REPRINT OF THE JULY 28, 2008 HUMMER ARTICLE with permission of the author.
Have you ever noticed that people either love or hate the Hummer? Very few people take the middle ground in their description of a Hummer. It's so funny that in this country of freedom, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness a vehicle has been so maligned as a fuel guzzling polluter.No one protests out front of large homes, saying this is way more house than you need and uses way more energy than is necessary. No one attacks boating, where the average 30 ft. twin engined, non catalytic converter required boat, puts out more of a carbon footprint (350 pounds)in two hours than 20 Hummer H2s running for 7 hours (329 pounds).
Have you ever noticed that people either love or hate the Hummer? Very few people take the middle ground in their description of a Hummer. It's so funny that in this country of freedom, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness a vehicle has been so maligned as a fuel guzzling polluter.No one protests out front of large homes, saying this is way more house than you need and uses way more energy than is necessary. No one attacks boating, where the average 30 ft. twin engined, non catalytic converter required boat, puts out more of a carbon footprint (350 pounds)in two hours than 20 Hummer H2s running for 7 hours (329 pounds).
I have yet to see protesters or bad press about boating using up our energy resources and polluting.The crux of this problem is twofold. Overseas, with expensive gas and small cars the norm, the Hummer is targeted as a symbol of a large, wealthy America, in all its glory, using up the world's oil. They see military Humvees in Iraq on the news, and to the credit of GM designers, the H2 and H3 bear a striking resemblance. In a study done by the Gugenheim Institute, the Hummer was in the top 10 American brands/words recognized by foreigners, to include Coca Cola, McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and CNN to name a few.... very distinguished company!
Secondly, to most Hummer owners their vehicle is as much hobby as it is transportation, just as that boat is a hobby for your neighbor. Those protesters see it as a HUGE, BEHEMOTH transportation vehicle and not as the hobby it is to so many. Few realize that Hummer owners take part in off roading & rescues at a rate significantly higher than other SUVs. For some reason it's easier for most to view a sports car, like a Corvette, as part hobby and part transportation, but not the Hummer. When you're paying $4 a gallon for gas and frustrated by it all, it's easy to point the finger at the Hummer, which by the way, makes up less than 0.0001% of all licensed vehicles in the US.
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