The problem might be the Toyota 4Runner.

Have to say…one of the things which I truly appreciate about living in New York is that we have a pretty good commuting system. I read somewhere recently (I forget where) that New York City is one of the major American cities *best* prepared for an energy crisis. People commute in to the city every weekday on buses and trains from the outer boroughs, Long Island, upstate, New Jersey, Connecticut, and even eastern Pennsylvania.

I gather from this brief excerpt that Miami doesn’t have a very good (if any) far-range commuting transit system. Then again, I have to say that I’m not quite as sympathetic to Ms. Lopez’s plight as I might otherwise be. A Toyota 4Runner is an SUV, if I’m not mistaken—hardly a fuel-efficient vehicle. I realize that she probably bought it when gasoline was cheap—but if there’s one thing that we as a nation seem to be forgetting how to do, it’s considering the potential long-range as well as the short-term strategy. SUVs are a case in point. Did it ever occur to any SUV owners at time of purchase that perrhaps there might come a time when gasoline might *not* be cheap and plentiful? No—they took it for granted that there would always be a ready supply, which was really something of a foolish assumption to make. How did so many people manage to forget the energy crisis of the late 70’s—including those who were alive and even driving at the time?? A family which has fewer than three children or which isn’t involved in a lot of outdoor activities (camping and so on) probably didn’t need quite that much space to begin with. They’re certainly impressive, no doubt—but in the final analysis, was the extra bit of ego gratification really worth it? The SUV owners made their beds and now they have to lie in them—they may not be quite as comfortable as before, but things are tough all over.

If there really is a global energy crisis looming on the horizon as some of those who should be in the know suggest, large cities like the greater Miami area really need to start getting their act together NOW and create better mass transit systems since that will help save energy.  It’s also imperative that we increase the fuel efficiency of our vehicles. Big oil doesn’t want to hear that, of course—but the time seems to be rapidly approaching at which it may be a forced choice for them between giving way to better fuel efficiency standards or seeing their profits fall off because people can no longer afford to drive anywhere except out of necessity.