"Tree hugger" is probably too gentle of a term for me. Yes, I'm an unabashed environmentalist, and my primary motivation for buying a hybrid is to help participate in a cultural change that will result in the lessening of man's impact upon the planet. If you don't care about these things, that's fine. You're still, like me, participating in the hybrid phenomenon - casting your dollar votes in favor of lower emissions and a more sensible attitude towards fossil fuels, even if nothing else in your life reflects this attitude.

A single H2 (or for that matter, all the Hummers ever made) doesn't singlehandedly destroy the planet, but I think that the wastefully ignorant attitude that convinces people that it's good to drive one is responsible for much of the unnecessary damage to our planet that our society has inflicted over the last century or two. The way I see it, though, as oil dries up and profoundly disturbing environmental problems become manifest in the next few decades, larger and larger chunks of the people will be more inclined to incorporate sustainable living practices and thinking into their everyday modus operandi. In just a handful of years, hybrid drivers won't be a fringe minority, and will represent a major force in social and economic policies - whether they're conscious of their contribution or not.