Sometimes I feel there's something wrong with me, something unAmerican, because I don't drive an SUV.

More and more people drive them, it seems. I feel surrounded by them when I'm out driving--even here in the city. And it's annoying. When you're in a (relatively) low to the ground conventional car, it's hard to see around them. And when I'm trying to pull out of my on-the-street parking space (see previous entry), there's usually an SUV parked in front or in back of me--or both--which makes it damn hard to see oncoming traffic before pulling out.

I used to think that SUVs appealed mostly to men who wanted to feel macho by driving a truck around. But I've noticed that many of them are driven by women. On CNN today, they showed excerpts from a Senate debate about fuel standards, about whether SUVs should have to meet the same standards as cars. Senator Barbara Mikulsky (sp?) said that women (specifically "soccer moms," I think she said) drive SUVs to feel safe--safe from huge trucks that might crash into them, safe from car-jackers, etc. They want to feel that they're driving a tank, even if it means spending a lot more on gas.

The SUV has now become the standard family "car," which is what the station wagon used to be. I don't think any American auto company even makes station wagons anymore. And that makes me feel nostalgic, because I practically grew up in a station wagon.

SUVs are big, wasteful, comfortable, expensive, excessive--truly an American invention. I used to think they were a passing fad, but now I think they're here to stay. If they make people safer, maybe it's a good thing (Martha Stewart drives one). But please don't run into me with your tank.