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Originally Posted by KeepItGreasey
That sounds like talk from someone who either doesn't want to do anything about it... or is making money off the situation.
But I think one of the biggest misconceptions is people on here thinking that Americans give a rat's tuckus about what people pay in Europe or Canada.
Cars are a big part of our culture. We have always had relatively cheap gasoline. We like to travel in our cars. We like to go off-roading. We like fast cars. We've been making cars for a century now.
Do any of you older guys remember what the world was like before those people living in that complete and utter hell hole in the middle of the desert realized that they were squatting over an underground ocean of black liquid gold?
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See, I do care about gas pricing, even though it is because of environmental issues. I live in a small town over here, about three miles from city center. When I need to go to the supermarket or the lake in summer, I usually take the bicycle. When I go shopping downtown, I park the car once and take a footwalk to all shops that I need to go. When I have to stop before a closed railroad crossing or a long term red traffic light, I even turn off the car's engine. I know that I SHOULD HAVE bought a different car than the Camaro, but I couldn't help because it is so beautiful. So at least I try to make a change with thinking about how to avoid unneccessary rides or keeping the engine running if there is no need for.
I don't have a personal benefit out of increasing gas pricing, not at all. I do work in the automotive industry (I design alloy wheels for a German brand), but this doesn't stick to the gas price. Probably a low gas price would increase our sales, because people have more money to spend on our wheels then. Anyway, when you say that the Europeans think that the U.S. citizens give a crap about what we are paying, maybe you're right. I remember my last visit in the United States a couple of years ago, where I took a rental car and headed for some nature-sanctuary anywhere around Tennessee. I stopped at a panorama parking area, turned off the car, stepped outside and enjoyed the scenery, the woods and the fresh air. Then a young hillbillie couple arrived with their 30-year old pick-up, throwing tons of smog and dirt out of its muffler. They parked right next to me, got out of the car and stared down the valley for approximately 15 minutes. During this they kept their frickin engine of their frickin old trash car running all time. Right inside that sanctuary. Nobody cared. If that would happen somewhere here, all the other visitors would lynch these two at the next tree. But don't worry, sometimes I also see people over here waiting in their car with the motor running. As long as this is still happening, the gas price is imho way too low.