The Serious Ramifications of the Energy Crisis
By Haley Swenson - Aug 8th, 2008 at 9:15 amI was surprised to see this headline for an AP article on CNN.com yesterday: “For some, energy prices are threatening lives.” And while the article is a rather sobering report on how rural Alaskans are scrambling to find ways to survive the winter (which is just two months away for some of them) despite soaring heating oil prices, it’s also a positive improvement on the incredibly middle-class way rising energy costs have been covered in the media.
At long last, an article about the truly life-threatening consequences of rising oil costs, rather than another sob story about families being forced to take “stay-cations” instead of grand vacations this summer.
Maybe global warming will reduce their heating bills.
August 8th, 2008 at 10:56 amor maybe they could try electing people that help move us AWAY from oil instead of enslaved to it’s ever increasing price.
August 8th, 2008 at 11:55 amWell, of course they could try that, Tommaso. But it’s not like Alaskans are just complete idiots, repeatedly electing someone who does nothing for them and loves big oil at their expense.
They’ve gotten huge amounts of federal money, compared with the taxes they pay, because Stevens is a senior, senior Senator. He has always had a knack for this and for getting Alaska’s issues on the Washington agenda where they would otherwise be overlooked as a small state.
And beyond this, I think it’s important to remember that looking long-term is a luxury of people not living paycheck to paycheck. I mean, say they vote in some new people who will find us a long-term solution to the energy problems. What do they do in the meantime while they can’t afford to heat their houses? Maybe the problem they’re facing can be blamed on their voting records, but what does laying that blame down accomplish for anyone?
August 8th, 2008 at 12:07 pm