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To: theBuckwheat
The only other way to make it happen involves the destruction of liberty because we will get armed government agents involved in a sugar-coated scheme that is really coercion.

Whatever. -- Needless to say, I believe our transition to electric autos only needs some technology that works. -- The market would then take care of the details, regardless of 'gov't agents'..

Am I "really against" electric cars. Not at all. It is just that I am not in favor of all the things that electric cars will require us, the consumer and taxpayer, to cough up the money for. So far, the market seems to agree with me.

Why would 'the market' agree on requiring us, as taxpayers, to cough up money?
-- If electric cars became technically feasible, people would use them & the power market would adjust.. You seem determined that the gov't would control this issue. -- Why?

103 posted on 08/13/2006 1:13:29 PM PDT by tpaine
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To: tpaine
>>
You seem determined that the gov't would control this issue. -- Why?
<<

That is a curious question because quite to the contrary, I expect that the government will control this issue even though I don't think it is a good idea.

How will government control this? By doing exactly what F.A. Hayek warned it would do: choosing winners and losers in who gets government favors, who gets permits, who doesn't, who gets tax subsidies, who doesn't.

In fact, this has already started. Government has allocated millions, maybe billions in research grants on electric vehicles. Who gets the grants and for what? What technologies will see the light of day and which will shrivel on the vine because the committee of learned bureaucrats did not think it was "viable".

There is already a tax credit for people who buy one of these cars. There are tax subsidies and exemptions from other taxes in various jurisdictions. These tax issues come right out of everyone's pocket, that is except for the money the government borrows from the Chinese.

Politicians love to place themselves as the broker of power between the federal purse, the federal regulatory bodies, the tax code and the interested parties. So, not only does this cost us, it helps consolidate power in the Washington establishment rather than allowing millions of individuals make their own voluntary decisions.
104 posted on 08/13/2006 6:52:21 PM PDT by theBuckwheat
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