> Self driving cars is such a dumb, short-sighted idea. We don't need more cars on the road, and we don't need more roads either. It's not sustainable.
Doing heroin is a bad idea; it's harmful to the body and the community. But while fighting heroin is a good thing, it's also good to give addicts clean needles so they aren't harmed even more.
Cars aren't going anywhere, but if you can reduce the harm while promoting better alternatives, everyone wins.
Look, I'm an environmentalist (I fund projects that help pay for inholdings in state parks so they transition to what we'd consider the public domain), but I'm a realist as well. People need mobility. Its not going away, ever. Self driving cars + electric vehicles + intelligent energy management between a large electric grid and all those vehicles is the holy grail. It's going to happen much sooner than you think.
That's a really pathetic version of a "holy grail". Real progress would mean people living in compact communities where most trips are undertaken on foot or by bicycle. Your "holy grail" is just a new coat of paint on the same deteriorating sprawl.
Compact communities don't have to involve large populations. There are already small and medium-sized villages in Europe that have successfully converted to 100% car-free walkable spaces, and it isn't inconceivable for many existing US suburbs. You just have to move away from this design philosophy focused on strictly separating residential and commercial zones.
Doing heroin is a bad idea; it's harmful to the body and the community. But while fighting heroin is a good thing, it's also good to give addicts clean needles so they aren't harmed even more.
Cars aren't going anywhere, but if you can reduce the harm while promoting better alternatives, everyone wins.