No more 4x4s
I don't urinate in swimming pools. I don't fart in lifts. I don't smoke in public, so why am I forced to breathe the noxious by-products of 4x4 and other fuel heavy cars?
I'm sick and tired of listening to the drivers of the almighty 4X4 drone on about the cars' safety. Not that I'm saying they're unsafe. I'm sure driving around in nearly three tonnes of metal and being raised above other road users does make them safe - but then so is a Sherman Tank, and you don't see anyone driving one of those down Shirley High Street.
Why do people drive four wheel drive cars around towns anyway? Has no one explained that there is only the slimmest chance of encountering a landslide in down town Solihull? Hills so steep they demand four-wheel traction aren't exactly common either. I'm fed up of seeing the things used for the drive to work or to pick kids up from school. The worst is seeing them in supermarket car parks, taking up baby-spaces, being loaded with reusable bags of organic shopping. (Oh the irony.)
As for the fuel heavy big brand 'luxury' cars - yes, they look nice and yes, I'll even admit that they are great to drive. I did drive one. And I LOVED it. I put my foot to the floor in a brand new S Type Jag and nearly took off! It was a tremendous buzz. I suspect though, if I were to get a similar feeling from setting fire to things, I might be met by some staunch opposition. Perhaps how much we enjoy a thing is not a measure of whether we should do it as much as we'd like.
Driving cars like these comes at the expense of other people; the lung rotting by-products of the Environmental Monsters are suffered by everyone. Lighting up in public is illegal because of health concerns - surely driving inappropriate cars should go the same way?
I have thought long and hard about why people drive petrol heavy cars. I sense it is out of selfishness, snobbery and the desire for superiority. What other reasons can there be? The irony of course being the amount of people that fall into debt to buy one. One thing these cars are not, is a sign of wealth,
I suppose though, taking it all in all, it must be great to be the only one able to get to the office on all those snow days we have every year (both of them) and smile smugly at the people stuck on their drives, who have to spend that extra time at home.
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Laura Yates - Brummie mum Laura Yates is a 27 year old mother of two from Kings Heath. She gives her take on family life in the city.
Oh dear Laura, it seems you have fell foul of Government Propaganda.
The Environment is fine, it is called evolution. Our own British Isles were once connected to Franch. We all know about the Ice Age. Animals have became extinct, and new species have been created. This is all before aeroplanes and BMW 4x4 were even thought of. Proof that change has always been out there.
People drive these cars because it is there right to, and so what if it is a desire for superiority? Do you want communism? Been there, tried that, dont work, move on.
I go to work and work bloody hard to improve my lifestyle. I like to buy nice clothes. Id love to buy a 4x4 (unfortunately I dont own one, i actually drive a car that is supposedly good for the environment).
This government are to fond in telling us what to do. Against massive public pressure they banned fox hunting, then the Smoking ban, when the people they asked to start in the first place after the war were still alive! The European fiasco, and now telling me what car ive got to drive.
Even if there is slight damage being made, our little island wouldnt even make a dent. China? India? Make your own decistion, ill just keep paying my taxes thats forced upon me by my countrys Un-Elected Prime Minister!
Max - that is probably the best argument I've heard from someone who doesn't think that 4x4s should be taxed off the city road. At least you honestly say it is down to complete selfish desire to feel better than others.
Although buying nice, materialistic things MAY be your god given right as a tax payer, doing this at the expense of other people isn’t.
Fair enough - the fumes emitted by these vehicles might not melt the ice-caps, but the fact is they do use considerably more fuel than lots of other perfectly good cars. Churning out all these chemicals whilst trundling round the streets of towns and cities simply isn’t fair on every air-breathing creature in the vicinity. They cause health issues, exacerbate asthma and breathing problems which is why inner city schools display signs imploring parents to turn car engines off while they wait for children.
It doesn’t matter that we are a smaller percentage of the world’s population. We need to take responsibility for what we do. Damage is damage, no matter how slight and has nothing to do with what our neighbours are doing, whether they be in the next road or the next continent.
Thank you so much for your comment. Much appreciated.
So what you now are implying is if you were to become a very rich lady, you would turn your back on the fast cars and stick to a Nissan Micra?
My own selfish desire is born through ambition. There are far to many plodders in this country already who are happy to go to work, take a wage, doss on facebook, then go home.
Life is about winning on a daily basis. Something that infuriates me so much is our schools knocking a winning mentality out of our children, but that in turn is me going off on a totally different tangent.
But Laura, I want to ask you a question which can lead on to other so called "issues". Why do Parents have drive to school to pick there children up? I never had that luxury, I walked. Something that has helped me become a fit healthy young man. All I see at the school gates are numerous overweight mothers picking up there overweight children. Harsh I hear you say? But Fact.
I understand there is the argument of our streets being unsafe for children to walk home, but we are going overboard and molly coddling our kids now. For me, it is an integral part of growing up, interacting with other children of different ages. On the way home it is a chance to speak to kids outside of there own classroom. This in turn breeds confidence, and that in turn can help prevent another key issue which is "Bullying".
So, when the kids are young, Why cant Parents WALK to pick up there kids. It might even help them get into a more flattering size legging. When the children are old enough, let them walk home, get the bus, mingle with others.
Then, I can still drive around in the car I have bloody well worked hard for!
Max,
I would just like to say that when I was at school my mum used to give me lifts (in her small metro) and I, like yourself, am a fit and healthy individual. NOT a molly coddled overweight young lady. Oh, and I am also sociable, therefore having lifts was obviously not a hinderance in my case, nor the many others I know who also had lifts.
Laura,
My gripe with 4x4's is that the drivers are so inconsiderate when you park next to them and they just open their big invincible doors, bashing my small and slightly more delicate car, not caring what damage they cause.
Too many times I have seen a 4x4 spread over two parking spaces. However, I retaliate by taking a picture of the car, then parking mine up as close as possible to it (i.e. IN THE MIDDLE OF MY BAY) so that the driver cannot get in the door any more. Then, just for safety, I take another picture.
One day I came back to find the (young female) driver of the vehicle standing in front of it, looking at the space I had not left, scratching her head. She said "is that your car?" pointing to mine. I answered with glee, "yes, it is."
She looked at me, expecting me to move my car. "No, after you," I insisted.
You are not getting my point Michelle. Its just downright lazy. "It saves time" I hear you cry. Well organise your time better.
Daniel, erm.... I think you need to get out more!
Max, I've tried to reply a couple of times but keep getting the text test wrong and losing everything! So, sorry for the late reply...
First. No matter how rich I was I would not go out and buy a car that used lots of fuel just to show everyone how much money I had. I can quite honestly say the thought wouldn't cross my mind.
Second I agree that more kids should walk to school, however so many of them now live so far fom school it just wouldn't be possible.
Third: your point about 'winning'. Why should driving a hideous car, or even just earning lots of money mean you've 'won'? I would not dream of telling my kids at school that in order to succeed in life they just need to earn lots of money. What rubbish! That's the kind of consumerist, materialistic attitude that has got a generation into an ocean of debt. Possessions don't mean anything! Honestly! Being happy is what counts! So many of us 'work in jobs we hate to buy s**t we don't need'. Too many of us spend hours away from our families, in a rat race that we detest just so we can have a flash car, big house or new computer game.
This is all getting slightly off the point, this being that people should do what makes them happy but NOT WHEN IT IS AT THE EXPENSE OF THE REST OF THE WORLD. If you NEED a four wheel drive to pull a trailer, or caravan, because you live on a farm or on a mountain - FINE. If not, stop it! It's not your god given right as a taxpayer to choke the rest of us.