Fill the gaps by using these key words from the text

bete noire
of 
environmental activists. In 
January some SUVs were set 
alight by protesters in 
Pennsylvania; in Washington 
state they have had their 
windshields smashed; in 
Massachusetts they were 
spray-painted with the slogan: 
"No Blood for Oil". Branded 
the "axles of evil", they have 
been the target of a 
nationwide advertising 
campaign. They are ticketed 
in their millions and attract 
bumper stickers declaring: 
"As a matter of fact, I do own 
the road," and "I'm changing 
the environment, ask me 
how." 
The row has transformed the 
SUV from a car into a national 
metaphor that envelops just 
about every hot-button political 
issue and cultural touchstone 
from religion to sex, from tax-
cuts to the first Gulf War. 
These are iconic cars for iconic 
people. 
The message from SUVOA's 
founder on its website 
begins: "Is this a Great 
Country or What? Yes it is." 
Why? "Because we have the 
freedom to own and operate 
the vehicles of our choice 
and to express our belief that 
freedom must not be 
diminished because some 
individuals dislike SUVs." 
©Macmillan Publishers Ltd 
Taken from the News section in
www.onestopenglish.com 

---

When fighting in Iraq was at 
its height, Hummer drivers 
regarded their choice of 
vehicle as a patriotic act. 
"When I turn on the TV, I see 
wall-to-wall Humvees, and I'm 
proud," Sam Bernstein told 
the New York Times. "They're 
not out there in Audi A4s," he 
said of the troops. 
Someone who drives an 
SUV, according to its critics, 
does not care about the 
environment. At the heart of 
this controversy, like so many 
here in recent years, is 
America's favourite drug - oil. 
Federal figures show that 
four-wheel-drive SUVs 
average 17.3 miles per gallon 
and on some larger models 
that goes down to 12. 
Hummers are even worse. In 
comparison, the average 
petrol-fuelled saloon 
manages 30mpg. In a country 
where, according to the US 
department of energy, per-
capita energy consumption 
has been about 4.5 times 
greater than the world 
average, the debate over 
SUVs is linked to the broader 
national debate - namely 
what responsibility America 
has to the rest of the world 
and how it should go about 
fulfilling it. "You could say that 
the American way is to do 
what you want when you 
want," says Weinstock. "But 
there's another American way 
where people pull together for 
the common good and we try 
to set an 
example for the rest of 
the world." 
So far the protests have had 
little effect on the American 
conscience. Sales of SUVs 
continue to climb faster than 
those of any other type of car. 
One of the reasons that the 
protesters' entreaties may 
have converted so few is that 
while the SUV's fuel 
consumption makes a big 
difference to the environment, 
it has little effect on the 
wallet. At about $1.67 a 
gallon (3.8 litres), gasoline in 
America is so cheap that an 
extra five miles to the gallon 
would save the average 
American only $135 a year. 
The Guardian Weekly 
©Macmillan Publishers Ltd 
Taken from the News section in
www.onestopenglish.com 

---

Match the beginnings with the endings: 
Environmentalists are opposed to SUVs becau
se ….
The fake parking tickets that protesters place on SUVs ….
The communications director of SUVOA believes that ….
SUVs are ….
The war in Iraq made SUV owners feel that ….
In general SUVs …
US per-
capita energy consumption ….
The environmentalists’ protests have fallen on deaf ears because ….
a. … is more than 4 times the world average.
b. … the arguments of the environmentalists are false.
c. … their choice of car was a patriotic act.
d. … they cause more damage to the environment than ordinary 
cars. 
e. … consume about 45% more fuel than ordinary cars.
f. … the price of fuel is not an issue in the USA.
g. … the most successful type of car in US automobile history.
h. … question the owners’ need to buy such large vehicles.
Find two wo
rds which mean ‘false’.
Find a word which means ‘damage’.
Find a word which means ‘complaining’.
Find a word which means ‘famous’ and ‘representing a particular idea’.
Find a word which means ‘critics’ or ‘opponents’.
Find a word which means ‘a family car’.
Find a two-
word expression which means ‘to co
-
operate’.
Find a word which means ‘strong requests’.
©Macmillan Publishers Ltd 
Taken from the News section in
www.onestopenglish.com 

---

Fill the gaps with these verbs from the text. 
fulfil 
turn on 
have 
express 
provoke 
put 
make 
set 
go 
to ____________ an example 
to ____________ an effect 
to ____________ someone in jail 
to ____________ controversy 
to ____________ a belief 
to ____________ the TV 
to ____________ a responsibility 
to ____________ a difference 
to ____________ to war 
Make a list of the points for and against owning SUVs. 
Should the sale of large cars be banned? 
©Macmillan Publishers Ltd 
Taken from the News section in
www.onestopenglish.com 

---