The Future Is Now

The fast sports car going down the highway, shining that most bright, wonderful cherry red color (that any normal person in his right mind would dream of) is what most of the material - awed people of this world would call perfect in every way. It's one of the aspects of that American Dream. After all, its only major problem is its occasional oil leaks, and besides, it's the perfect car. Yet did we as humans ever stop to think about the effects that this piece of sheer perfection has on the environment in which we live? Where does the oil go that leaks from this car? Where else but onto the ground on which it sits and into the storm drain after last night's much needed rain. And what about the exhaust fumes that float into the very air that we breath? Do we really think that the smoke and exhaust from our cars takes care of itself? Do we really think that it just disappears?

We have not yet seemed to grasp the concept that everything we do to the environment affects it. Transportation probably has one of the largest effects on our environmental WALL (Water Air Land Legislation). The oil that leaks from our cars, trucks, buses, and boats contaminates our water; and we all know that we need drinkable and usable water to survive. The exhaust fumes from these same vehicles are one of the causes of the developing hole in the ozone layer. And we must not forget about the smoke that comes from the factories that produce the steel and other parts for our trains, planes, and automobiles. Highways and new roads are being established everyday throughout our communities to accommodate those vehicles that need to get to the brand new train station that has been under construction for years now. But to develop these new highways, thousands of trees had to be cut down and the once good fresh soil has undergone the intense erosion as a result. This new highway that is running through your neighborhood will not only affect the amount of traffic coming through but the very air we breathe and the water we drink, as well.

So what are we going to do about it? Whether we realize it or not these problems are big enough and ought to be looked upon on a larger scale. We can let them go longer, but the problem will only get worse, and the bigger the problem, the more difficult it is to solve. So we as an intelligent people have to now come together and put our thinking caps on so that we can minimize the effects of transportation on our environmental WALL rather than to maximize them, because whether we believe it or not, once our trees are gone we won't be breathing!

I think we need to learn from futuristic cartoons like the Jetsons. We need solar electric cars that fold up when they are not being used. This would decrease traffic jams, the rate of respiratory problems, and that 55% of downtown space taken up by parked cars. Let's require car companies to make these care and make them affordable. The future is now.

by Megan Dickerson

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