Clean Cars: Proposed State Law Would Impose Fee On Gas-Guzzlers, Hand Cash To Gas-Sippers

San Jose Mercury News ^ | 4/9/07 | Paul Rogers

[BuffaloJack]

Wow, talk about socialism’s redistribution of wealth. This brainless idea is the stupidest yet.

[TMD]

Don’t forget the empty transit buses that traverse the county and rarely have more than a handful of people. I tried to find public transportation for my son to go from Campbell to a class by the SJ airport (10 minute drive) The most direct route involved a bus to Mt View, 2 light rails transfers and it took at least an hour and a half (not to mention it would have cost $6/day).

So nice to see our tax $$$ at work!!

[thackney]

Even if it’s not, the oil is in “places that don’t like us very much.”

Like off the coast of California and Florida.

[chaos_5]

I hope that pinko burns in hell!

[RightWhale]

Bring back the electric trolley. Until then the antics are as amusing as watching a puppetshow where the puppet has a couple of strings missing.

[river rat]

"So nice to see our tax $$$ at work!!"

You should go downtown and look at the new City office facilities our "public servants" have built to house themselves while they scheme up new ways to waste our money....

Nearby are the Libraries identified only with Spanish signs and the Hispanic Cultural Center... It all goes so well with the pile of Aztec God dog crap in the city square at West San Carlos.

Semper Fi

[HKMk23]

The mass of people are in favor of fixing GW...

...because the masses are ignorant and uneducated enough to actually get suckered into the fantasyland notion that global warming is a) representative of something being "broken", b) something we're causing, and therefore c) we can/must destroy the world economy and endanger the human race in order to "fix" it.

MEMO to GW boneheads: ATMOSPHERIC CO2 IS AN EFFECT, NOT A CAUSE!

[Finny]

Amen. Dear reader, if your eyes glaze over when you see "125,000 years ago sea levels were 25 feet higher, and 125,000 years is a fraction of a second ago in terms of geological history" and you're tempted to move on, then you haven't yet taken the time to understand why "global warming" is a hoax. Read, and encourage others to read, just one or two basic natural history books. Knowledge is power. Ignorance = being gullable.

[toast]

I have:
Nissan Armada - 13MPG
VW Jetta Diesel TDI - 45MPG

Does that count as balancing out?
Or do I get screwed because I don't have a $5,000 set of batteries like the hybrids.

[ProfoundMan]

As I've been saying for a long time, global warming is all about taking away your liberties and freedoms. First it will be penalties on large cars, then large cars will be banned in favor of "correct" minicars. Freeway speed limits will have to come down to 50 or 55 mph. You will have limits on the number of miles you can drive per year with huge surcharges...

As a long time observer of the anti-smoking movement, your scenario is eerily familiar. Even though (insert behavior or product here) is dangerous enough to "kill" or "end life on the planet as we know it", don't stop it, tax and regulate it to death. It takes them awhile, but the socialists learn well.

[Excellence]

What will they do about motorhomes? Will they force me out of my Winnebago and into a Toyota/Dolphin?

[Myrddin]

The mass of people are in favor of fixing GW, but the masses don't understand everything in their lives is fueled by carbon and, under the guise of environmental stewardship, we will cede total control of our lives to the socialists and communists.

You've bought into the false premise already. There is nothing to be fixed with respect to global warming. It is a completely natural phenomenon. Climate cycles have been happening for millions of years. Human activity has little overall impact on the cycles. The socialists are enjoying this red herring as a way to seize control of the ignorant masses.

[Inge C]

I purchased a Charger SRT-8 june last year, and already had to pay ‘gas guzzler tax’ in the amount of $2,000.00.

[Myrddin]

Sometimes I really hate be in CA.

Move. I did. Relocating from San Diego, CA to Pocatello, ID was one of my best decisions in years. The overcrowding, traffic and endless spew of new socialist legislation made it very easy to relocate. The annual amount of precipitation is almost identical. Some of it is snow...and that translates to 4 months of freedom from yard work. Spring and Fall are mild and pleasant. Summers are warm and dry...no sticky humidity. Gas prices in Pocatello this week are about $2.69/gal. Overall cost of living is much lower.

[Myrddin]

My 1999 F150 4x4 with 5.0L V8 gets about 18 MPG. I purchased it used in August 2003 with 22500 miles on it. It now has 28,000 miles on it. Gas prices aren't a big deal.

I just traded the 2003 Escape 4x4 purchased used in May 2004 for 20,000 miles on it. We added 53,000 miles. The dealer gave us $13,000 for the trade in on a 2008 Mercury Mariner Hybrid 4x4. The new Mariner is getting about 31 MPG on our trips to Idaho Falls (75 MPH). Puttering around town drops to 24 MPG. The battery warranty is 100,000 miles. That's about as long as I typically keep a vehicle.

We need 4x4 vehicles to negotiate the winter snow. The plows can't get into the cul-de-sac where my house is located.

[Dallas59]

"Auto dealers would collect the money from buyers of gas-guzzlers and send it to the state Board of Equalization. Buyers of gas-sippers would be given a certificate from the dealer to mail to the state to receive their checks."

[traviskicks]

"Call it the Robin Hood approach to global warming. California drivers who buy new Hummers, Ford Expeditions and other big vehicles that emit high levels of greenhouse gases would pay a fee of up to $2,500. And drivers who buy more fuel-efficient cars - like the Toyota Prius or Ford Focus - would receive rebates of up to $2,500, straight from the gas-guzzlers' pockets."





Libertarian ping! To be added or removed from my ping list freepmail me or post a message here.

[Dallas59]

Do anyone think that this won’t be applied to other “carbon emitting” items? Houses, TV's, BBQ grills, boats, and on and on...

[Dallas59]

“does”

[P-40]

I wonder if the State Board of Equalization is run by the Handicapper General. :)