I live in California, where gas prices are volatile.  Watching last nights presidential debate (with one ear, since the other was occupied with day to day living) didn't reassure me much.  Waking up this morning to find it will cost an extra $4 to fill my gas tank didn't help.
Sure, it's not that much.  But, $4 can put a complete meal on the table.  It'll pay for a dozen eggs and some veggies.  Or a jar and a half of peanut butter.  $4 isn't just a half hours worth of work for those working minimum wage, it represents what else we can buy with that money.
Maybe you haven't noticed, but money's tight.  Not just in my household, but in households across the state and country.  It's tight in the board rooms of businesses, of city offices, and it's tight in every school district I know of.
Every time I think that there's light at the end of the tunnel, a firefly flicks by.  I know the light is there, really.  I mean, those fireflies are getting in somewhere, right?  But that knowledge doesn't help when the kids want to go to a park that's not walking distance.  Or when my anxiety ridden kid wants a ride to school, and I know I can't carry her if she melts down.  Or when my migraneur needs a doctor's note reminding the school that migraines are not truancy issues.  Or when the school asks for donations and the kids don't understand why this time I said no.  Or when your daughter is struggling to participate in scouts because you really can't afford the new and improved materials.

I didn't mean to start a rant.  It just came out.  We're okay, really, we are.  Or we will be.  (That light is going to burst into view any second now)  But I did want to say, what if we all took a few moments at bedtime and just started a mantra.  Something to the effect of "We will get through this."  "We'll find a way"  "Hey, America, it's going to be okay."

I have to say, I felt chills when I heard the term "Clean Coal" last night.  We have to get through this, but we have to get through it without sacrificing our children's health and future.  Our lifestyles are not sustainable.  Until we make them sustainable, and make sustainable lifestyles affordable to the masses, we're just putting bandaids on the real problem.

That's my opinion, anyway.