Top things a Romney administration could do for economy without spending a lot of tax money

10/20/2012 | Vince Ferrer

[Vince Ferrer]

This is a positive thread about the top things a Romney administration could do to get the economy moving again, without the government paying a lot of money.

Reverse all drilling bans imposed by Obama.

This can be done the first day. Do not listen to anyone who brings out the tired "it will take ten years to get any oil" argument. First, it will not take ten years, it will be more like three. But most importantly, the jobs start immediately after the permit is issued. It takes work to get the oil out of the ground, and we want that to be happening as much as we want the oil. This also includes the Keystone pipeline.

Obamacare

Dump it. Preferrebly, dump the whole idea that employers should provide health insurance at all. Employers can give their employees money, and emoployees can buy their own insurance. This will lower the cost of hiring workers, and by having individuals in charge of their own health care, will encourage shopping based upon price.

Tort reform / Loser pays reform

By lowering damages for frivilous lawsuits, prices for all goods and services can come down.

Allow ethanol fuel for vehicles to be made from any source of ethanol, not just corn.

Ethanol can be made more cheaply from other sources, so it would lower the cost of fuel at the pump if ethanol was made from cheaper sources than corn. Coal and natural gas can be used to produce ethanol. We already have E85 vehicles, and so 85% of the fuel for those can come from coal and natural gas, which is easier than converting our fueling infrastructure to support more natural gas vehicles.

Thorium

With a small amount of funding/tax encouragement, we can develop standard designs for Thorium nuclear reactors, which are cheaper than nuclear, and we have plentiful supplies of thorium.

Self driving cars

Private business are investing heavily in this area, and it would be a great increase in productivity for the economy to have self driving cars. There will also be a jobs boom inplementing the hardware and software infrastructure for this. There isn't a lot of funding necessary from the government, but federal and states could take the lead in encouraging the development, implementation and standards for communication between cars, and cars and infrastructure.

Self sailing ships

The same idea as self driving cars, but with our network of river and intercoastal waterway commercial craft of barges and ships. Barges and ships can be pilotless and communicating with each other to bring down shipping costs, relieving traffic on roads and rail, and bring down export costs, such as for exporting grain. This would only require government money for a communications infrastructure, such as the current FAA and air traffic control. The technology is available for self driving cars, but is currently too expensive for consumer cars. However, for shipping it is not too expensive, as the technology is a small part of a multimillion dollar ship. It could be implemented on ships faster.

[edzo4]

eliminate national income tax and replace with national sales tax, it encourages saving as you are taxed when you spend not when you save, also it increases the tax base exponentially by adding all the under the table workers to the tax rolls bookies drug dealers prostitutes illegal immigrants all of them would become legitimate taxpayers every time they spent their ill gotten loot, I also would heavily tax any money wired from the US to any other country, most often it is made illegally here no taxes are paid on it and then it's spent in another country

[Fresh Wind]

For now, anyway, the “black boxes” are only local monitors, without any real-time reporting capability (except for BMW, according to what I have read) or the ability to control your use of your car.

I’m not happy about it, but I have had the black box in my last 2 cars.

I am concerned about schemes to base taxation on miles driven as a replacement or supplement to fuel taxes. That will be one giant step forward to complete monitoring of a person’s movements, and something to be fought tooth and nail.

Insurance companies (e.g. Progressive) are pushing a monitor device that rewards docile behavior with reduced rates. For now, it’s voluntary. In the future, it might not be.

The first self-driving cars will, of course, offer the option of do-it-yourself driving, for traditionalists like myself. That last little bit of freedom will gradually slip away as the golden chains are tightened.

These erosions of personal freedom always come as gifts from the masters, wrapped in shiny paper and bright ribbons, with promises of lower costs, better health and safety, and as always, benefits “for the children”.

As for the pizza delivery, I would only require that the self-driven car be occupied by a good-looking android!

(Sorry for the rant!)

[ObozoMustGo2012]

Withdraw from the UN, ending participation in Agenda 21 and Gun Treaty, and sell/lease the UN complex in NY to corporations.

[muir_redwoods]

Resign

[Obama_Is_Sabotaging_America]

If Romney is elected we will see a hiring boom that rivals the Industrial revolution, AND HE WON’T HAVE TO DO A SINGLE THING.

[Betty Jane]

We need an attitude change in this country and Romney and Ryan could start it. Have the Romney administration focus on morals and the good results of being honest, hard-working, thrifty, sober, not promiscuous, etc. in a non preachy way. Celebrate those who do good and shame those who don't.

Inspire the young to start businesses that will create jobs instead just looking for jobs. Say America works when we all work together.

Deny welfare benefits for future teenage mothers and their illegitimate children. Let their parents be financially responsible for them.

Look through all the new disability recipients and toss off the fake ones. Redefine disability as not physically able to work. Drugs addicts and drunks are not disabled for life. Give them time to get clean and sober and a job.

But first fire all the Obama appointees, no matter the position and repeal all Obama executive orders, including the hiding of his records.

[9YearLurker]

We should just stop forcing ethanol on our fuel system completely.

Unfortunately, Romney’s in favor of continuing the government meddling that is imposing that boondoggle on us.

[Hardraade]

Just let the Ents deal with algor. They’ll love it.

[jessduntno]

“Just let the Ents deal with algor. They’ll love it.”

He probably is a little ... too hasty for them.

[usconservative]

Allow ethanol fuel for vehicles to be made from any source of ethanol, not just corn.

Completely wrong. Ban Ethanol, Period.

Anyone who's had the opportunity to run their vehicle on Ethanol-Free gas as I have, knows they get 3-4mpg BETTER than with the ethanol CRAP the government makes us run.

Ethanol=LESS MPG, and in effect is a TAX on drivers who ultimately BUY MORE GAS to go the same miles per year, which results in NET TAXES to the Federal Government via the 5 Cent/Gallon gas tax.

Other than that, good list.

[Vince Ferrer]

Completely wrong. Ban Ethanol, Period.

My recommendation to keep ethanol is based on my belief that we need to pursue energy independence, and I don't think that can be achieved 100% through domestic petroleum. However, if we keep ethanol, which can be made from American coal and American natural gas, we can extend the life of our petroleum beyond the next hundred years. So my equation is American oil + American coal + American gas = energy independence. Note that these are all American jobs too.

Using natural gas to produce ethanol seems to be less costly than creating an infrastructure for natural gas cars, and we already have cars that can run on E85, 85% ethanol, so E85 cars would almost be natural gas powered cars anyway.

[Chickensoup]

End the Department of Education. Pink slips all around

Close the EPA

Repeal overly stringent air polution laws so we can import the diesls that are availble in Europe.

Repeal the minimen wage laws and the employment laws that force kids to cool their heels until they are 18.

Encoursge the states to decrease regulation on employment and licensure. Does your Poodle-shampooer REALLY need a state license?

[Chickensoup]

And first of all, stop the repression and tracking of citizens, so being an American is about being free again, not being tracked and monitered.

Ban ddrones in the states.

Ban Google maps or others that diminish privacy, just like they did in GERMANY

Ban cameras run by the government.

Ban having everyone and their brother be mandatory or paid reporters to the government.

Turn back the totalitarianism of the past thirty years.

[Chickensoup]

Explore the new nuclear technologies.

[usconservative]

You’ve completely missed the point. Ethanol causes MORE fuel consumption, not less. I suppose if one wanted to run out of oil FASTER they’d keep pursuing the ethanol myth.

[Forward the Light Brigade]

Let states handle health care-—
If Liberal California wants An Obama Care thing—they can do it.
Start to plan for military groth.
Set up a commission to fix the illegal problem
Set up a new branch of the Military—the Border Guard—(like Coast Guard but on land) to replace Border Patrol

[Vince Ferrer]

You’ve completely missed the point. Ethanol causes MORE fuel consumption, not less. I suppose if one wanted to run out of oil FASTER they’d keep pursuing the ethanol myth.

In what way are you saying ethanol causes more fuel comsumption? If you mean that if all the fuel that goes into farming corn is included, than yes, ethanol is at best a wash in replacing oil. But that just means using corn for ethanol is a bad idea.

Here is my goal:

Right now we import about 45% of our oil. With new drilling, yes we can replace some of that 45%, but I am not convinced that we can replace it all, for generations to come. But we do have abundant natural gas and coal, and if we convert those to liquid fuels, we can extend the life of our petroleum liquid fuels and become energy independent, while creating jobs here to create that energy.

We do not have an infrastructure for natural gas cars, but we already have plenty of E85 cars. The milage is usually less than the equivalent gasoline powered cars. Here is an example:

For a 2012 Ford Escape AWD FFV 6 cyl, 3.0 L, Automatic 6-spd, Regular Gas or E85, the highway milage for gasoline is 23, and the E85 is 17, which is about 24% less. (Ford E85 vehicles)

However, if you can also produce ethanol cheaper, and one company claims 25%-35%, or $60 per barrel equivalent, then you can make up a lot of the lost milage with cheaper fuel prices.

Celanese Says Ethanol-From-Coal Process Is a ‘Game-Changer’

How A Dumb Law Blocks A Great Way To Fuel America

Celanese Partners to Develop Ethanol in Indonesia

And finally, is it an absolute limit that an E85 vehicle will have lower fuel economy than a gasoline equivelent? Possibly not, as the Wikipedia article on E85 claims:

Because ethanol contains less energy than gasoline, fuel economy is reduced for most 2002 and earlier American FFVs (flexible-fuel vehicles) by about 30% (most after 2003 lose only 15-17%, or less) when operated on E85 (summer blend). Some of the newest American vehicles can achieve only a 5-15% loss, but as recently as 2007 the Environmental Protection Agency stated on its website that several of the most current American FFVs were still losing 25% fuel efficiency when running on E85. Some Swedish-engineered cars with engine-management systems provide much better fuel economy on E85 than on gasoline; for example, the Saab Aero-X turbocharged concept car produces higher fuel economy and higher power on 100% ethanol (E100) than gasoline through using a higher-compression-ratio engine with advanced SAAB engine-control computers. Another car that has higher power on ethanol is the Koenigsegg CCXR, which on ethanol is the third-most powerful production car, with 1020 hp. According to the manufacturer, this is due to the cooling properties of ethanol. Still, for almost all American-made FFVs, more E85 is typically needed to do the same work as can be achieved with a lesser volume of gasoline. This difference is sometimes offset by the lower cost of the E85 fuel, depending on E85's current price discount relative to the current price of gasoline. As described earlier, the best thing for drivers to do is to record fuel usage with both fuels and calculate cost/distance for them. Only by doing that can the end-user economy of the two fuels be compared.

From: E85

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Dissolve the EPA.

It was EO'ed in, it can be EO'ed out.

Announce that from now on regulations dreamed up by unelected and unaccountable bureaucrats are right out.

Not many people like bureaucrats so it should be popular.

[Vince Ferrer]

How do you think taxicabs will change with self driven cars? I would hope that the industry will be completely changed from what it is now, because for most of the last 80 years, it has been an extremely anti-competitive industry. The industry is highly regulated and controlled by cities in order to block competitors from entering the market.

Here is an interesting case, IJ Breaks Up Denver's 50-Year-Old Taxi Monopoly

Proponents of self driven cars feel that an individual can give up ownership of cars because there will always be a self driven car around you somewhere that can be called like a taxi and take you where you need to go. I don't know if the market will ever get that saturated, but it is an interesting idea. But this will bump up against most city's laws against "gypsy" cabs.

[An.American.Expatriate]

That’s the goal...

Romney's, you've got to be kidding...

...what are the steps to get there?
Step 1: Stop doing it.
Step 2: Profit.