Less Oil = More Trucks?

As everyone knows, the high price of oil and gasoline has driven many consumers away from trucks and SUVs. Not only were these vehicles high in production but they were high in profit margin. In some cases, companies could make $10,000 in profit, per vehicle. Alas, those days are gone. With gas at $4 a gallon, who wouldn't switch?

In the past few weeks of economic turmoil, oil prices have been hit very hard. Oil is now half of what it was just a few months ago. The price today ($67.29) is bringing us back towards the low prices we had in the early part of the century. Given, it isn't $15 per barrel, but being cut in half is quite significant.

What I am looking to watch is whether these low prices are going to stop this green revolution and make efficiency no longer priority one. The arguements that hybridization and efficiency weren't cost effective that had been rightfully laughed at over the summer are now seeming more appropriate.

We have made huge gains as far as reducing our consumption of oil. These tough times with cheaper oil will tell us whether we truly have made a shift. It is easy being green when it is more cost effective. Let's see how many people will hold fast and not given up our gains.

I love seeing people being energy conscious and doing their part. My personal belief is that the market will tell us otherwise. When you lose your job, you don't care about the environment. A lower price will increase consumption and we will fall back to many of our old ways. The only way for us to truly break our addiction is for it to not be economically feasible. The environment is important, but we can't force cleanliness upon people. Only when it is economically viable will people make the switch.

So for now we are back to cheap oil while we weather recession. The environment will wait until brighter days.