The Debated and Hated SUV Essay -- Transportation Cars Vehicles Papers

The Debated and Hated SUV Since the early 1990s, the car market has become saturated with sport utility vehicles. While SUV’s have been enthusiastically received by a wide spectrum of the demographic – everyone from teenagers to soccer moms -- not all are excited by its arrival. Some of the current complaints with SUVs have to do with their ridiculous size and relative fuel inefficiency. Others criticize the vehicles as being unsafe, and certainly unnecessary, for the tasks for which they are commonly used. But even with the recent campaigns to educate the public on the possible physical and environmental risks posed by the automobiles, SUV purchases continue to be on the rise. Indeed, with car sales on the decline, and the SUV being seen as a possible savior -- or at least band-aid -- for the struggling motor industry, any movement to ban SUVs in the near future is unlikely. There have been many arguments made for and against SUV’s. Anti-SUV groups have made good points by closely entwining logos and pathos arguments. Often anti-SUV arguments use crash statistics and environmental research to make there clams. While their use of statistics is good, anti-SUV arguments can err on the side of being so emotional they create a pathos fallacy. SUV advocates make arguments also based on statistics, but they rely more heavily on pathos based argument. One of the most prevalent fallacies made in pro-SUV arguments is that of distraction by focusing on the anti-SUV groups rather than discussing the issue at hand. Both anti and pro groups have made fallacies, but they have also made several great arguments. The desire for self-preservation is present in all people; this is why SUV safety is such a huge issue. â€Å"Ask a typic... ...e. There are those that would ban SUVs, and others that would rather just regulate them. Those that proudly drive their SUVs feel that all the bad press is directed at them. In the end there are several good arguments made on both sides. Works Cited Davidson, Ross. â€Å"The Bully on the Block.† Salon. Dec. 8, 1997 http://www.salon.com/news/1997/12/08news2.html Flint, Jerry. â€Å"The Holy War on SUVs.† Forbes. 03.03.2003. http://www.forbes.com/global/2003/0303/051.html Kirn, Walter. â€Å"Why I Love My SUV.† Time. Feb 24, 2003 v161 i8 p42 Mencimer, Stephanie. â€Å"Bumper Mentality.† Washington Monthly. December 20, 2002 http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=14839 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/ SUV Info Link, The. â€Å"Environmental Double Standards for Sport Utility Vehicles.† http://www.suv.org/environ.html The Debated and Hated SUV Essay -- Transportation Cars Vehicles Papers The Debated and Hated SUV Since the early 1990s, the car market has become saturated with sport utility vehicles. While SUV’s have been enthusiastically received by a wide spectrum of the demographic – everyone from teenagers to soccer moms -- not all are excited by its arrival. Some of the current complaints with SUVs have to do with their ridiculous size and relative fuel inefficiency. Others criticize the vehicles as being unsafe, and certainly unnecessary, for the tasks for which they are commonly used. But even with the recent campaigns to educate the public on the possible physical and environmental risks posed by the automobiles, SUV purchases continue to be on the rise. Indeed, with car sales on the decline, and the SUV being seen as a possible savior -- or at least band-aid -- for the struggling motor industry, any movement to ban SUVs in the near future is unlikely. There have been many arguments made for and against SUV’s. Anti-SUV groups have made good points by closely entwining logos and pathos arguments. Often anti-SUV arguments use crash statistics and environmental research to make there clams. While their use of statistics is good, anti-SUV arguments can err on the side of being so emotional they create a pathos fallacy. SUV advocates make arguments also based on statistics, but they rely more heavily on pathos based argument. One of the most prevalent fallacies made in pro-SUV arguments is that of distraction by focusing on the anti-SUV groups rather than discussing the issue at hand. Both anti and pro groups have made fallacies, but they have also made several great arguments. The desire for self-preservation is present in all people; this is why SUV safety is such a huge issue. â€Å"Ask a typic... ...e. There are those that would ban SUVs, and others that would rather just regulate them. Those that proudly drive their SUVs feel that all the bad press is directed at them. In the end there are several good arguments made on both sides. Works Cited Davidson, Ross. â€Å"The Bully on the Block.† Salon. Dec. 8, 1997 http://www.salon.com/news/1997/12/08news2.html Flint, Jerry. â€Å"The Holy War on SUVs.† Forbes. 03.03.2003. http://www.forbes.com/global/2003/0303/051.html Kirn, Walter. â€Å"Why I Love My SUV.† Time. Feb 24, 2003 v161 i8 p42 Mencimer, Stephanie. â€Å"Bumper Mentality.† Washington Monthly. December 20, 2002 http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=14839 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/ SUV Info Link, The. â€Å"Environmental Double Standards for Sport Utility Vehicles.† http://www.suv.org/environ.html