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PAGE 2A PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS THURSDAY. APRIL 8, 2004
Gas prices may be high but the hidden costs
are what really get us
There are two options when the price of some
thing gets too high: shop for a cheaper alternative
or use less of the product.
Unfortunately with your car, there’s not much
available in the way of alternatives to gasoline,
yet. Hybrids are coming, but aren’t widely driven
at this point.
To battle the high gas prices, which could reach
$3 a gallon by summer in some parts of the U.S.,
you have to resort to step two — using less of the
product.
Whether it’s Detroit marketing, cultural values,
or genetic makeup, Americans generally believe
they have an innate right to drive everywhere pos
sible in the biggest car that will fit
on the road and it’s up to the gov
ernment to see there is a plentiful
stash of cheap gasoline along the
way.
Despite potential environmental
(global-warming, smog, harmful air
quality), political (dependence on
the middle-east oil nations) and
health (obesity and heart disease
due to lack of bodily movement)
consequences, the nation’s prime
concern with transportation remains
cheap fuel.
But, the other hidden costs we
pay when we rely on cheap foreign fuel are
becoming difficult to ignore.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), not tra
ditionally known as conservation-minded, is now
encouraging “citizens” to buy more fuel efficient
cars via their website because of environmental
and political reasons. Plus the DOE touts the eco
nomic benefits of ending the heavy reliance on oil
on both a personal and national level.
Their website www.fueleconomy.gov states that
the average driver would save several hundred
dollars a year by being more economic with their
fuel usage.
They emphasize repeatedly that the heavy
dependence American drivers now put on foreign
oil producers affects our national security.
The people becoming richest off black gold are
unsavory nations, not Jed Clampett and the Hill
billies.
According to the DOE website, 55 percent of
all oil used in the U.S. is imported — the highest
percentage in U.S. history. Three-quarters of this
oil is used as fuel for transportation.
Unlike most other products, gas doesn’t follow
normal economic principals for a variety of convo
luted reasons including, U.S. government inter
vention, OPEC’s control and price manipulations
of the market, international currency rates and the
inescapable fact that as a nation we’re utterly
dependent on it.
Economists are quick to point out that in a
world or historical perspective gas prices aren’t
really that high today.
In the 1970s, due primarily to OPEC manipula
tion, there were both higher prices and shortages.
At that time, the U.S. companies made the first
real push for fuel economy on the roads. We saw
the giant station-wagons of the time get replaced
by Chevettes and the like. Industries which used
the most fuel undertook the most significant con
servation plans and reaped the biggest savings.
Individual drivers temporarily flirted with more
fuel efficient cars, but without lasting effect.
We’ve gone back to a bigger is
better automotive approach with
SUV’s, including the Hummer
which is known for getting less than
10 miles to the gallon around town.
In Japan, fuel efficiency became a
driving factor when gas prices rose
to $4 a gallon and showed little sign
of decreasing.
But there is hope that a general
concern about the environment,
coupled with the geopolitical stakes,
are changing attitudes. Both Ford
and Chevy have plans to offer
trucks and SUV’s with hybrid
engines.
In a weird sort of way, things may have to get
worse before we see any significant changes in the
gas usage on our highways, but we may be
approaching that point as nothing lasts forever,
including Earth’s oil supply.
Depending on which figures you use, the avail
able oil fields will run dry in 40 to 100 years.
These figures, however, are subject to change radi
cally as China is quickly charging ahead in eco
nomic development and using more and more gas.
Economists theorize in another decade or two at
the most, the fact that the wells are running low
will hit home and the race to find new fuel sources
will accelerate.
Even now, with the supply pretty well-assured
for most adult life spans, there are good reasons to
think of reducing the time behind the wheel.
Walking more, being on the road less, or plan
ning activities which don’t require lengthy road
trips produce a wide range of benefits including
better health through exercise, cleaner air for all,
less noise pollution and personal safety (motor
vehicles are a leading killer among all age groups
up to the mid 50s).
So next time you go to the pump, rather than
complain about the price, figure out how to save a
few bucks by cutting consumption.
Next time you go
to the pump,
rather than com
plain about the
price figure out
how to save a few
bucks by cutting
consumption.
Tell us what you think via the internet: the progress online message board www.picken-
sprogress.com
or e-mail a Letter to the Editor at news@pickensprogress.com. All Letters must have a valid
e-mail address and a full name. The name will be published
Reflections
By Elaine Jordan
Redbuds Herald Spring
When I see the redbud trees
along our roadsides and rivers put
forth their first tentative buds, I
know that spring has finally arrived
here in North Georgia.
Yet only a few short weeks ago I
was just as convinced that spring
had taken a wrong turn and gotten
lost somewhere along the bleak cor
ridors of winter.
I felt the yearning for spring in
my veins, like a shortage of some
vital nutrient. And tired of the rig
ors of winter, I would try to “whis
tle up spring” on my walks down
my country road, only to worry that
I would be rewarded with shoes full
of slush if snowflakes started falling
again.
“Will spring ever arrive?” I
asked my neighbor’s dog, who
often accompanies me on my
walks. Wisely, he never answers my
foolish questions but just sniffs at a
patch of purple and white Birdfoot
violets growing alongside the road.
Is the stone in your life rolled away?
$tcfeens County Progress
(USPS 431-820)
Published by Pickens County Progress, Inc.
94 North Main St. P.O. Box 67 Jasper, GA 30143
(706) 253-2457 FAX (706) 253-9738
JOHN R. POOL DAN POOL
Publisher Editor
WILLIAM E. POOL
Managing Editor
Published each Thursday at Jasper, Pickens County, Georgia. Entered at
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But his quizzi
cal look almost
asks, “Aren’t
these spring
flowers?” In my
winter frustra
tion, I hardly
notice these
early wildflow-
ers.
Even though
many trees still
stand etched in calligraphic stark
ness against the sky, some are
beginning to wear subtle veils of
soft, sheer color now.
The willows awake from their
dormant sleep first, flush with a
pale green so vibrant it almost
hurts our winter-weary eyes.
Redbud trees (Cercis canaden
sis) aren’t red at all, but a kind of
rose-fushia. Later on they will
have large heart-shaped leaves; but
now, the ends of the twigs are a
tiny red-green.
A Cherokee Indian friend of
mine tells me that by mid-summer
when the redbud branches are
fringed with thousands of green
bean-like pods and flowers, the
pods and flowers can be picked,
cooked and eaten.
Some people call the redbud the
Judas tree. According to legend,
the related Asian species was the
tree upon which Judas Iscariot
hanged himself after he betrayed
Jesus. Forever after, the pale white
flowers blushed red, stained indeli
bly with his blood.
In Wisconsin where I grew up,
we did not have redbud trees to tell
us spring had arrived. Instead we
had pussy willows (.Salix discolor)
which do not grow here. The soft
grey catkins of pussy willows
hatch like furry caterpillars from
glossy, protective scales early each
spring. I missed seeing those early
spring plants from my home state
and I told a long-time friend about
my yearnings one day when she
called. Lo and behold, about a
week later a huge box was deliv
ered by UPS and, when I opened it,
there was a generous bouquet of
pussy willow stems inside. She had
braved the slush and cold water in
the swamp near her house to wade
out and cut me some pussy wil
lows. Friends like that should
never be taken for granted.
Now as Easter arrives, the sun
warms the earth and awakens seeds
and plants, insects and animals to
begin the annual spring ritual of
rebirth and growth. I’m more than
ready to be done with winter and
follow the sun’s path toward sum
mer.
W I hate to see the session end. It's easier to keep
an eye on the politicians when they're all in a crowd!"
Senator Stephens comments on Legislative session
Long days, late nights as
legislative session concludes
By Senator Bill Stephens
The State Capitol was home to a
flurry of activity as the General
Assembly labored to wrap-up the
final days of the 2004 legislative
session.
This week consisted of late
nights, several ending well past
midnight, as we worked diligently
to complete the business of the
state.
Dozens of important and pro
ductive bills were passed, ranging
from approving a fall sales tax hol
iday to giving prosecutors equal
strikes injury selection.
The legislation to protect the
HOPE Scholarship passed both
chambers and I will serve on the
conference committee to work out
the differences between the House
and Senate versions of the bill.
Senate Resolution 595, a constitu
tional amendment defining mar
riage as a union of only a man and
a woman, finally passed in the
House.
The people of Georgia, not
activist judges, will now have the
opportunity to decide on this
important issue for families. This
referendum will be on the ballot in
the November election for your
approval as the final step in secur
ing this amendment to the constitu
tion.
One of the most significant
pieces of legislation we passed this
week was meaningful tort reform.
The legislation as passed by the
Senate grants immunity to hospi
tals in cases where negligent doc
tors were working as independent
contractors, heightens the require
ments for expert witnesses who tes
tify in medical malpractice cases,
shields emergency rooms from lia
bility in certain cases, and requires
juries to more precisely apportion
liability in multi-defendant cases.
Over the past decade, skyrocket
ing medical malpractice jury
awards have forced hospitals and
physicians to pay out exorbitant
sums in malpractice insurance,
causing hospitals to close and good
doctors to retire or move. This
sweeping reform legislation
addresses this healthcare crisis.
House Bill 1028, which passed 36-
17 following an eight hour debate,
will be debated in a joint House-
Senate conference committee.
The 2005 state budget continues
to be the priority as the House and
Senate near a compromise on the
final budget. The Senate is commit
ted to producing a responsible and
balanced budget and is working
with the House budget negotiators
to address differences.
While budget reductions are
always difficult, I feel confident
that the Senate has held the line
against tax increases and main
tained our priorities.
Our version of the budget fully
funds Medicaid for our neediest cit
izens, funds PeachCare for chil
dren, and helps protect children in
state custody.
We have committed ourselves to
education by saving the HOPE
scholarship for future generations
and giving hard-working teachers a
well-deserved pay raise.
As always, I would love to hear
from you. Please do not hesitate to
call me at (404) 656-0048 or email
me at bstephen@legis.state.ga.us.
Also, I encourage you to visit my
website: billstephens.com for more
information.
Oa ks Cl 1 i mate
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