Column: Is it progress, or just change? – Chicago Tribune

I keep reading that in the foreseeable future our jobs will be taken over by machines.

And I believe it. But to what end?

I pondered this the other day as I was getting gasoline for my car. I was pumping the gas myself, naturally. I wouldn't even know where or if there were any full-service stations nearby.

If all your parts are working properly, pumping your own gasoline is a cinch. But, if you have physical or mobility problems pumping gas can be an ordeal.

An ordeal that once didn't exist.

All service stations were full service at one time. Then in 1947 the first self-service station opened in Los Angeles. The idea caught on. Machines, aided by the customer, did the work. Thus, gas station attendants went the way of the dinosaurs. Laid off attendants meant more profits.

Now, self-service gasoline stations are the rule, except in Oregon and New Jersey.

It is against the law to pump your own gas in these two state. The laws that prohibit the public from pumping gas claim there is danger of fire and explosion. Pumping gas should be left to the pros.

I remember those pros. There was a Texaco station on the corner in my old neighborhood. Johnny, the owner, and one helper were the attendants. When your car tolled over the hose that made a dinging sound, Johnny would emerge from the repair bay wiping grease from his hands. He would pump the gas, check the oil, give your tires the once-over and clean your windows.

Then you were on your way and your hands didn't smell like gasoline.

Full-service stations also had the advantage that the attendants also were mechanics. If your car was coughing, wheezing or had a flat you could just pull into the nearest gas station for help.

Today, pull into a self-service station with a problem and the attendant can sell you a lottery ticket but can't do much else for you or your car.

In what could be seen as a metaphor for the end of full-service gasoline stations, Johnny was found one morning in the repair bay of his station, dead from a heart attack.

Too bad that Johnny and his brand of service are gone except in Oregon and New Jersey.

But, that's progress.

Or, maybe, just change.

Paul Sassone is a freelance columnist.

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Column: Is it progress, or just change? - Chicago Tribune