the northern ice cap. If it melts you can see how much the oceans will rise. They won't! But if the southern cap melts the ocean will indeed rise. So what? It's been warm there before because the scientists have found evidence of plant life in Antartica. So at one time it WAS warm! Again, so what?

The environmentalists say the Amazon rain forest is the "lungs of the Earth". But now Brazil is burning the forest at such a rate that country is now a major worldwide polluter. And we're still breathing! Why?

And as far as my Expedition goes, it's classified as ULEV by the Feds so it's NOT the big polluter you think. And it hauls my 5,000 pound craft trailer all over the northeast so I'm happy with it. And when I'm just driving without the trailer it gets 20 MPG. And by the way Howierd Dean AND his wife also own SUVs. And every time Algore gets out of that black Suburban he's getting out of an SUV. Again, so what?

I blame it on the Spaceshuttle missions.Who cares about outerspace unless we could send up space shuttle garbage haulers and let are garbadge float around up there instead of having land fills.Besides we know there is no oil on the moon we can use.Who cares if theres life up there.Were better off not to know.Because if we found out there was.We would have to fight there wars and send them money.If we were so concerned about finding alternative energy sources.We surley could have with the amount of money thrown away on that nonsence.What good is it and if they can not figure out how to keep those tiles on before those things burn up returning.Then what makes anyone think there is anyone smart enough to use any of there Outer space findings for any true worth while purpose?

We could have had electric cars or ones that run on air or lemon juice or hog manure or BS who knows.Its a fact they can be made to run on Alchol from are corn.But why is it not?Simple then there would not be all the money to be made off the fuel tax and EPA requirements etc etc etc.They could build a car that could run off human waste if they really wanted to.The fuel just from the tree huggers alone would be ample fuel supply?

OR....You could walk accross the street tomorrow and get creamed....SUVs are damn nice vehicles.Love mine.Dont like your omni ,cavalier,doesnt matter Im CONCERNED with mine only ,I buy It,I pay for Fuel,I take care of it.ITS MINE!!!!!!Never give it up...only for a new one...FUEL>>>With all the problems on this earth with nut cases,litering,wasting water,polluting water ,air,etc.Just to name a few.Suv is like a piss ant on Mount St Helens...

"No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible."

I dont like your Escallade or other SUV.Doesnt matter I like my Cavalier.Damn nice vehical I bought it and park it at the back of the parking lot and walk up.Im the guy parked out there next to the curb very close so im further way from the yellow parking line to prevent door dings.From the ones that are only concerned about theres.That could careless about mine.

I could care less about fuel.I only care about money in my pocket disapearing at the gas station.I could also careless about your water.I polute it every day with herbicides and incectisides and fertiliser.To put food in your mouth.While you hug a tree and haul the kids to soccer practice that is not even a real sport.

"No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible."

Ahh, the old someone ate bean dip and let a fart in south america and by the time it got to florida it was a hurricane philosophy.

There is NO avalance, NO hurricane, the sky falls NOT.
The fart ,I can smell(ugh), the snowflake, oh so beautiful, I can see; the sky stays in the same place and is worthy of its own thread.
I drive the vehicle that I like, always have, do not care about the opinion of idiots or sheeple.

When there's an option that makes sense at all, everyone will be doing it. In the mean time everyone should chill.

My predition is even when someone invents a vehicle that will tow a 30' trailer, haul 10 yards of material, seats 14, folds up and fits into a 4' parking space, improves the atomosphere, plants old growth trees, uses no fuel of any kind, is biodegradable, saves the native salmon and brings back the wooly mammoth, the same bunch b*tching about suvs now will still be b*tching then.

Yeah, but it's easier to be an alarmist. These are people that read books by "Environmentalists" instead of "Climatologists".

Now I did read a report that there was a symposium by climatologists and they determined that the polar caps are indeed melting. And at the current rate of melting they will disappear in......... 7,000 years! They acknowledge man is helping things along so they might disappear in ..... 6,500 years if we don't act NOW!

The air is also much cleaner than before. And the "environmentalists" now claim that since the air is cleaner, more sunlight is reaching the planet and global warming will increase!

AAAAAAIIIIIIIIEEEEEEE!

I'm just curious how many of you who are bashing the SUV's ,because of their gas usage , actually car-pool to work each day (or car-pool the neighborhood kids to school)?

And what about no federal taxes~you pay tax on what you spend?

In case you haven't figured it out yet...the reason we are sending shuttles into space is to find new places for earthlings to inhabit after Earth can no longer sustain its billions of inhabitants. Po'folks like me and most of you will not be able to afford the trip of course, so our future relatives will be sentenced to languishing on a poisoned planet. The ultra wealthy will be able to shuttle to a new planet capable of sustaining life.
And no I'm not a tree hugger, democrat, hippie, or Moonie. Just explaining why we spend billions to find a new home.

Hey I want a seat on the first shuttle! Do you suppose they'll have a bidding contest on ebay? LOL!

Janengland~I see that you are converting a bus into a motorhome. How is that on gas consumption?

Everybody contributes to the environment, in one way or another. It's just to different degrees.I mean, who here walks to work each day or rides the bus?

To answer the original question "why a truck or SUV?"~~ That's like asking why do you have a 4 bedroom house instead of one bedroom? Why do you have an inground pool instead of an above ground one? Why do you have 4 children instead of one? It all depends upon your lifestyle, needs and wants. That's life and life is meant to be enjoyed.

I agree with Gary~everybody needs to chill and enjoy life as best they can. In the meantime, I will continue to drive (and enjoy) my BMW Z3 and my new Lexus RX330 when I get it.

****In case you haven't figured it out yet...the reason we are sending shuttles into space is to find new places for earthlings to inhabit after Earth can no longer sustain its billions of inhabitants.*****

It's remarkable. The USA has 280 million people. The state of Texas has 265 million acres. You can put 100 percent of the population of the USA inside the borders of Texas and the population density (624 people per square mile) would be less than that of Rhode Island! That includes areas for roads, industry, shopping centers, etc. And the rest of the country would be completely vacant! Lots of area to grow food. We are not overcrowded.

Well as long as they send the Treehuggers,Yuppies,and California to the new planet I guess its OK then to find this new planet.But I do not understand how there can be more people?Grandma had 13 kids but mom had 4 and daughter had 2?Grandmas 13 are dead or soon will be and moms 4 are still going strong.But daughters 2 are drugies and will be dead before moms?

Clarification- I didn't say we were overcrowded,ChristopherH. I know there's plenty of land left.The variable there is HABITABLE land. And...it's what we DO with the available resources. And consider this- it may not even be a NEW planet- just one that we can mold to fit our needs...or perhaps a space station capable of supporting thousands of people. Yaah, I know it sounds weird, but think about it. It's a comin'.
GardenGraphicGal- the mileage on an RTS bus/ motorhome is about 10 mph diesel. Not the best, but it's also our home when we travel. Certainly no worse than the Hummer that SoccerMom uses to get Mojo Chicken at the local Publix for dinner.

Jane~ The fact that it is your "home when you travel" does really matter much. It's the amount of miles that pollute, so the few miles to the local Publix in a Hummer can no way compare to traveling hundreds of miles on a trip in a motorhome. Everything is relavent!

Jane~Don't get me wrong, I'm just as quilty of polluting the environment as the next driver :)

GGG no offense taken.I don't feel guilty when we do take trips- it's not as often as we'd like (gas is 2.65 unleaded as I write this, which is incredible in Florida, a 'cheap' state to live in). I drive a 1992 Tercel w/ 170,000 + miles and great mileage, so I am trying to do my share.

love my red SUV!!!!!!!!!!!

In Fact Im ready for a new one...Another red and yes another caddy..