On this date [Jan 2] in 1974, President Nixon signed a law setting the national speed limit at 55 miles per hour. The Emergency Highway Energy Conservation Act was a response to an oil embargo put in place by the Arab members of OPEC — the Organization for Petroleum Exporting Countries — in protest of the United States' support of Israel....
Today's social media is full of concerns about a possible WWIII resulting from escalation of the recent air strikes agains Iran. We have, for too long now, been told that faster, more aggressive actions are needed to respond to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, particularly those from fossil fuel combustion. Let us be among the first, at least that we're aware of, to suggest bringing back a 55 mile per hour nationwide speed limit as a means of adapting and transitioning to a zero carbon economy.
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| time to slow down, we're moving too fast?
Photo by J. Harrington
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I'm old enough to remember the OPEC oil embargo. In fact, I had my driver's license when it occurred. I remember gas lines. I anticipate the equivalent in the form of charging lines if we hope to use electric vehicles the same way we use today's cars, trucks and SUVs. So, 55 mph worked once, or at least it helped. Which presidential candidate will pick up the gauntlet and propose a return to 55 mph. The future is constantly approaching us at speeds too great for our own good. If we deliberately slow down, we won't be rushing at that future as if it were a desirable head-on collision, or is that collusion these days?
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| how much horsepower do we really need?
Photo by J. Harrington
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Wouldn't it help oil companies to transition away from their stranded assets and diminish their interest in seeking more of what we shouldn't be consuming in the first place? It doesn't depend on automakers agreeing to support more rigorous CAFE standards. It would help make the US more energy independent with little or no investment required. In fact, if we really wanted to do it right, we'd make it 55 mph for combustion-powered vehicles and 70 mph for electrics. That should help boost interest in and purchase of electric vehicles, especially if we get Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts to help finance the charging stations in exchange for exclusive seating rights.
People always tell me, “Don’t put the cart
before the horse,” which is curious
because I don’t have a horse.
Is this some new advancement in public shaming—
repeatedly drawing one’s attention
to that which one is currently not, and never
has been, in possession of?
If ever, I happen to obtain a Clydesdale,
then I’ll align, absolutely, it to its proper position
in relation to the cart, but I can’t
do that because all I have is the cart.
One solitary cart—a little grief wagon that goes
precisely nowhere—along with, apparently, one
invisible horse, which does not pull,
does not haul, does not in any fashion
budge, impel or tow my disaster buggy
up the hill or down the road.
I’m not asking for much. A more tender world
with less hatred strutting the streets.
Perhaps a downtick in state-sanctioned violence
against civilians. Wind through the trees.
Water under the bridge. Kindness.
LOL, says the world. These things take time, says
the Office of Disappointment. Change cannot
be rushed, says the roundtable of my smartest friends.
Then, together, they say, The cart!
They say, The horse!
They say, Haven’t we told you already?
So my invisible horse remains
standing where it previously stood:
between hotdog stands and hallelujahs,
between the Nasdaq and the moon’s adumbral visage,
between the status quo and The Great Filter,
and I can see that it’s not his fault—being
invisible and not existing—
how he’s the product of both my imagination
and society’s failure of imagination.
Watch how I press my hand against his translucent flank.
How I hold two sugar cubes to his hypothetical mouth.
How I say I want to believe in him,
speaking softly into his missing ear.
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Thanks for visiting. Come again when you can.
Please be kind to each other while you can.
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