Pain at the pump, and everywhere else

As someone who has never owned a car, I have to admit that I watch all those daily news updates on "pain at the pump" and sometimes think, "Well, ha ha ha, that's not MY problem." But then I remember. ...

Our sad lot in life is that pretty much everything is made out of oil and oil-related compounds of one kind or another. The Good Human looked at this issue and said, "In the span of about 100 years, we have successfully made oil scarce enough that we use twice as much energy getting it out of the ground that we get back from it in return. This is not a recipe for success. And as oil continues to hit all time highs day in and day out, it is affecting everyone in the same way-prices are on their way up for almost everything we use."

That's becoming increasingly obvious. Let me include here a sobering little list assembled by The Good Human. All of these things come from oil:

ammonia, anesthetics, antihistamines, artificial limbs, artificial turf, antiseptics, aspirin, auto parts, awnings, balloons, ballpoint pens, bandages, beach umbrellas, boats, cameras, candles, car battery cases, carpets, caulking, combs, cortisones, cosmetics, crayons, credit cards, curtains, deodorants, detergents, dice, disposable diapers, dolls, dyes, eye glasses, electrical wiring insulation, faucet washers, fishing rods, fertilizer, fishing line, fishing lures, food preservatives, food packaging, garden hose, glue, hair coloring, hair curlers, hand lotion, hearing aids, heart valves, ink, insect spray, insecticides, linoleum, lip stick, milk jugs, nail polish, oil filters, pantyhose, perfume, petroleum jelly, rubber cement, rubbing alcohol, shampoo, shoes, toothpaste, trash bags, upholstery, vitamin capsules, water pipes, clothing ink, parachutes, telephones, enamel, epoxy paint, car sound insulation, cassettes, motorcycle helmets, pillows, shower doors, refrigerator linings, electrical tape, safety glass, nylon rope, ice buckets, toilet seats, denture adhesive, loudspeakers, movie film, candles, water pipes, golf balls, sunglasses, soft contact lenses, footballs, paint brushes, fan belts, luggage, toothbrushes, ice cube trays.

You get the idea.

So while I may be avoiding pain at the pump, we're all going to feel it at Costco and Sears and Home Depot and. ...

Don Willmott's blog posts are provided by LifeWire, a part of The New York Times Company.