As someone who grew up during the period of America's obsession with driving and the lure of the open road, I freely admit it would be difficult for me to transition to public transit even if it was available where I live. So, I suck it up and pay over 4 dollars per gallon to support my habit. It is no different than someone who picked up a drug addiction to treat excessive pain and continues the habit long after the pain is gone.
The war in Ukraine and the worldwide revulsion spurred by Putin's actions has led to an increase in oil prices around the world. Oil is a global commodity and those who think America is insulated from the consequences of this fact should realize the price would be the same if we were producing 15 million barrels/day instead of 11 million. Do you really think Exxon-Mobil or Chevron would pay themselves less for American crude than they do for oil pumped in Saudi Arabia? Consumers in France and Britain are paying up to $8.00/gallon thanks to heavy government taxes.
Meanwhile, some Republicans, along with many fellow citizens who should know better are blaming the price hikes at the pump on the Biden administration. Besides being dishonest and unhelpful, the blame game does nothing to either obviate the shortage or fund alternatives. Yes, there are problems with alternative energy and electric vehicles. But we should be subsidizing the solutions to these problems instead of chanting "Drill baby, drill" while the biosphere on which we depend continues to deteriorate.
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