Do you know him personally? I doubt it. I don't think you know the issues he has, he's buying a house, and if he's got the money for a house and a car, he's doing alright... but the extra money that's going into his gas tank is making it rougher on him trying to buy the house. Right now is a GREAT time to buy a house if you can afford it, because people are taking 15k below their asking price... but some of the fees and other stuff associated with it makes it tough to function sometimes, but I'm sure he's managing.
The economy is suffering, and that's more to do with the fact that price gouging is allowed. The economy fixes itself if left alone... "Laissez Faire" is a method of economics that has always worked in the past, because whenever government gets their hands in it, they mess it up... It roughly translated means "Hands Off" and it has gotten us out of multiple recessions... it's when the government starts to print money, or change the interest rates, or other things that affects how things help themselves.
Tired of high fuel prices? Walk. ride a bicycle. get a hybrid or an all electric vehicle. turn off your car at long stoplights. don't hit vtec/mivec/vvt-i. Lose the rotary. Any of these will put a hurt on the energy industry. Gas doesn't need to be below $2 a gallon. That would cause a worldwide recession.
Me personally, I'm driving with a lighter foot, and finding things to do that don't require me to drive around a lot. I'm working on organizing local meets, having people over to hang out and cook out, hell, we play the shit out of some rock band.
There are always local solutions to worldwide problems.
