The Great American Freedom Machine Let's hear it for automobiles. They are the great American freedom machines. They offer us enormous opportunities to go where we want, when we want. They are even more energy-efficient than the mass transit systems touted by "smart growth" advocates. Autos dramatically expand the geographical area in which people can work, shop, eat, attend school or just enjoy themselves without the extra time needed to match public transit schedules or to walk or bike. With extra range of movement comes a huge range of extra opportunity. It's quite convenient to live near where you work –but why limit your choices of where and how to live and raise your family? Even if you find a place that combines a great job setting with a good place to live, is it permanent? Every year, four in 10 Americans change jobs. Those aged 18 to 34 typically change jobs nine times before they turn 35. No other transportation mode offers the flexibility of the automobile, including the ability to separate our place of work from our place of abode and from our places of recreation....