Ah, how well I remember the good old days, as well. Whoppin' slaves and
sellin cotton, ah the life. Where did it all go? };)
Lifestyles, and technologies, come and go. The steam locomotive, a grander
and more noble beast than ever was built, has passed into the realm of Was
... so, too, with the internal combustion engine. In my lifetime? My
daughter's? My crystal ball's no better than most, but I suspect it won't be
all that long. Sure I don't mind being a dinosaur, myself. I enjoy my car,
my MGB. I've been a gearhead most of my life.
However, I've got to agree with the VP that the automobile has caused some
pretty awful, and drastic, changes to modern life. Not all of them bad, but
enough of them. Air quality is one of them, and sure there's got to be
something done about it. Myself, I'd prefer a better, safer, and more
efficient system of public transport. ::shrug:: I'd use it, if it were there.
When I lived in Boston, I seldom drove ... usually, only when I really
wanted to. It's how I got away with driving a TR4 for several years without
any backup vehicle. Then again, I'm originally a European. This country's
large enough and spread out enough that I'm not certain there's a practical
way to get people to use public transport. Then there's that American
'independence' thing, a feeling for the need for personal control and freedom
of movement. Not altogether a bad thing, but like most things, can get out of
hand. I'd certainly like to see public transport more than I'd like to see
more restrictive pollution laws that simply encourage people to buy more and
newer cars. I, for one, would like to see less traffic on the highways, and
less superhighways replacing forest areas and greenbelts around our cities.
There's no fun sitting in any car, British or otherwise, in a traffic jam.
And although cigarettes certainly are not good for you, most honest
physicians will tell you that several lungfulls of air from the Eastern
seaboard are worse.
I'm not certain I'd spend a lot of energy fighting the anti-smog machine or
bemoaning the good old days. Rather, I'd press for legislation that would
ensure that I'd have someplace to drive, occasionally, into the forseeable
future.
Just my tuppence worth, there. No flame intended.
Corey
75 MGB 'Rags'
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