West Texan finds that not everyone can take cars, fuel for granted

Greetings from England, the land where a bean burrito and a gallon of gas cost the same: about U.S. $6. Granted that you would have a better chance at find a bean burrito now because of the current trucker strike. There isn't a gallon of gas in town, around town, or anywhere within a 100 miles for sale right now. England is running on empty.

As the crisis grows my wife and I can only take stock of our car's fuel status. Every day the needle sinks lower down the dial, even though it is only used by my wife to drive between the house and her job.

Schools are closing, trash pickup is stopping in a few days and the local grocery store is beginning to have supply problems. The U.S. Army has promised to bring my wife to work when we can no longer drive. But because of our remote location, even the Army leadership is scratching their heads over how to do that, since even the U.S. military depends on the local economy.

The problem comes from taxes. England pays a 76 percent tax on fuel, which makes it the most expensive gasoline in the industrial world. Our Dodge Stratus would eat a $60 hole in our wallet at each 10-gallon fillup if we didn't have military fuel coupons, and the coupons only cut the price in half.

But England is the land of high taxes. What the employer giveth, the government taketh away and in very large quantities. England has a 30 percent income tax, a 17 percent across the board sales tax, on top of the gas tax.

Want a television? The permit to have a TV will cost you a $120 a year or $1,500 if you are caught having a television without a permit. (We have a radio and a DVD PC).

New car? That'll be another 26 percent new car tax and a $200 annual highway tax permit. With taxes like these you would think English roads are the best in the world. I've seen better roads in Mexico and Bosnia.

So what happened? Truckers from France are coming across the Channel and walking off with business because the local drivers can't match their prices. The French drivers bring all of their fuel with them -- they never once fill up here.

Two years ago the local drivers began a dialogue with government and nothing happened. This strike is their last chance.

My father worked the Texas oil fields in my formative years, giving me reason to think there would always be enough gas.

In my days at Robert E. Lee High School during the boom years the oil and gas industry was never far away from anyone's thoughts -- we just knew there would always be enough. I never thought the supply system could collapse, but it has. So every day I watch fascinated as an industrial nation squeezes its last few drops of gas from the pumps.

We have food, we have power, we even have the Internet -- but we walk instead of drive and we stay home on weekends when we would rather be playing tourist.

So whoever you are and wherever you are, stop and think about us the next time you fill up.

Think about a life without cars, fire trucks and police cars.

If you shudder, then you are in good company. The entire country of England is shaking in fear with you.

9/17/2000

http://www.hearstnp.com/san_antonio/bea/news/stories/mix/mix87848.shtml

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), September 17, 2000

Answers

This is a great article. Man, you come up with some remarkable stuff, Martin.

-- QMan (qman@c-zoe.net), September 17, 2000.

I've got to agree. This is a beautifully written, fantastic story. Why don't we see similar stories in our mainstream meda?

-- Wayward (wayward@webtv.com), September 17, 2000.

What is just as significant to me personally. Is that the Guy went to the same school that I did LOL..Robert E. Lee high... Wonder how log it will be, before England (as wellas the rest of Europe) causes us to have "fits" in the stock market?

"As for me...I shall finish the Game"!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Shakey~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

-- Shakey (in_a_bunker@forty.feet), September 18, 2000.