stigweard, if the lifestyle described by JiK isn't going to be sustainable, what are we to do about it? Tell all those farmers in KS that they've got to quit farming and move closer to the stores where they buy, thus lessening the food supply for those of us who are dependent on them for their production?

Like it or not, some people will always have to depend on vehicles that don't get whatever the majority would consider "acceptable" gas mileage. I'm sure the folks to whom JiK refers make concessions in other areas of their lives to compensate for the cost of running their vehicles. Any of us that lives on a budget does the same. Luckily, there's no law that mandates that each of us must allocate our resources in some preordained "normal" fashion.