I agree that hybrids aren't the panacea that car companies would like us to believe.
However, also I hate the "electric cars are dirty because that comes from fossil fuel too" argument.
Yes, it does come from fossil fuels. However, the thermal efficiency of a power station (ie the amount of useful energy you get out compared to what is in the fuel) is in the region of 60% for current technology coal-fired stations. A state-of-the-art diesel engine is at 25-30%.
Additionally to that, there is a very significant amount of energy lost in the transmission of a car - something that does not happen to anything like the same degree in an electric car with a motor at each wheel. On the downside, there are losses through electrical distribution, battery storage, etc.
Overall, however, from coal to car movement, an electric car is more efficient than a petrol or diesel car is.
Of course, manufacture makes that much more complex, and hybrids and electric cars clearly have significant environmental issues in their manufacturing processes.