CNBC financial anchor Erin Burnett is a media superstar. A former vice president at Citigroup, she is now anchor or co-anchor of both CNBC's Street Signs and Squawk on the Street financial news shows. I have a beef with her.
A few days ago Erin made a short appearance on Morning Joe on MSNBC. During her appearance she proudly announced that she was the happy owner of a new GMC Denali SUV. Estimated mileage: 12 city, 18 highway. I looked it up.
If you go to website hybridcars.com, there is a nifty little calculator where you can pick two cars and it will calculate for you the difference in fuel mileage as well as the impact to the environment. Assuming you drive 13,000 miles a year, and assuming gas at $1.75 a gallon, a Honda Civic Hybrid will use 309 gallons to the Denali's 921 gallons, at a cost of $540 to $1,611. But let's take a look at the impact to the environment... carbon dioxide (greenhouse gas) is almost 3 times higher in the Denali, 5,866 pounds to 17,496 pounds. Carbon monoxide is 147 pounds with the Honda, 301 with the Denali. Hydrocarbons (smog) is double, 7 pounds to 14 pounds. And on and on.
Ms. Burnett, as far as I can tell from the biographies I have seen of her, is a single woman with no children. So she needs this Denali behemoth why?? As far as I know she is not the owner of a Mastiff. I'm sure that she doesn't need that much room for groceries.... so I'm baffled. I just do not get what she doesn't understand about the words "climate change." It's safe to say that she isn't an environmentalist, I guess.
But you'd think she'd have a little more savvy about oil prices. She sees and reports on the prices of commodities every day. Does she really think gas will stay at $1.75 a gallon? Really??!! Wait until this recession is over, you'll see $3 or maybe even $4 a gallon gas again.
As far as I'm concerned, the only thing that should be done with a Denali is to crush it into a little square or use it for scrap metal. But maybe that's just me.
