水煮青蛙 Cooking frogs

昨天去加油，付了我自開車以來最貴的價錢-每加侖$3.53美元。記得剛到美國來時，一加侖只要將近一美元，幾年前油價剛開始上漲時，覺得一塊五已經算是貴的了，後來由於浸泡在這逐漸上揚的水溫裏，慢慢地感到麻木，到現在驚覺時，已經到了這個地步。油價上漲帶動了民生必需品跟著上漲，最近聽説全球糧食短缺，米價上揚，到Costco去常常連米都買不到，聽説是只要貨進當天就會被搬空。亞洲市場裏賣的泰國長米（50磅裝吧？）$37一包，每家限量5包。我們幸運的人仍然能夠供應有餘，但有許多人已經無法應付生活所需。。。至於全球暖化現象，有些科學家們預估按照目前的趨勢北極冰帽將在2012年完全消失，那就更不是我們目前的能力所能解決的問題了。

我想這是我們這一世代曾經面對過最大的挑戰吧？還是這是時勢所趨，我們該提早學會面對現實？是不是我們已經太習慣優渥的生活條件，應當開始學習返璞歸真？大車、豪宅、豪華的生活方式，我們是否正在過度地虛耗原本應該是屬於那些弱勢族群和我們未來子孫的資源？

Yesterday I paid the highest price I have ever paid on gas so far - $3.53 per gallon. I remember when I just came to the US, we only paid close to $1.00/g. When the oil price started to rise several years ago, we felt that $1.5/g was high already. During the period of time soaked in the water with temperature increasing slowly, we started to get use to it. When we finally realized how serious it has become, we are in a situation that everything is much more expensive than it used to be, than we like it to be, than a lot of people can afford. Many of us have heard the warnings about global food shortage and rising rice price, most of the time we could not even buy rice at Costco. I heard that they are sold out the day when they arrive most of the time. Long grain rice from Thailand (50 lb package, I guess) in Asian store is sold for $37, limited to 5 packs per family. We are fortunate to still be able to supply our living needs, but there are a lot of people who can't afford their living already. As far as the global warming issues that some scientists predicted the Arctic ice cap will completely melt down by year 2012 with the rate it is decreasing, the solution is even farther beyond our ability can reach.

I think this is the biggest challenge our generation have faced so far. Or, is it the trend of the world and we'd better learn to cope with it? Have we been gotten too used to our luxurious life style and we need to start getting back to the simple life of bare necessity?Big cars, huge mansions, and luxurious life style... are we over-consuming the resource which should belong to those under-privileged people and our future descendants?