“We’ve read that the word ‘sustainable’ isn’t sustainable, and neither, it seems, is the American appetite for the hybrid automobile. Two-thirds of hybrid car owners have no interest in buying another hybrid. Why? Perhaps because gas savings are negated by replacing an expensive battery. Or it could be ‘range anxiety’ — the fear that your electric car will putter out miles from an outlet, in a red state where Stand Your Ground laws justify the murder of people who believe in science. Or maybe it’s the shimmering plume of noxious smug released every time your Nissan Leaf switches from ‘self-righteous slumber’ mode to ‘drive, but only because a panda’s life is in danger.’