Just joined after reading about the Volt.I am currently in the Reserves in Baghdad and cant wait till we are energy independant.I think a car like this is a step in the right direction.

Welcome, CharlieB53. Thank you for your service! God bless you and the rest of the troops. :)

Thank You.My third (and final )trip here.

CharlieB53 is just one more reason why we need to keep up our efforts to find alternatives to petroleum, even if the price of gas drops to $1.50 a gallon.

People, please resist the urge to select a huge truck or SUV now that you see cheap gas. Remember that there are other things to consider besides that cheap price.

CharlieB53, stay safe and hurry home and buy an EV. It might also be a good project to do an electric conversion. Much cheaper and you might be able to use some of your new skills.

Did you say three tours? Thank you and forgive my generation's stupidity (of which I am also guilty). Hopefully your generation will not repeat our mistakes.

Just joined after reading about the Volt.I am currently in the Reserves in Baghdad and cant wait till we are energy independant.I think a car like this is a step in the right direction.

Charlie,

I agree with you 100%. The ability to go where we want whenever we want is one of the greatest freedoms that we have in this country. Our addiction to foreign energy risks that freedom (in many ways), and we need to work on getting energy independent to maintain that freedom.

However, the rest of us can sit safely in our homes and blog all night because of the sacrifice and dedication of guys like you. I want to personally thank you for this, on behalf of myself and my family. We may be short on oil, but as long as we've got guys like you we don't want for anything.

I noticed on the main page that Lyle and Nasaman are suggesting that the government bail out GM by buying 100,000 Volts per year and letting government employees use them. I'd like to modify this suggestion. Why don't we buy a Volt for every veteran returning from the war zone? If anyone has earned them, you have. And who would appreciate a step toward energy independence more than someone who was willing to risk his or her skin to keep this country safe?

I'm not too keen on a $10B handout to save GM, but I'd vote in a minute for buying 250,000 Volts for that same $10B and giving them to the veterans that earned them.

Sounds good?

I cant complain,I volunteered.But I agree,now that the price of fuel is dropping I am afraid people will start buying big gas guzzlers again.

I cant complain,I volunteered.But I agree,now that the price of fuel is dropping I am afraid people will start buying big gas guzzlers again.

I think it's different this time. The price of gas went up so fast, and down so fast, that I think it raised the awareness of this. In addition, we have the double-whammy of fuel costs and CO2 emissions.

The good news is that the Volt is only one tool in the energy independence toolkit. There are about 4-5 companies promising cellulostic ethanol for about $1/gallon, and a couple of companies working on synthetic gasoline. The groundwork is in place for an amazing change. It'll take 4-5 years before it's ready, but it's not like the 1970s where we forgot about it and went back to our old ways.

Stay safe! God bless!

I wouldnt hold my breath waiting for Uncle Sam to start handing out Volts but thanks for the thought.Over here the military and contractors use countless big Chevy and Ford pickups,both gas and deisel.The roads(or what passes for roads)are terrible.So maybe it wouldnt work here,but at the countless other facilities we have around the world would be a great place to show we are serious about our future.Let the government start replacing its cars with them.
And I agree with you that it is different this time.This time it may have left a lasting impression