I have returned from ‘the great road trip’ that took me down to Arizona, across to Southern California and then back home. It was originally going to be a motorcycle trip but after looking at the temperatures in Arizona and the California desert, I wisely opted to drive rather than take my motorcycle.
It will take me a day or two to get back up to speed on what has been happening because I literally did not turn on the TV in any place I stayed. I did have my iPad and phone and checked the news that way, but I watched zero TV. I guess I didn’t miss it that much! That said, I will re-engage and start ranting in this blog once again – until I head for Portugal at the end of October.
Today I’ll just make a couple of observations from my trip to get my fingers and brain warmed up to start writing again.
I stopped by Hoover Dam on my way down to Arizona and looked at Lake Mead. The water level drop is astounding. I think it was down 147 feet when I was there. This is truly a disaster in the making given the millions of people who are dependent upon this as a source of water.
While the stark reality of the water level was shocking, what I found even more interesting was the fact that no matter where I went in Arizona or California, there was very little evidence of any kind of water restrictions/conservation. Golf courses were green. Swimming pools were full. Sprinklers were operating. Life looked pretty normal. I don’t see how this is sustainable.
I would think that California would be building desalinization plants as fast as they can, but every time they try the project gets bogged down in litigation and ultimately fails to materialize. I know from having worked in the Middle East that building desalinization plants is quite possible without totally screwing up the environment. I have a degree in Ocean Engineering. I am all for protecting the ocean. However, if there is no water for people to drink, any discussion about potential impacts on a small section of coastline will be moot. It is easy to imagine a dystopian future in which wars and civil strife are caused due to a lack of water. Something clearly needs to be done.
The other observation I made on my trip was about gasoline prices and use. Gas prices in Montana were just under $5.00/gallon before I left and when I got to California, I was seeing the $6.00+ price per gallon. As we all know, there has been a lot of press coverage about the price of gas and lots of people are feeling the pain and complaining.
One would think, if the price of gas were truly an issue adversely affecting a lot of people, people would take steps to try to conserve gas by driving a little more conservatively or a little slower. In general, a vehicle is 28% less efficient1 and uses more gas when going 80 mph versus 50 mph. I’m not recommending everyone drive 50 mph but even the difference between 70 mph and 80 mph is 11%. If you drive a lot, that mounts up to a significant amount of money.
I saw zero evidence of people trying to conserve gas by just driving the speed limit, for example. If the speed limit was 65 mph, people are routinely driving between 70 and 80 mph. Out on the highway when the speed limit was 80 mph, I was routinely passed by vehicles travelling well in excess of that speed. One can only conclude that a lot of people like to bitch about the high price of gas but are unwilling to personally do anything to try to mitigate the impact.
Well, those are just my observations from my trip. I will get caught up on the news today and re-engage tomorrow. It appears as if there is no shortage of material to discuss.
Hi Mike! I’m glad that you had a nice vacation to try to get away from the craziness and not watch TV. I am starting to believe there are two different species of humans on the planet. One that appreciates logic, the other doesn’t. One species who accepts facts and the other species would rather accept conspiracy theories than facts. This is one fact to me that seems undeniable.
Glad you had a good trip. My observation was the one time on the freeway living here – 1 person per car on a super clogged freeway on a Saturday – same as always – people complaining about high gas prices – and blaming the government – when I and you know – the price isn’t high – until people stop buying it – and the oil company execs know it. People can gripe all they want – but until they actual do something about it – rather than yack about it – it’s just talk. Same for the water – sadly. We have water rules – and when I walk in the morning – nobody (read few) on this street is following them. They won’t until the price is raised or the water is cut off. Sadly – they only care about one thing that mankind has only cared about – $$. So – eventually – that’s how they’ll control it – by raising the price. Water anyway. It works. My expectation anyway !
Cheers, B