Obama’s Best-Kept Secrets (Magic Unicorn World of Tom Friedman Alert)

NY Slimes ^ | 10/20/2012 | Tom "I'm a Pretty Clueless Pundit" Friedman

[lacrew]

“Actually, cars will get lighter but not at a loss of safety”

We shall see.

I’m glad to hear “we’re lowering the cost of carbon fiber”; but, I’ve grown skeptical of these types of progress reports.

I think us in the general population (i.e. not part of the governing class) will be presented with one choice for a lighter car, that gets 54.5 mpg - an extraordinarily small car...no titanium, no carbon fiber...just the equivalent of a motorcycle, with more comfortable seats and a few extra wheels.

And we’ll all have to deal with a new phenomenon: Car Tipping:

https://www.google.com/search?q=smart+car+tipping&hl=en&safe=off&tbo=u&rls=com.microsoft:en-US&rlz=1I7GGIE_en&tbm=isch&source=univ&sa=X&ei=5FWEUIfZIeOiyAHHiICICA&sqi=2&ved=0CEQQsAQ&biw=1280&bih=796

[lentulusgracchus]

[Friedman Obamagasming] ....his Race to the Top in vehicles — raising the mileage standards for American-made car and truck fleets from 27.5 miles per gallon to 54.5 m.p.g. between now and 2025 — is already spurring a wave of innovation in auto materials, engines and software.

This is a replay of 1974-1994, when cars were repeatedly downsized, cheapened, and depowered (already the six-cylinder options have gone away for Ford Fusion and Audi A4 buyers -- engine selection is being decimated across the spectrum because of CAFE).

So, Tom, how many people died in the 70's, 80's, and 90's riding in 1900-lb shoeboxes traveling at 50 mph that got crushed by 30,000-lb six-wheelers doing 55 mph? All legal beagle and stuff -- and even giving the Greenies their precious ******** double-nickel speed limit, which I'm personally convinced was NOT imposed to try to boost fuel economy, but to try to "cheat" on holding down fatalities in the shoeboxes EPA and NHTSA were asking Americans to buy instead of full-sized cars.

How many died, so that the Plymouth Arrow could get XX miles per gallon? Does anyone remember? Does anyone care?

In the 50's, the average 6-cylinder car (and most of them were still sixes weighing about 3500 lbs) got about 18 mpg.

So take a wild stab, Tom, at what a Dodge Challenger SE V-6 gets in town now, a car weighing 4100 lb and developing, d/o year-model, anywhere from 220 to 250 bhp, or about what Ford V8's put out in 1956?

Go for it, Tom. A. How many people died? B. For what? C. What's the mileage on that 4100-lb MOPAR six-banger? D. And why would we want to rinse and repeat, trading NASCAR-inspired 3500-pound spaceframe cars for 1700-pound Smart cars and their carbon-fiber, motorcycle-engined imitators?

The point here is not to bash cars old or new, but the people who want to take away our car keys, then our freedom to travel, and then everything else. Eventually they'll send people around to do bedchecks. Just because of the way they are.

[lentulusgracchus]

“Actually, cars will get lighter but not at a loss of safety”

They did that last time, and sniggered and giggled at how their outrageous CAFE + EPA demands force engines and cars to shrink and lighten up dangerously.

Any fond memories out there of the Chevy Vega? The Mustang II and Pinto? How about the infamous Maverick and GM's Chevette and "X-Car" crapmobiles? Anyone got any warm fuzzies there?

The Joan Claybrook clones admitted that tiny cars was THE policy goal of EPA + CAFE, to force cars to become tiddly, tinny, junky jokes. One of the perp 'crats admitted it in a "friendly" interview with some prolefeed-perps from PBS. Giggle, giggle -- yeah, we thought we did that pretty well. <snicker, snort>

Any admission you'd like to cop to on the roadside body count, Jack?