New York Times: Rural U.S. Takes Worst Hit as Gas Tops $4 Average. Gasoline prices reached a national average of $4 a gallon for the first time over the weekend, adding more strain to motorists across the country. But the pain is not being felt uniformly. Across broad swaths of the South, Southwest and the upper Great Plains, the combination of low incomes, high gas prices and heavy dependence on pickup trucks and vans is putting an even tighter squeeze on family budgets.

I used to think that sustainability meant eating less meat, installing a photovoltaic roof system, and substituting native, drought-tolerant plants for a wide expanse of green grass. All worthwhile endeavors, but many people find it hard to surrender a tangible benefit today for some uncertain and unseen benefit tomorrow. No more. Sustainability is no longer about surviving is some distant future, but about surviving today. Even if you don’t live in the South or Midwest, the steady increase in gas prices will still crimp your wallet (or purse) and start to affect your decision-making processes.

A few months ago, I spotted this piece of advice on Ken Rockwell’s website titled How to Afford Anything.

I’ve never commuted by car.

Call me wishful, but I’ve made this happen by only applying for jobs in places near my home, or in places to which I’d enjoy moving. I would never apply for a job someplace in which I would not want to live.

I’ve always taken my bicycle, or walked.

That is true sustainability. The ability to survive despite unrelenting increases in gasoline prices.