"There's no serious disagreement that two major crises of our time are terrorism and global warming. And there's no disputing that America's oil consumption fosters both."

They go on to say that

"The best solution is to increase the federal gasoline tax, in order to keep the price of gas near its post-Katrina highs of $3-plus a gallon. That would put a dent in gas-guzzling behavior, as has already been seen in the dramatic drop in the sale of sport-utility vehicles. And it would help cure oil dependency in the long run, as automakers and other manufacturers responded to consumer demand for fuel-efficient products."

And they realize that some of the money collected needs to be earmarked to offset the regressive nature of this tax to some parts of the rural poor that will be hit hardest:

"A bolstered gas tax would raise huge amounts of revenue, roughly $1 billion for every penny of additional tax. Some of that money would have to be used to provide offsetting tax breaks to low-income households, such as an increase in the earned income tax credit."

One part of their editorial that I'm not completely on board with is the SUV buy back idea: "...lawmakers could consider would be to use some of the revenue to buy back S.U.V.'s. The buyback notion is a variation on the "scrappage" idea from earlier crises, when it was proposed that the government buy up old clunkers so that their owners could more quickly upgrade to less-polluting cars"

This seems like a waste of money and energy, but it could make the higher gas taxes somewhat more appealing if you were able to trade-in a low efficiency car for a higher one and stimulate demand for hybrids, etc.

In any case, this is the debate we need to start having as a nation. Many of our current problems begin with oil dependency and our future is not bright if we continue that dependency. Raising gas taxes seems like the best practical and equitable measure to start down the road to a lower level of oil dependency.