Our summer vacation, which included a reunion of my massive family, took us through several states that are often considered to be more Republican leaning. Based on our previous trips to those areas, however, it seems the political viewpoint (expressed via bumper stickers and yard signs) are swaying to the left.
While these observations are not scientific by any means, and I'm in no way ready to predict Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri have gone blue, we did see much more evidence of Democratic activity in those states than we have ever seen during our trips there during the past decade. Most notably, such activity was no longer limited to population centers, and was also evident in the more rural sections of the states.
I was particularly impressed when I saw a woman driving a vehicle outside of Sherman, Texas that was plastered with not only Obama campaign stickers but with women-centric political statements. And, yes, I did give her a honk and a wave to show my support.
There was also another thing we noticed on this trip that we've not previously seen during our treks south -- an overt hositlity to ethanol and other biofuels. This was especially evident in Texas and Oklahoma where several service stations had large banners proclaiming that they only served "100% gas" or "real gasoline."
A law passed in Oklahoma last year requires retailers to label pumps in relation to ethanol content -- even those low blends that are not considered to be alternative fuels by the federal government. This seems to have been done due to confusion on why a station on one corner might be offering fuel at several cents less per gallon than a station on the opposite corner. Those price differences also seem to be the reasoning behind the banners at stations that do not offer ethanol.
In relation to ethanol in the south, there seems to be a lot of misinformation about how vehicles perform and which vehicles can run on low ethanol blends. As an example, view this Tulsa television news report then view this Oklahoma City news report.
Several people I spoke with said they would not run ethanol because it delivers decreased performance -- an assertion that is not based on fact. Still others thought that "pure gasoline" was better for engines, obviously ignoring ethanol's ability to perform as an effective solvent, cleaning fuel systems left dirty by other fuels.
Another draw back is that because people who drive in the south aren't subject to as much corrosive road material, such as winter salt, they can often drive the same vehicle for extended periods of time. Those individuals do have legitmate concerns about ethanol's corrosive properties to metals, plastics and cork that may be present in their older engines.
And, there are also economic factors at work. That is, both Oklahoma and Texas are oil states. In fact, the Oklahoma State Capitol is the only one in the nation with an oil well on its grounds.
If you want more insights to how Oklahoma drivers feel about ethanol, a good article published in the Urban Tulsa Weekly in July 2008.
While these observations are not scientific by any means, and I'm in no way ready to predict Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri have gone blue, we did see much more evidence of Democratic activity in those states than we have ever seen during our trips there during the past decade. Most notably, such activity was no longer limited to population centers, and was also evident in the more rural sections of the states.
I was particularly impressed when I saw a woman driving a vehicle outside of Sherman, Texas that was plastered with not only Obama campaign stickers but with women-centric political statements. And, yes, I did give her a honk and a wave to show my support.
There was also another thing we noticed on this trip that we've not previously seen during our treks south -- an overt hositlity to ethanol and other biofuels. This was especially evident in Texas and Oklahoma where several service stations had large banners proclaiming that they only served "100% gas" or "real gasoline."A law passed in Oklahoma last year requires retailers to label pumps in relation to ethanol content -- even those low blends that are not considered to be alternative fuels by the federal government. This seems to have been done due to confusion on why a station on one corner might be offering fuel at several cents less per gallon than a station on the opposite corner. Those price differences also seem to be the reasoning behind the banners at stations that do not offer ethanol.
In relation to ethanol in the south, there seems to be a lot of misinformation about how vehicles perform and which vehicles can run on low ethanol blends. As an example, view this Tulsa television news report then view this Oklahoma City news report.
Several people I spoke with said they would not run ethanol because it delivers decreased performance -- an assertion that is not based on fact. Still others thought that "pure gasoline" was better for engines, obviously ignoring ethanol's ability to perform as an effective solvent, cleaning fuel systems left dirty by other fuels.
Another draw back is that because people who drive in the south aren't subject to as much corrosive road material, such as winter salt, they can often drive the same vehicle for extended periods of time. Those individuals do have legitmate concerns about ethanol's corrosive properties to metals, plastics and cork that may be present in their older engines.
And, there are also economic factors at work. That is, both Oklahoma and Texas are oil states. In fact, the Oklahoma State Capitol is the only one in the nation with an oil well on its grounds.
If you want more insights to how Oklahoma drivers feel about ethanol, a good article published in the Urban Tulsa Weekly in July 2008.
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