Wind Cars

The Telegraph has a small article on the Democrat's Bill to rescind a specific type of tax break for big oil companies.

Big Oil Lovers are having heart palpitations over the fact that oil companies will pay an estimated $14 Billion over the next ten years. Will this increase our dependence on foreign oil? Some people say yes, because that $1.4 Billion per year would be used for advanced oil exploration/extraction methods. Other people say no because this is a small amount of money spread across a few very large companies that have earned record profits over the last few years.

However, I wanted to share something else from the article. It's a throw-away line that displays the mindset of Republican Oilmen:

"The San Francisco Democrats want to run cars with wind," said Representative Steve Pearce, referring to new House leader Nancy Pelosi, who comes from the famously liberal city.

It's fair to note that Steve Pearce is the owner of a small oil business worth at least a million dollars.

But let's look at this comment. "San Francisco Democrats want to run cars with wind." If we're discussing a pure zero pollution emission vehicle (including manufacturing the car and the process to compress the air), then is that really such a bad thing to 'want'? Regardless if it is feasible right now, that's a good thing to 'want'.

Pearce and his Republican ilk do not seem to have any interest in seeking legitimate, practical alternative energy sources. They 'want' to stay the course for either ideological reasons or because it is their main paycheck. They don't 'want' to reduce air pollution. They don't 'want' to actually reduce dependence on foreign oil. They 'want' the status quo to remain unchanged for the rest of their life, and they will undermine any attempt at real progress toward alternative energy sources.

I am not very upset that San Francisco Democrats 'want' a car that runs on wind, because you have to 'want' the impossible. And then you start working backward from that point until you reach the feasible. Increasing taxes on oil companies will force the US to depend on more foreign oil? How about asking those patriotic automakers to increase fuel efficiency? How about asking all those patriots like Steve Pearce to support higher efficiency cars in both public and private sectors? A little bit of conservation might actually reduce our dependence on OPEC oil.

And let's even go further with the impossible. How about the President uses his State of the Union address to begin a huge public campaign to encourage conservation, challenge American auto-makers to double fuel efficiency and reduce emissions by half, and then provide more incentives to buy American-made hybrid vehicles. Challenge the American people to work toward the goals of reducing pollution, reducing dependence on petroleum products, and help rebuild the American Automotive Empire in Detroit.

Oh yeah, that's right. Republicans don't really 'want' to pursue those goals. I forgot...