Why do people drive SUVs?

[Gregorian]

113. That's a pretty good answer.

But somewhere between 10-20% of the energy a car ever uses is required to just manufacture it. My point being that finger pointing is pretty hypocritical.

Another thing is to look at how much fuel someone uses over a time span. Just because they drive a big vehicle doesn't mean they use more fuel. I often get in my four wheel drive truck, which is the biggest monster on the road. Nearly 7000 pounds. Yet I fill up about once a year. So if people see me driving they get all pissed off. Little do they know that I put on thousands of miles per year on a bike. And believe me, if you ever have commuted by bike you then have the true perspective that almost all Americans lack. That's a thread of it's own. A book of it's own. I'd give an awful lot to be living in Belgium or France. A place where cyclists are respected, and expected. Even the Prius drivers over here don't understand that.

What I'm really trying to point out is the mentality of driving in general. And the fact that people have designed their lives around driving. I have designed mine to avoid cars. And it's a very difficult thing to achieve in this car crazed country.

I left out something very important to this discussion. That is, I witness more frivolous driving than that which is required as per your statements. If we're going to be critical of the act of driving, then we should be specific about it. And what I see is multiple trips where one would suffice, driving to go on a walk. driving to go on a bike ride, driving to multiple grocery stores to get something that isn't in one. Where is the planning, or the sacrifice. After all, we're pretty much talking about global warming here. That's what this entire thread is about.