Switzerland

Our family had a great vacation this summer in Switzerland, staying mostly in the areas in and around the lake of Constance. I have a great friend there and it was good to spend time with them.

It was pretty expensive. Fuel was $5 a gallon and dinners were ~30 a person, but it is certainly one of the most beautiful places in the the world.

From the terrace of our flat, we could see the Alps on one side and the lake on the other. The road that passed by our flat had bike lanes and there were almost as many bikes on the road as cars. If you took the motorbike into consideration, the two wheelers certainly out numbered 4 wheelers. Small trains passed by about every 20 minutes. It struck me, as I was sitting there having a glass of wine and feeling very European, that if oil trekked up to $10 or $20 a gallon, this country could get by without a huge change in lifestyle.

I have tried to discuss this with several people, who cite that yes, it is like that in Europe, but it is so small relative to the US. I would argue that if we broke the US into communities and looked at the investment return over the long haul, verses the true cost of a petroleum based transport system, that it is feasible to do this. Of course what we must have is the will of the public.

This, of course, is not being discussed in our election year debates, but the candidates have implied that they will get the cost of the oil down. This will not be possible. Petrol is now a limited resource. Because us poor Americans cannot think or plan past our current reality, we will continue to spend billions on security that is being used to protect us from terrorists that we have created with our energy and lifestyle policies.

It is so sad. We are fulfilling a destiny that could be so different with just a bit of change in perception of what is possible and what makes for a good life.

When the petroleum shit begins to hit the fan hard, it will be a whole lot better life in Switzerland that in the US, because they have retained the value in their communities and they have paid for it over generations.