Fred Eaglesmith sings “I like to drive one hundred and five,
it’s just how fast I like to go, I got the gears and I got the motor, ain’t no reason to go slow.” I like Fred, but unlike Fred, I have yet
another reason to go slow. Late last month my sun orbit odometer clicked over to
the big five-five. I decided to celebrate by driving our commuter van at the
Jimmy Carter speed limit all the way to Emeryville. As it turned out I was
lucky to get over fifteen until nearly
Not like “*The* War”, the documentary which just finished its run on
PBS. The War (which the PBS announcer ironically intoned “is brought to you by General
Motors”) was another Ken Burns masterpiece. I was amazed by the degree to which
our country was committed to fighting that war. I knew about the courage and
sacrifice of the soldiers, seamen, and flyers, but little about the dedication
of the folks back home. And not just Rosie and her legions of
leggy riveters. If Rosie was turning out bombers and
battleships, who was watching Rosie’s babies? With farm boys on the
front lines, who was growing the food? Where did they get the metal for all
those trucks and tanks?
Our war
against the Axis of Evil Version 1.0 was fought by everyone, bombardiers and
baby sitters, tail gunners and victory gardeners. Conservation and recycling
was a patriotic duty. Even bacon grease was saved and collected, as its
glycerin was a component of nitroglycerin explosives. But the most impressive fact
was this: consumer automobile production,
over a million cars in the year before the war, fell to *less than 200, total,*
over the all three of the following years.
How many of
“The War” viewers who were inspired by WWII America’s unity of purpose woke up the following morning and spluttered
with outrage at the news that California is *actually considering* a ten cent tax
on a gallon of gas, to fund oil-conserving transportation alternatives. How
many of them got into their large cars and drove alone to work? Don’t they know
our troops are eating sand in
Perhaps it
*is* about leadership. Wasn’t it was inspiring to hear the words of President
Roosevelt, rallying the nation via his regular radio broadcasts? Compare that
to the cryptoblabber of our Current Resident (as
Garrison Keillor calls him), who asks Americans to
sacrifice their sons and daughters but not their wasteful energy habits. Even
the Democrats tremble before the terrible Auto von Bizmarket.
Meanwhile, General Motors loses its market leadership to the fuel efficient
Japanese automakers. There’s more twisted irony here than a bombed-out bridge! But the story of the
The lesson
for us: when the generals can’t or won’t lead, it’s up to the troops to save
the day. If you find war inspiring, consider this: we’re in a war for the
future of not only freedom, but for the life of earth as we know it. Atten-*tion*! Report
for duty at
Show up,
and help turn the tide!