Anyway, I think this will go down like this: Both the supply and demand for oil is very inelastic (except supply can be elastic in the down direction, as oil wells can be shut off if not profitable) meaning that a small change in either supply or demand will have a big impact on price.

That said, if the Volt (and its ilk) is successful (by success I mean replacing 1-2% of passenger vehicles) the price of oil will drop dramatically. But with the specs I’ve seen, the Volt can still be competitive even when compared to cheap gas. But it’s going to be a balancing act, when oil prices spike, Electrics will be more favorable and will help drive the price of oil back down.

Has anyone checked out the MDI compressed air powered car? Very interesting.

Someone (or a couple people) earlier compared ICE vehicles to horse and buggy, predicting that once electrics take hold the ICE vehicles will die out quickly. I don’t think it’ll be that fast, as electrics are not anywhere near able to pull loads (think horse trailers, utility vehicles, 18-wheelers, trains, airplanes, etc). So ICE will be around for a long time I predict.

But what the Volt will give me is a choice. And us (anti-global warming hysteria) conservatives LOVE choice. If something bad happens and gas is not available (this happened in a few places after Katrina) the country would literally come to a stop. If I have the ability to switch to all electric (my commute is just about 40 miles) then I can get to my job. Plus, with the extended range I can make the longer trips. Absolutely the holy grail!

So, I (conservative) want the oil producing countries to pound sand, the greens want to halt global warming; and the Volt is the answer to both. I’m all for it, strange bedfellows and all.

Someone I know used to say “buy American”, thinking he was a patriot. I told him I was going to buy the best car for the best price — made him blow his top. Then I asked, isn’t it possible that both philosophies can result in buying the same car (i.e. American)? His approach assumes from the start that American cars are not the best. I say that given fair competition, America can produce the best.

Anyway, about a year ago I switched from a 97 Pontiac Bonneville to an 03 Nissan Sentra. The Bonneville made it to 160k, and an old Nissan I had years ago (a 1981 Datsun 210) made it to 360k, and was still running (I only got rid of it because I could finally afford something nicer). The sentra will easily last until 2011, and I would love to go back to an American car (they are more comfortable and stylish).

How that money is spent is the other part.

death to oil

OK, I can play that game too.

While I agree with you in spirit on certain aspects of your posts, I sincerely question you on others. For instance, I’m not sure how an additional tax on fuel constitutes a “crime”?

Just because some politicians are greedy, some laws are stupid and some taxes are wasteful doesn’t mean that the entire system is without merit. Some taxes are good, for instance, I’m happy to pay the property and sales taxes in my community that pay for police and fire protection. On the other hand, I agree that government waste is a real problem. I suggest that updating the fuel tax could be part of the solution, provided that the revenue collected from the tax be applied to advancing technologies and services that reduce our dependence on oil. I don’t think anyone is suggesting that a big, fat tax will solve our problems any more than I believe that you are suggesting that we should overthrow the government since all taxes are criminal.

Like it or not, we live in a complex society with scarce resources and we have to make compromises to provide for the general welfare. When this coutry was founded, government was not very effective at enforcing laws, so it was up to individuals to fend for themselves. While I admire that ethic, its just not reasonable to assume that you can use up as much water (or any other resource) as you want, just because you want to. At some point, waste affects the common good, and must be curtailed. Using oil to the degree that we do, represents waste, since it depletes our economy and our environment. Is it unfortunate that we need to tax certain resources because some people don’t act in the common interest? Yes, but its a fact of life.