Source: http://www.eia.doe.gov/ |
The per barrel oil price peaked in July of 2008, right along with the national average of diesel fuel. While we are far from the pinnacle of both, we are rapidly on course to meet them soon. The difference should be the painful memory of filling up to get to work at the expense of not eating or not paying bills. All this while hearing daily conversations and declarations that it was a defining moment in the behaviors and policies of not just Americans, but people through-out the world.
Apocalyptic banter of a greedy President lining the pockets of his cronies filled the airways along with talk of new technologies taking over if the cost of fuel continued to increase (electric cars, wind and solar power, hydrogen powered cars... etc).
In the end it is just a memory to most. But why? What happened? What turned the tide?
Malcom Gladwell is the author of The Tipping Point - How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference. This book defines and demonstrates the strange phenomenon of everyday struggles that change in an instant.