Introducing the Volt

By Rachel Tanis

I’m probably the only person in the world that can honestly say that I was a little saddened to see crude oil fall in recent trading. No, I don’t own stock in big oil. I do, though, think that we’ll never change our habits if gas prices drop to manageable rates. And, while the environment at least has a place on the political scene this time around, the economy is definitely taking precedence, further overshadowing global warming issues that will far outlast the ups and downs of Wall Street. Still, there is hope, and its name is Volt.

Since I live in metro-Detroit, and our local news stations carried the broadcast of the 100th anniversary celebration of General Motors this past week, I watched closely to see what the backbone of our community had to say on this all-important day. I was pleased with the revelry and nostalgia offered on that historic Tuesday, but absolutely mystified by the previously under-wraps Chevy Volt. The American institution revealed its latest technological breakthrough to a stunned, and very pleased, audience.

The Volt is so electrifying in design and form, that those facts alone could make it a great seller. Then, General Motors has thrown into the mix the fact that this engineering feat is also a gas-avoiding electric car that it estimates will be fully re-charged for pennies! The Volt’s only drawback is that we have to wait until 2010 to drive one off of the showroom floor.

Between now and then plenty of things could change, including gas prices which have fluctuated widely as of late. Still, America (which must lead the rest of the world in this arena – but more on that later) has to decide once and for all that oil prices are not the reason to save our planet - the beauty and majesty of it is the reason to save the planet, not to mention the fact that it is the only place that we all call home.

Give General Motors a pat on the back for their hard work and dedication to this all-important issue and spread the word about the Volt. The Volt’s technology not only makes it a car of the future, but more importantly, a car for our future.