Wednesday, June 04, 2008

A Small But Sweet Victory For The Environment

Despite the crazies out there that still try to deny what is happening to our planet, most people can see what is going on and are starting (albeit slowly) to catch on that we all need to do something to stem the tide of climate change. Although we really need strong governmental and international action to make things happen on a large scale, the consumer can help out as well. With gas prices climbing at an exponential rate, people are doing that when it comes to what they drive. When they do that, we see things like this.

From ThinkProgress:

Today, General Motors announced that it will be closing four truck and SUV plants in North America and may discontinue its Hummer line, citing the slumping sales of large vehicles brought on by high oil prices. Sales of the Hummer were down 61 percent last month, and May was also the first month in which cars outsold the Ford F-series truck since 1992. In place of the Hummer, GM CEO Rick Wagoner announced that the GM board has approved production of a new small automobile and a new electric car. As CBS reported, Wagoner “said the change in the U.S. market to smaller vehicles likely is permanent.”

It is a shame that GM didn't catch on sooner, but marketing the "American Dream" of gas guzzling was supposedly the thing to do for far too long. American car makers have a long way to go in matching the demands of a market that doesn't want to buy too many $4 gallons of gas. Still, it is a promising start to see the icons of that sub-culture fall.