Walking the walk

Lots of people will tell you that SUV's are destroying the environment and increasing America's dependence on foreign oil. Their own cars are acceptable, you see, but anything bigger is not.

Convenient standard, that.

I'd be more inclined to take SUV opponents seriously if they truly lived by their own principles. Like John Francis. Grist magazine reports (via Boing Boing):

After a massive oil spill polluted San Francisco Bay in 1971, Francis gave up all motorized transportation. For 22 years, he walked everywhere he went — including treks across the entire United States and much of South America — hoping to inspire others to drop out of the petroleum economy.

But I'd be even more appreciative if they'd follow his other example:

Soon after he stopped riding in cars, Francis, the son of working-class, African-American parents in Philadelphia, also stopped speaking. For 17 years, he communicated only through improvised sign language, notes, and his ever-present banjo.

Okay, maybe not the banjo.