Would you be for reducing the speed limit?

No. Quit taking away our freedoms maaaaaaaaaannn…

I’m inclined to believe we can achieve greater fuel savings through reducing the number of miles traveled rather than reducing the speed at which one travels. And considering that most of the driving we do is in town, rather than on the freeway where these national speed limits would take effect, again, reducing the miles traveled is a better savings option.

I’ve heard that our engines are more efficient these days at these speeds than they were 30 yrs ago. I’m on the fence about a national speed limit, unless they can prove it will save tremendous amounts of energy, and even then I’m thinking, we should be looking at other ways of doing business. Idaho Falls has a terrible mass transit system, still not even on par with what Poky had back in 1982…

Personally I’m seeing tons of ideas and activity around oil/gasoline, and little to none in the way of ideas or activity around alternatives in transportation, in fuels and in energy sources. It’s like we can’t get our heads out of our fannies long enough to see the light…

Folks, there is no energy “shortage” here that warrants a senior senator such as Warner crying “the sky is falling, drive slower.” I have yet to read, see or hear of any instance where energy has not been available on demand, yet the evidence is coming in that the public is indeed cutting back on their energy, and in particular, gas consumption. This alone should be a warning to the public that our rep’s and senator’s clearly have no clue as to what to do about this “crisis.” This country suffers today because of a lack of will and leadership in developing a coherent energy policy. It will not matter one iota how much oil the US saves, other developing countries such as India and China will step in and purchase our savings. Energy prices will never fall under that situation. Whether we like it or not, today’s high energy prices are here to stay, and, quite frankly, will continue to drift higher. Driving slower on the false assumption that we will somehow “save” and therefore contribute to “lower” costs of energy is nothing but fantasy from the cast and crew of our very own Washington-Make-Believe-Land. After all of that, Uncle Bumpy votes negative on the drive slower bit.

Re: Comment # 9 by Nemesis on July 10, 2008 @ 4:58 pm

Hey Nemesis, good to see you again.

Prime example of lack of leadership and the traditional ‘not in my backyard mentality” - the Kennedy’s.

[quote] But, it turns out, Kennedy’s antipathy to furtive rules changes and back room power plays stops at the water’s edge — specifically, the waters of Nantucket Sound, which separates Cape Cod (where the Kennedy family has an oceanfront compound in Hyannis Port) from the islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard. A shoal in the center of Nantucket Sound is where Cape Wind Associates hopes to build the nation’s first offshore wind farm — an array of 130 wind turbines capable of generating enough electricity to meet 75 percent of the Cape and Islands’ energy needs, without burning any oil or emitting any pollution. The turbines would be miles from any coastal property, barely visible on the horizon. In fact, Cape Wind says they would be farther away from the nearest home than any other electricity generation project in Massachusetts.

But like a lot of well-to-do Cape and Islands landowners and sailing enthusiasts, Kennedy doesn’t want to share his Atlantic playground with an energy facility, no matter how clean, green, and nearly unseen. Last month he secretly arranged for a poison-pill amendment, never debated in either house of Congress, to be slipped into an unrelated Coast Guard bill. It would give the governor of Massachusetts, who just happens to be a wind farm opponent, unilateral authority to veto the Cape Wind project. [end quote]

See: http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2006/05/07/kennedy_doesnt_play_by_the_rules/ for the entire story.

Guess if there is such a thing as justified whining, Americans whining about gas prices is justified (even though we pay less than most of the rest of the world).

As has been mentioned, bus services in the Idaho Falls area is grossly underserved. We, the citizens of Bonneville County are dependent on our own vehicles for transportation, or those of our relatives or neighbors; sometimes taxi services. This is common through out Idaho, including most of the Boise area; and it’s affluent areas.

The affluent might not be bothered by gas prices, unless their business’ are dependent on or involved with transportation. But the middle and lower class’ in Idaho are greatly affected by the current prices of fuel.

Current fuel prices not only prevent them from engaging in once enjoyed entertainment (for those who could enjoy that luxury), but also prevents them from visiting family. Buying clothing has become a rare event, rather than something they do as… needed. Funny how the need decreases when your money is all going for gas.

F O O D is now all eaten at home, and the meals are pretty routine. Kraft cheese and macaroni is so common the kids see it in their dreams, and the dog has quit begging at the table.

You think people might slow down on the freeway to convince the government to reduce speedlimits, thereby conserving gas? NO! If we slow down, we’re trying to save some of our own money so we can take the kids to Mickey D’s month after next!

Yeah! I’m whining! Mr. Oil and the family doctor get more of my take home pay than I do. I have good reason to whine and I do slow down in attempt to save a few of my pennies.

The way I see it is: if you’re not making enough to feed your family since the gas hike, you probably weren’t making enough BEFORE the gas hike. It’s not up to me as a taxpayer or OUR govt to bail you out. If that extra 40 -50 bucks a week hurt you that much than take charge of your life and do something about it. Find a better paying job. Or go back to school or take night classes and get yourself out of that lousy paying job. I put myself through 4 years of college to get my degree and I didn’t need anyone helping me. It was hard work but I did it. It’s not up to John Q Public to feel sorry for you because you can’t take your kids to McDonalds anymore. (they shouldn’t be eating that garbage to begin with IMO) All the “whining” in the world is not going to help your situation. The only person that can help you is YOU.
That’s the problem with this country right there, people not wanting to take responsibility for their own actions. Life isn’t easy, deal with it.

The 55 mph speed limit did not work before so why would anyone think it will work now? NOBODY drove 55 on the freeway, except for maybe my grandma. It’s an absurdly slow speed that does nothing but cause massive stress and frustration. Most modern vehicles are capable of better mileage at higher speeds since they were designed during an era of high speed limits. 65 or 70 might be acceptable as a temporary compromise but 55? The feds can blackmail the states into complying just like they did before but you can’t control the will of the masses. It’s NOT going to happen since most people in the western US will simply ignore it (including most police).