MPG: What do automakers want?

Does the world need some new automakers?

Automakers, including the leading developer of hybrid cars, Toyota, are essentially begging Congress not to get too tough on fuel economy according to the latest Reuter's reports. Yet, what are their solutions? Wait until the holy grail, the hydrogen economy, develops? Do automakers not fully comprehend the threat and problems caused by foreign oil dependency, by global warming and automaker's significant responsibility towards these issues?

While automakers speak of the billions it might cost them to achieve significant gains in fuel efficiency, how many billions - if not trillions - has foreign oil dependency cost America, the world? Certainly Congress and automakers must work together, rather than as adversaries. And, while it is true that consumers also must bear some of the burden for creating our gas-guzzling culture, at some point automakers need to realize that America needs solutions to foreign oil dependency and global warming far more than it needs any of the major automakers.

Ultimately, if automakers cannot become part of the solution, then they are part of the problem.