Fun fact: by the time Bush’s proposed increases in drilling have one cent of effect on American gas prices the average family will have spent over $57,000 on gas.

So if you needed any more convincing on why the proposed drilling is a gadawful idea for a solution, you can chew on that little gem.

Maybe instead of pumping oil from under the sea we should tap into the potential of technology we already have, by, say, raising the minimum standards for fuel efficiency. If the average family has 2 cars, they probably are due to replace one of them in the next few years. And if that new car gets 50 miles to the gallon (attainable!), which is roughly double the current average MPG, they save 50% on fuel costs for that car. With an average fuel consumption of 678 gallons per year (according to the US Bureau of Labor and Stats), and with gas at $4 a gallon, over 5 years that bump in fuel efficiency will save that family about $6800. Hooray! Johnny gets a new saxophone! Little Margie can get braces! Sammy’s going to summer camp!

And the $6800 savings is over just 5 years, with one car. Bush’s drilling isn’t supposed to make a difference for 10-15 years or so. If we raise mileage standards next year families that buy new cars can start saving even sooner, bringing the savings during the drilling lag even higher. The sooner we convert the fleet to higher fuel efficiency vehicles the sooner we can start actually helping ease the burden of gas prices. Oh, btw, a rise in minimum fuel efficiency really helps slow global warming.