And the other people who annoy me . . .

You didn't think the head honchos of the big oil companies were the only ones?

On the rare occasions that I watch TV news, I'll come across a protest against the high oil and gas prices. The protestors have gathered at some significant point -- outside an oil ompany or gas station or on a street corner that gets lots of traffic -- and they're marching around with signs saying, "No War For Oil" and "No Foreign Dependence on Oil," and such nifty slogans. They posture for the cameras, and the spokesperson for the group always earnestly explains their position: we need more money for research into biofuels, if people will just cut out one trip a week in their gas-guzzling vehicles, if we just boycott the gas stations for one day . . . They talk about their dedication to cutting back on oil/gas usuage and sincerely believe if all of us were as dedicated as them, we'd be seeing $2 a gallon prices at the gas pumps in no time.

Do I believe they're well-intentioned? Maybe. Do I believe they're well-informed? Varies. Do I believe they're fooling themselves? Absolutely.

These folks stand there holding their poster board signs with wooden handles (or worse, their plastic signs) -- manufactured with gas and oil, transported to the stores where they bought them with gas and oil. Some of them are talking on cellphones and taking pictures with digital cameras -- more products that require G&O for manufacture. And they're not naked, thank heavens. They're wearing clothes that again were manufactured with the use of gas and oil, transported to the stores with G&O, sold by clerks who used G&O to get to and from work in malls that use a ton of G&O. They're usually wearing shoes with sturdy rubber soles (lots of petroleum products go into making rubber and plastic products) because they don't want their feet to hurt while they're protesting.

And how did they get to the protest site? Well, most of them drove. Oops, G&O. And depending on the timing of the rally, a fair number of them, being predictable humans, had a meal either before or after at a restaurant, another place that has a huge dependence on G&O to get their products and employees and materials into place.

And then they go home, patting themselves on the back for having A Good Thing For The Environment.

Just my opinion -- and on my blog, that's the one that counts: if you're going to urge a boycott against the G&O companies, you need to go all the way. When you're encouraging people to cut out G&O products for even a limited time, you have an obligation to hold yourself up as a role model at least for that period of time. That means no driving to protests. No wearing clothes or shoes manufactured/delivered via G&O. No eating food that you haven't grown yourself, because Lord knows, there's a ton of G&O involved in commercial food production.

Don't drive your SUV, get out to march around with a sign protesting oil and gas, then get back into your SUV and go on about your life and think you've done enough. Rachel9:17 AM