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So you believe your morals and values should be the norm, and people should only allowed to be able to purchase vehicles you approve of?
Who cares if Jane the Soccer Mom wants a supercharged 'Slade on 24's to carry one person around? Her money, her gas bill. Not yours.
And dealerships shouldn't be allowed to sell a profitable product to consumers who want it?
What a crock.
No, it ends up being my gas bill, because of her vehicle burning 3x the gas as mine and taking up the supply needlessly. Multiply that by 1 million Americans, and that's a LOT of wasted gas just to "look cool", when they could just as easily get a 4-door Camry, but perish that thought, it's not "cool enough". Lest we forget, there was once a time when SUVs were not among the common folk. We survived then, we can survive now. Again, the majority of SUV models were never meant to be sold to consumers. The fact they became profitable is just an indicator that Americans don't give a damn about anyone but themselves. That's why the Japanese can't stand us as it is: our priorities are seriously screwed up. And then people do what you're doing...attempt to defend it with your "I can afford it, so let me buy it" mentality instead of actually stopping to think about others.
Bottom line: regardless of what you think, and no matter what a stripper tells you, I sincerely hope the automakers change their approach OR the tax law changes back to what it was in the 90's. Either force vehicles to get at least 20MPG - effectively eliminating the majority of standard SUVs, limit SUV and large truck sales to businesses who can quantify their use, and/or tax heavily those consumers who choose to buy them (I'd say, 30% of MSRP every year they own it, cross referenced by DMV records to prevent fraud and evasion) and use the money to continue alternative fuel research.
No, it ends up being my gas bill, because of her vehicle burning 3x the gas as mine and taking up the supply needlessly. Multiply that by 1 million Americans, and that's a LOT of wasted gas just to "look cool", when they could just as easily get a 4-door Camry, but perish that thought, it's not "cool enough". Lest we forget, there was once a time when SUVs were not among the common folk. We survived then, we can survive now. Again, the majority of SUV models were never meant to be sold to consumers. The fact they became profitable is just an indicator that Americans don't give a damn about anyone but themselves. That's why the Japanese can't stand us as it is: our priorities are seriously screwed up. And then people do what you're doing...attempt to defend it with your "I can afford it, so let me buy it" mentality instead of actually stopping to think about others.
Bottom line: regardless of what you think, and no matter what a stripper tells you, I sincerely hope the automakers change their approach OR the tax law changes back to what it was in the 90's. Either force vehicles to get at least 20MPG - effectively eliminating the majority of standard SUVs, limit SUV and large truck sales to businesses who can quantify their use, and/or tax heavily those consumers who choose to buy them (I'd say, 30% of MSRP every year they own it, cross referenced by DMV records to prevent fraud and evasion) and use the money to continue alternative fuel research.
My opinion. It won't change.
Ah, so it's the SUV's that were responsible for the recent increase in gas prices, not OPEC production or irresponsible speculation.
Got it.
By the way, the Japanese tend not to like anybody that isn't Japanese.
No, it ends up being my gas bill, because of her vehicle burning 3x the gas as mine and taking up the supply needlessly. Multiply that by 1 million Americans, and that's a LOT of wasted gas just to "look cool", when they could just as easily get a 4-door Camry, but perish that thought, it's not "cool enough". Lest we forget, there was once a time when SUVs were not among the common folk. We survived then, we can survive now. Again, the majority of SUV models were never meant to be sold to consumers. The fact they became profitable is just an indicator that Americans don't give a damn about anyone but themselves. That's why the Japanese can't stand us as it is: our priorities are seriously screwed up. And then people do what you're doing...attempt to defend it with your "I can afford it, so let me buy it" mentality instead of actually stopping to think about others.
Bottom line: regardless of what you think, and no matter what a stripper tells you, I sincerely hope the automakers change their approach OR the tax law changes back to what it was in the 90's. Either force vehicles to get at least 20MPG - effectively eliminating the majority of standard SUVs, limit SUV and large truck sales to businesses who can quantify their use, and/or tax heavily those consumers who choose to buy them (I'd say, 30% of MSRP every year they own it, cross referenced by DMV records to prevent fraud and evasion) and use the money to continue alternative fuel research.
Ah, so it's the SUV's that were responsible for the recent increase in gas prices, not OPEC production or irresponsible speculation.
Got it.
Your statement, not mine. I said that SUVs consume unnecessary supply as they're for the most part extremely fuel inefficient. That's a factual statement. Low supply = higher prices. Is it the sole factor? No, but I never said it was. It's a contributing factor and a large one at that.
Your statement, not mine. I said that SUVs consume unnecessary supply as they're for the most part extremely fuel inefficient. That's a factual statement. Low supply = higher prices. Is it the sole factor? No, but I never said it was. It's a contributing factor and a large one at that.
No, it's your statement. You said that someone else's SUV burning more gas was responsible for higher fuel prices.
It actually has a miniscule amount to do with it. Automotice use in general is a very small consumer of gasoline, compared to everything else, and especially SUV's compared to other types of vehicles.
But keep on telling yourself that you're right, since it makes you feel better.
If only life were as simplistic as you want it to be.
I see, you're one of those who likes to see things through crystal balls and do some serious math calculations on the side to make it REAL interesting in orgasmic proportions. I totally get it!!!
Factors Behind the Increase in Gasoline Prices in 2005
Since the beginning of 2005, U.S. retail gasoline prices have been generaly increasing, with the average price of regular gasoline rising from $1.78 per gallon on January 3 to as high as $3.07 per gallon on September 5, as Hurricane Katrina further tightened gasoline supplies. But the hurricane is only one factor, albeit a dramatic one, which has caused gasoline prices to rise in 2005.
A major factor influencing gasoline prices in 2005 was the increase in crude oil prices. The price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil, which started the year at about $42 per barrel, reached $70 per barrel in early September. Crude oil prices rose throughout 2004 and 2005, as global oil demand increased dramatically, stretching capacity along the entire oil market system, from crude oil production to transportation (tankers and pipelines) to refinery capacity, nearly to its limits. With minimal spare capacity in the face of the potential for significant supply disruptions from numerous sources, oil prices were high throughout 2005.
In addition, Hurricane Katrina had a devastating impact on U.S. gasoline markets, initially taking out more than 25 percent of U.S. crude oil production and 10-15 percent of U.S. refinery capacity. On top of that, major oil pipelines that feed the Midwest and the East Coast from the Gulf of Mexico area were shut down or forced to operate at reduced rates for a significant period. With such a large drop in supply, prices spiked dramatically. Because two pipelines that carry gasoline were down initially, some stations actually ran out of gasoline temporarily. However, once the pipelines were restored to full capacity and some of the refineries were restarted, retail prices began to fall. Increased gasoline imports in the fall of 2005, in part stemming from the International Energy Agency’s emergency release, also added downward pressure to gasoline prices. However, retail prices are likely to remain elevated as long as some refineries remain shut down and the U.S. gasoline market continues to stretch supplies to their limit.
SUV's were on fire during the 1990's. Yet gas stayed pretty steady.
Too many cars are being produced worldwide, and certainly in the US.
Too many choices for the few and far-between earnest and qualified buyers.
The history of GM, Ford and Chryco cars, quality and design-wise, is spotty at best and tragic at worst. No-one believes them now.
Even the "Buy American" types will have to eat their own shorts when their new Americar doesn't live up to always rising global quality and durability standards.
The economy will continue to drastically reduce the now-and-future available buyer pool.
The number of car dealers, particularly for American products, will have to similarly drop dramatically. I'd say 7 out of 10 will be gone in a year. Minimum.
The UAW's long history of grinding the manufacturers down for outrageous hourly wages and benefits compared to US-side transplants (VW and all the Japanese and Koreans) has come home to roost.
The result of these inalterable facts: real pain and suffering on the immediate and longer-term horizons.
Mr. Obama should NOT bail them out regardless. It will just satiate the UAW's and manufacturer’s management greed and obvious fear for their jobs, and will infuriate the American taxpayer when it all becomes all too apparent that it didn't work out. The Big Three will still have yet to have learned their most valuable lessons.
BTW, if the government folds and bails these guys out, watch how many managers then take an early retirement package while the funds are there to support such theft. After they've flown the coop, the empty shell of the original company will be left like a dead burro out in the desert sun, and we'll be asked to go out and bury it.
Write your Congressman and Senator. Soon!
Last edited by thotful1; 12-08-2008 at 01:27 AM..
Reason: a typo error
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The inevitable will happen.
