Editor's Blog File

The cost of gasoline is getting me thinking about where and when I drive. Unless I must, I don’t get into my car until I have a couple of things to do.

And Springfield? At $10 or more a round trip, there’s got to be a pretty good reason.

This is exactly as it should be. Until the United States has a dictatorship, the price of gasoline will cause people to change their behavior and drive less often. And it’s apparently already starting to have an impact. Gasoline use has started to drop.

People who want the United States to cut back on its use of oil and gas must be thrilled. A couple quarters on the cost of a gallon of gas has accomplished what decades of legislation and attempted legislation has failed to do: make Americans drive less.

But I doubt if they’ll learn the lesson. It’s much more satisfying to make others to what we want then let them decide for themselves.

The big, bad Wal-Mart Supercenter is in town, opening today near you.

Wal-Mart is one of the most vilified companies anywhere these days, right up there with big oil and the local newspaper. The criticism is unrelenting and often irrational.

Most people in this area realize that — at least according to an online poll last week when 60 percent of the respondents said the arrival of a supercenter will be beneficial to the area.

They are right. In fact, I don’t see much of a downside at all.

What do you think? I’ll expand on this topic in Sunday’s Editor’s File.