At that time, my father was a salesman who worked on strict commission. He'd be away for two-three days at a time, making sure that the companies who bought the remanufactured auto parts that his company sold were happy. I remember being a nine-year-old kid, wondering if gas costs would be so high that he wouldn't be able to make it home when he said he would be. Yeah, it was far-fetched, but it went through my mind, and I don't want my eight-month-old daughter, when she gets a bit older, to have to wonder if Daddy or Mommy is going to be able to afford gas so they can go to work.
To paraphrase freedumb's signature, I'd rather have a "third term of Bush" than a "second term of Carter."