In all of consumer outrage and political grandstanding about the high price of gasoline, I have yet to hear anybody of note publicly state the obvious: Too many Americans drive grossly inefficient vehicles for no good reason.
A rancher living in an area where there are few paved roads has a legitimate reason to drive a truck or a sport utility vehicle. So does a plumber or electrician or similar tradesman, who routinely hauls bulky equipment and materials. But a white-collar worker driving from an urban or suburban home to an office or shopping mall doesn’t.
I feel that anybody who can’t prove a legitimate need for a large, inefficient vehicle should be charged a 25 percent Idiot Tax on the purchase price.
That would help to conserve a finite resource.
