People can’t afford to drive anywhere, and there are millions who no longer need to drive to work. Home energy costs have probably risen, but that too will drop as more people transition to living around dumpsters and in tent cities. The Oconomy is cleaning up the environment despite the colossal failure of green energy investments.
Home energy usage is going down because families such as ours are very stringent in cutting energy waste: no TVs, radios, lights, computers running when they are not used; air conditioning set at 79 in summer and heating at 69 in winter, no outdoor lighting except one security light, doing the laundry at off-peak hours.
There are many ways to cut sky-rocketing utility bills....but we still plan to have our own generator and go completely off the grid out here in rural America.
You are so right.
In addition, some of the people who still have jobs are moving closer to the job to shorten their commute. I think there is a lot more telecommuting happening and a lot fewer business trips, too. Those are smaller factors, but they all contribute.