I nearly fell out of my seat when I read that a report from the British government claimed that wasted energy from video game consoles costs £70 million (more than $129 million) each year in the United Kingdom. According to the report, consoles "leak" energy at a fairly high rate while in standby mode. In other words, even when your machine is turned off, it's sucking up power to keep its internal clock, Wi-Fi and remote control capabilities running.

The amount of wasted energy isn't huge. A recent post on the blog DXgaming.com claimed that both PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360 each lose about17.5 kWh (kilowatt hours) each year. To put this in perspective, a 60-watt light bulb uses 60 watts every hour. And depending on your electricity rates, you're only throwing away a few bucks each year. The problem is, however, when you add up all the consoles in the United Kingdom, that's a lot of wasted energy and money going down the toilet. Now here's a truly scary thought: imagine how much energy we're wasting in the U.S. Think about it; the United Kingdom has a population of just over 60 million people, while the United States is close to five times that number.

Then consider the difference in attitude between the two nations. There's no way to say this politely, so I won't even try: we're a bunch of wasteful hogs in this country. We buy bushels of gas-guzzling SUVs that get 10 miles to a gallon, which is so economically preposterous that it defies reason. Then we drive our inefficient tanks a quarter mile up the road for a Big Mac, and then we have the balls to complain to Congress that gas prices are too high. We crank our air conditioners even on a mild summer day instead of simply opening a window and letting a cool breeze in. We constantly leave the lights on and consumer electronics items running in rooms that are completely unoccupied. And yet we still complain to legislators that energy prices are too high.

Boo-hoo. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, given the position of the presidential administration. Americans think it's their Bush-given right to use as much gas and electricity as they want, whenever they want. After all, it wasn't that long ago that Vice President Dick Cheney dismissed the idea of asking Americans to conserve energy, saying: "Conservation may be a sign of personal virtue, but it is all by itself not a sufficient basis for a sound, comprehensive energy policy." Meanwhile, we've got power emergencies and potential blackouts yet again this summer.