I see the problem being more a factor of the "relative" increase in a short period.
If the economy has a built in tolerance for fuel prices (used to ship all those twinkies to your wal-mart), it does not just mean people pay more to fill up their car. It means they pay more to buy everything.
Add that to the extra you have to pay to get to the store, and it starts to add up.
Even though I drive an F-250 that gets 14mpg, I don't complain about filling up the tank. I do, however, worry that the economy can only handle so much sticker shock before it starts to have a much greater effect.
The logical result of the higher fuel cost is a better chance for alternative fuels, which is what I am really hoping happens. As the fuel prices rise for traditional fuels, alternatives become "relatively" more affordable.
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I see the problem being more a factor of the "relative" increase in a short period. If the economy has a built in tolerance for fuel prices (used to ship all those twinkies to your wal-mart), it does not just mean people pay more to fill up their car. It means they pay more to buy everything. Add that to the extra you have to pay to get to the store, and it starts to add up. Even though I drive an F-250 that gets 14mpg, I don't complain about filling up the tank. I do, however, worry that the economy can only handle so much sticker shock before it starts to have a much greater effect. The logical result of the higher fuel cost is a better chance for alternative fuels, which is what I am really hoping happens. As the fuel prices rise for traditional fuels, alternatives become "relatively" more affordable.