Hybrid, hybrid, hybrid.

That's all you ever hear from us snooty green-types.

Meanwhile one of The Thin Green Line's most loyal readers, Thomas Mounce of Birdsboro, has been the voice in the wilderness for clean diesels.

Every time I wax on (and on and on) about my Honda Civic Hybrid (46 m.p.h. until I got stuck in snow traffic in Reading Saturday, tanking my average) I would get a note or a comment from Tom about how his Volkswagen diesel gets as good or better.

We would smile in our superior "also ran" green way and mumble something patronizing like "I'm sure it does, but hybrids are the way of the future!" (trumpets peal and echo in the background).

Well in a tip of the hat to not knowing a good thing when its staring you in the face we announce, in case you missed it, that a clean-burning diesel Volkswagen Jetta was named the Green Car of the Year at the L.A. Auto Show.

You can read all about it in this Reuters article.

"The Jetta TDI beat out finalists including BMW's 335d diesel sport sedan, Ford Motor Co's Fusion Hybrid passenger sedan, General Motors Corp's crossover Saturn Vue 2 Mode Hybrid, and the smart fortwo mini car," according to the article.

We would tell you more, but we're too broken up by the destruction of our arrogant-but-apparently-misplaced sense of superiority.

Congratulations Mr. Mounce.

Now pardon us while we go weep in our carrot juice (made from locally grown carrots of course.)