The Not Too Distant Future
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In the not too distant future, as the gap between the energy rich and the energy poor widens, a dystopian landscape faces us. Affluent apartment blocks have turned into slums because body corporates would not allow EV chargers to be installed. In an EV saturated society, no one wants to buy them and they sell cheaply to those who still drive gas-sucking, fume-spewing dino burners. All new cars are EVs, but unless you have solar on the roof, your electricity bill is so high you can’t afford to charge.
Petrol is $19.99 a gallon. It is not safe to walk the sidewalk which is lined with people holding out tins for a small donation of gas. Two SUVs to feed, he cries. Taxes rise constantly as fossil fuel companies demand more and more subsidies of their captive politicians.
Those farms that have converted to solar power and electric tractors are able to survive and compete effectively. Those still running on diesel face a far more precarious future and some have returned to using bullocks and horses to plough the fields and cart their produce. “We are the ones who are truly environmentally friendly,” they proclaim. “Our produce is more ‘natural’ than what is made with this new-fangled technology.” Cults are experiencing an upsurge in applications for membership, and in some states, the teaching of science has been banned.
“Petrol haters” — not solar power lovers — are the enemies of the ignorant. Car chargers are no longer public but available inside locked cages on the highways or in the gated communities whose Body Corporates saw the light and had them installed. Frequent EV fires are occurring as outlaw pickup truck gangs hunt down the unwary EV driver and burn their car. It’s Fury Road without Mad Max.
Police force cruisers are unable to catch the criminals who made the switch to Cybertrucks. High-speed chases don’t last very long.
Then there are those stuck between the two worlds — the converted cars are well camouflaged, and some fossil fuel cars have hidden exhaust pipes. There are even electric cars with fake fuel caps on the side. It is an attempt to fit in, to “not rock the boat” with family and friends.
Is this the future we are currently choosing?
Author’s note: This was written as a joke, but it has some serious points — we all need to make an effort to make sure it doesn’t end like this.
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