Drive 55 and thrive, apologies to KP

January 5, 10:22 PMSacramento Environmental News ExaminerHarry Osibin

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Tim Castleman/Drive 55

Here's the bit: there's this guy in Sacramento who's active in veterans rights, alternative transportation and the environment, who started this campaign called drive55.org, meaning you don't drive faster than 55 mph.

I interviewed him for my radio show and mentioned him a while back in my "Best of 2008" radio interviews which appeared here.  He thinks that American motor vehicle operators should drive no faster than 55 miles-per-hour.  Period.  If your vehicle is human-powered (not by body fat) I guess you can go faster.

Tim Castleman is a man of patience and vision, who is taking a common sense approach to one of America's most volatile debates.  In the '70s in order to preserve oil and blunt OPEC, our federal leaders passed a mandatory 55 mph speed limit into law.

Apparently the nation's vehicles did, in fact, get better mileage and save fuel.  Side benefit:  Highway deaths went down. 

As pump prices leveled over the years and with much political wrangling, the power of the speed limit was returned to the states, which is probably just as well, constitutionally.  As a consequence we are legally and illegally driving faster than 55, way faster.

But Tim Castleman is not campaigning for new laws, a constitutional amendment or anything coercive.  To paraphrase, he thinks that driving no faster than 55 is the right thing to do.

He says that driving no faster than 55 mph will conserve fuel, save lives, save money, reduce some of our reliance on foreign oil, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, move us closer to true "energy independence" and give everyone naturally wavy hair.  (Just kidding on the last one.)

By taking these measures (observing all speed limits and never exceeding 55 mph), no new technology need be introduced, no new laws need be passed, wars on multiple-fronts need not be waged and everyone gets to keep more of the money they earn.

The issue is neither Republican nor Democratic, liberal nor conservative, Hatfield nor McCoy, Agent versus Agent, Ranger versus Yogi, nor Grizzlies versus RiverCats.  (PCL baseball reference).

Since founding drive55.org in 2008 Castleman has maintained the website, been ambushed on FOX and other right-wing media outlets and is now making available peel-away window stickers.  He says, they are "removable 4 X 11  window clings for inside vehicles to warn speeders of the conservation-minded driver ahead."

Could anyone object to this simple voluntary step that costs no money?  More in another post.