Heh, I live out in wonderful suburbia bordering on country, and I can't for the life of me figure out why the heck people pay to jog in place on a treadmill indoors, even when the weather is beautiful.

I think that's partly due to consumerism (otherwise known as "buy-more-crapism"). There are lots of messages that tell you going to the gym (and paying for it of course) will make you slim and sexy. These messages get to people, and off to the gym they go. One comfort about the gym is that you have the membership and so feel good about yourself and have that membership contribute to your self-identity, and yet still not actually go and exercise. With commuting, it's more a matter of either you do it or you don't.

Also, there aren't so many messages telling us that biking and commuting will make us slim and sexy. For one thing, this kind of message might not jive with the message to buy ever bigger cars. Why would I want to bike somewhere, when what I really need to go to 7-eleven is a vehicle big enough to hold 12 people and the dog and able to drive through a 'gator infested swamp? Check out the car commercials and see how little they talk about the car, and how much they try to sell an "image", or a purchasable boost to your self-esteem.

Jeeze, we only live once. Why the heck would anyone want to swallow hook line and sinker everything the prevailing culture suggests? I think it's invigorating to dare to challenge convention; it helps you dig through the crap in life to see what really has value for you. Try something different!