All throughout modern history, the repubs have resisted any effort to increase fuel economy. We would have tremendously less demand if CAFE standards were taken care of in the 1980's. Trillions of gallons. More than could ever be produced here. They fought it every step of the way. I guess it is more of an issue of making money for oil companies than an issue of protecting oil supplies for the future.

If I wanted America to fail I'd let corporations set their own rules to produce more profitable but less efficient cars and trucks. I'd use the US Military to artificially keep gas prices low so consumers would feel it was their birth right to drive 7,000 pound SUV's to the store for milk.

Or bread...

If I wanted America to fail I'd oppose investment in mass transportation to ensure millions of cars sat idling in the gridlock of city traffic wasting away the same natural resources that power our factories and heat our homes.

Hey, this is pretty fun :hihi:

-spence

"If I wanted America to fail I'd oppose investment in mass transportation to ensure millions of cars sat idling in the gridlock of city traffic wasting away the same natural resources that power our factories and heat our homes."

If I wanted America to fail, I'd continue to spend zillions of dollars which we do not have, on mass transportation systems which almost no one wants.

Spence, once again, your ideology is blinding you from the reality. Those people in their cars LIKE being in their cars. They're not rejecting mass transportation because it's not modern enough. They're rejecting mass transportation because 99% of working Americans prefer the comfort and convenience of driving their own cars. You're not going to make more people choose mass transportation by making trains and buses more efficient or slick-looking. Sorry to interrupt yet another ideologically-fueled rant, with facts.

The personal automobile is one of history's great providers of freedom. Thanks to the auto, most of us chose to move away from the cities, and out into the suburbs.

I just watched the video for the first time. What a giant piece of simple minded garbage. Typical moronic scare tactic based not on the truth or reality, but on what gets people fired up. Almost not worth justifying with a response.

Close, but nearly enough hyperbole.

If I wanted America to fail I'd convince young men the Automobile was the essence of freedom and as they fled our cities I'd let banks give out cheap loans so everyone could afford McMansion's to deplete our forests and pump billions of tons of toxins into our air as aging electrical grids strain to keep up with over sized air conditioners chilling empty rooms.

As the suburbs consumed the farm land I'd genetically modify the food and pump livestock with drugs to make them more productive.

If I wanted America to fail, I'd tell the people this was progress and that the free market was providing for their future.

Jim, do you got the prescription???

blue oyster cult/chris walken original more cowbell - YouTube

-spence

Spence, the automobile is one of the greatest providers of liberty that the planet has ever known. I lived in New York City when I was in my early 20's. I wouldn't go back if you put a gun to my head. I live on a cul-de-sac in a quiet town. No blight, no crime, no panhandling, no graffiti, no gangbangers. It's a huge, huge improvement in my quality of life, especially for my 3 boys, which is all that matters.

I like the sarcastic reference about free market providing for my future. First, the market isn't supposed to provide for anyone's future. What it's supposed to do, and it does it quite well, is provide the opportunity for me to provide for my own future. Mission nearly accomplished. Second, I assume you think government does a better job that the market at providing for the future? Try selling that to the Europeans.

This country is far from perfect, but it's by far the best place there is. If you ever doubt that, read Clarence Thomas's life story, or Condaleeza Rice's, or Oprah Winfrey's if it has to be a liberal. This is the only place on the planet where those folks could have done what they did.

You're opposed to the act of those people buying McMansions, yet you now want to reward them by paying for programs that reduce their principal amounts. That's liberalism for you - you reward bad behavior, and you think that makes sense. Every parent knows exactly what happens when you let kids avoid responsibility for bad behavior.

You're making this too easy today, Spence.

If you don't like roads, cars, air conditioning, and electricity, go live in Zimbabwe and wipe your azz with your bare hands for the rest of your life. But you'll see that most people who don't have things like cars, roads, and air-conditioning, really want to get those things.

You're telling me my food is rotten because of all the processing, hormones. I guess that explains why life expectancy is shorter today than it was 50 years ago? Oh wait...sorry, once again, your ideological rant cannot stand up to a scintilla of scrutiny. Do you people ever get one right, even by accident? Do you ever, ever get tired of being so wrong, so often?

We like the suburbs. And we aren't all that interested in hearing your shriek about why we're destroying the planet. Funny that the hero of the green movement, Al Gore, is one of the most eggregious abusers of the planet he claims to care for. Spence, WHY IS IT OK FOR AL GORE TO HAVE MANSIONS AND A PRIVATE JET, but no one else gets to, because it's bad for the planet? Who made him king? One day you'll realize you got played for a sucker.

Funny, I was thinking the same thing about this thread. It's scary that I wasn't even trying.

Irony? Karma? Who knows...

-spence

If I wanted America to fail I would simply re-elect Obama for another 4 years.

Now that's the kind of hyperbole we're looking for in this thread :btu:

-spence

How about we elect idiots who want to run things the way they were run 6 years ago? Now that is genius.

No exageration here Spence, just mho as to the most simple way. :hihi:

The Democrats took control of Congress in the 2006 elections. At the time they took over, the economy was growing like crazy, and unemployment was so low my golden retriever could have walked into Burger King and walked out as assistant manager. The Democrats officially took over the legislature in January 2007. The legislature, in our republic, controls the legislative agenda. Are things better now, or worse? The market indices? Unemployment? GDP growth? Our national debt?

Take all the time you need responding to that one.

Zimmy, Bill Clinton saw the light in 1996 and turned to the right. He cut taxes, balanced the budget, and told millions of people on welfare to go get a job. Do you know what they did? They went out and got a job. When you threaten to remove the safety net, people have more incentive to keep both hands on the trapeeze.

anyway, when Clinton implemented what we now identify as conservative principles - you guessed it- the economy grew like crazy. Bush comntinued this, and - you guessed it - the economy grew like crazy.

What we need is precisely what you mocked - a return to those principles that appeared to work. However, we need to learn from our mistakes, and do it smarter this time...meaning, liberals can't force banks to give $400,000 mortgages to men's room attendants just because it serves their agenda, and conservatives can't let Wall Street run wild with fishy derivitives.

That's what we need to do, and we need to curtail reckless spending, and address social security and medicare shortfalls.

Someone tell me why that's not the best track. We get those that can, back to work. we'll have more tax revenue to help those who need it. That's the track to prosperity.