A clear majority of Americans are pissed off, and they’re taking it out on everyone except themselves: the ones actually buying the oil.

Once we’re exhausted with blaming and yelling, we climb into our oversized cars, crank up the air conditioner, drive to Burger King and order a ammonia-washed beef sandwich the size of a baby — while mindlessly idling at the drive-thru.

Ultimately, the president would more easily be able dive to the bottom of the Gulf and plug the leak by tying the blowout preventer in a big knot than he would be able to convince enough Americans to even temporarily drink fewer milkshakes (in the vernacular of Daniel Plainview).

Instead, all he can really ask Americans to do is to pray. Anything more would be too disruptive.

If you’re angry about the oil spill, organize a car pool, eat less beef, live closer to work and ride a bike. These aren’t complicated things to do, but they do require a little effort. Maybe moving closer to work is a pain in neck, but, then again, so is 75,000,000 gallons of oil mixed with a dispersant forming a massive cocktail of poison in the Gulf of Mexico.

I think it’s time to inconvenience ourselves for a change.