Letters to the editor, January 11th, 2006

Not sure what William exactly was getting at here. Something about lamenting the environmental impact of his hours-long, bi-weekly commute from Santa Barbara County to Los Angeles and the evils perpetrated upon us all as thousands of daily commuters unwittingly prop-up Evil Oil while working to kill us all with their smog-inducing emissions. Or something like that.

What he doesn't explain is why exactly all these people drive such distances (Hint: In SB County, people fled the high-cost of living in SB only to drive up housing prices in Lompoc and other North County communities and are now stuck with an hour-plus commute to all points South).

Never mind also that stretches of the highway he speaks of have seen 20-plus years of wear since their last widening, while experiencing exponentially more traffic.

But what I'd really like to know is why our Prius-driving hero still bothers with this commute. Or does his ownership of a hybrid vehicle exempt him from the same contempt he hurls at the rest of his fellow commuters?