Anyone who's ever seen the terrific documentary, "Who Killed the Electric Car?" knows that our decades-long putative energy crisis is an unnecessary, highly destructive burden on all persons, not only on Americans but on the man- and woman-in-the-street, worldwide.

The General Motors EV1 electric car was a gorgeous machine, developed the EV1 in response to strict California emissions laws established by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). The board mandated zero emission vehicles (ZEV) in 1990. The EV1 was a sleek, futuristic electric car with an emissions-free range of 100 miles. A 300-mile range could have been implemented. But, EV1 production was nipped in the bud.

Thus in 2012, more than 15 years after the introduction of the EV1, we could all be driving zero-emission vehicles and hugely reducing our use of oil, specifically, foreign oil. But such a scenario is at great odds with certain corporate interests. The prospect of fracking is yet another manifestation of this energy madness.

The Alden March Bioethics Institute offers graduate online masters in bioethics programs. For more information on the AMBI master of bioethics online program, please visit the AMBI site.