Scooters rule!

The best parking spot, always.

Much of America enjoys over 300 sunny days a year. Here, in southern Arizona, that number exceeds 350. Yet the first time visitor will be struck by two things – the near total absence of solar panels and the rarity of scooters. The first is attributable to the usual panoply of corrupt interests which care nothing for the environment – home builders, ‘bought’ councilmen, crooked utility companies unwilling to see their revenues (and the CEO’s compensation) fall.

All the usual arguments are made, especially that solar is just another tax on the poor working man, and the heck with his children’s lungs. The second is tribute to the automotive and fossil fuel oligopolies who see to it that public transportation remains something used solely by the lowest economic demographic – because it is truly awful – while the oligarchs in the middle east petrostates and their Russkie soulmates keep the price of oil as high as possible. And because, you know, everyone needs a 5,000 lb gas guzzling monster tearing up the roads and gulping fuel with no tax penalty.

The scooter solves many of those ills and would cause an economic tsunami were it to overcome the multitude of capitalist interests which keep it cowed and unknown. Think about it – a cheap ($3,000 for my new Honda PCX150, a price which would halve with volume production), economical (100mpg on regular gas), easy to operate (all automatic), low maintenance transportation tool which requires minimal parking space, has very low insurance costs, attracting nothing but goodwill and would see the price and use of fossil fuels halve were it to reach critical mass, meaning 100 million daily commuters.

A not insignificant side benefit would be the economic collapse of the petrostates which are sworn to the destruction of the United Sates, so not only would they have no money for war, the Pentagon’s budget could be halved to $300 billion and we know that our politicians could find some more constructive use for the money saved. Heck, why not blow it on high speed rail? The USA motorcycle and scooter count is under 10 million and I would venture a guess that fewer than half that number is in daily use. Somewhat distant from ‘critical mass’ in a nation where the average household prides itself on two gas guzzling SUVs, the ones parked in the driveway as the garage is too small.

However, as the parking lot at my local restaurant/grocery store/hardware emporium invariably discloses precisely zero scoots when I show up, I suppose I should not complain, as I always get the best parking spot.

Scooters in Saigon, VietNam.

As for this image, I see very little to complain about.