>Having come through the depression I try putting on several sweaters before turning up the heat and I open a window before turning on the A/C. Can't shake those old habits.
>
>Ditto with cars.
>I've been driving Camry Hybrids since 2009.
>The latest one, a 2018, is insanely efficient. On one trip I got it up to 58 mpg.
>I buy them partially because I'm just lazy and don't want to have stop for fill ups but frankly just the thought of keeping a few bucks out of the pockets of the oil guys gives me a chuckle too.
>
>I was at a graduation party last weekend held at the home of the grad's wealthy parents.
>It was a McMansion of the worst kind. Huge rooms, high ceilings, etc, etc.
>They had the A/C blasting with all the doors open.
>That's obscene.
Our communist leaders, it turns out now, had much more foresight and common sense than what we see today: they had zero retail tax on house insulation material. Which I took advantage of, and my monthly gas bill, in winter, is about half of what's normal for the house of the same size.
No such thing in the US: there's no incentive to invest in insulation above the minimal prescribed level. Those who own their own homes usually invest only in what helps them sell them later - as if they don't live in there, just keep it until the right time to sell. Those who own but don't live in them are trying to make a buck, so why invest in insulation when the tenant will pay the energy bills; the tenants are not crazy to invest in other's property. Therefore, the few who insulate it right may enjoy their savings and green conscience in quiet, the rest just don't want to know.