Editor: A few days ago I received a flyer in my mailbox from our local MP titled, “How much will you pay for a tank of gas?”
We can probably all agree getting from point A to point B should be affordable, particularly for essential things like work or school.
Before forming an opinion on any received information, it’s generally wise to do a little research and fact checking — ideally from a range of sources and perspectives. If you’ve ever moderated a disagreement, you know how important it is to get all sides of the story. More often than not, each has valid points. After all, compromise is what moves us along.
Perhaps we could gain some insight by understanding how the oil industry works and the root cause of how we got here, rather than simply reacting to symptoms like high prices at the pump.
How do the government and the oil industry interact? What factors affect consumer prices? What is the US petrodollar? What could result if the petro-Yuan was introduced?
What if we are slowly being weaned off fossil fuels? If this is the case, how can we make the transition to renewable energy less painful?
Should electric cars be more affordable? Is renewable energy even feasible? Why or why not?
Change is difficult – but change is inevitable. It’s no wonder so many of us resist it.
Avoid reacting or forming opinions on any information you are exposed to without doing due research. We make sounder decisions when we are better informed. We take these opinions (hopefully well-researched) to the voting booth which, in turn, forms policy and legislation. Ideally all of our votes combined will lead us in a balanced, common sense direction.
Michelle Matich,
Langley