As if it were that easy. Blame it on the current party in office....
It's been coming for some time. It's not your current PM, or Bush, or even Clinton or Reagan before him. It's a long line of leaders who have turned a blind eye to this issue coming, and in some cases nudged it along faster.
We got a taste in the 1970's and did nothing about it. We complained, we adjusted, the prices stabilized and we went about our business. About the only adjustment was the introduction of small cars and the rise of the Japanese auto manufacturers (Toyota, Honda, Nissan/Dastun). But gradually we forgot about the '70s and started buying big gas guzzling SUVs and moving further and further from work. We forgot about the need for alternative fuels.
Scott asked why electric cars were not improved. He thought maybe the oil companies possible kept them down. There may have been some work on their part to keep electric cars from becoming popular, but the public made it possible. There was little to no demand, and no apparent profit in working on the idea, so it wasn't furthered. Electric cars have been around a long time, but recent advances in battery technology (rechargable litium ion battaries) have taken a car that would go maybe 50 miles on a charge to 200 miles on a charge. That's the sweet spot that has been needed to make it viable. But those cars are too new and too expensive for just anyone. Only the rich can afford them right now, and they are the ones who least need them. But hopefully they will become more common and less expensive as the manufacturing process is automated and the parts get cheaper. We may see full fledged electric cars being common in a decade or so.
The consumer will drive the demand, but we can't be flakey. We have to keep that demand consistant, even as things might stablize again, and fuel prices plateau, we have to continue the demand for alternative sources of power.