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June 21, 2006 [LINK]
Bogus incentives for hybrids
Daniel Drezner professes (!) to be mystified by the tax incentives for hybrid-powered vehicles. That happens to be one of my biggest pet peeves, so I couldn't resist jumping into the fray. Unfortunately, something is wrong with his blog comment system, so my repeated attempts to post the following comment came to nought. For the record:
Prof. Drezner says "why someone should get a tax credit of over $1,500 for a Lexus GS 450h when its gas mileage is below a lot of non-hybrid cars on this list is beyond me." Is it not obvious that the whole idiotic system of tax breaks is designed to artificially inflate the social prestige value of energy conservation? The transparent sop to "domestic" car makers via that 60K quota diverts attention from the more fundamental question of why U.S. energy policy is not market based. My wife and I considered an Escape Hybrid but I detest being suckered by fickle Federal incentives, so we got the conventional V-6 engine instead. If Congress really believed that energy is more precious than is reflected by current market prices, they should simply raise excise taxes on fuel across the board. Of course, they won't do so as long as most Americans believe that cheap energy is their birthright. Hence the tax code gimmicks and statist social engineering. Seeking to discern rational intent in a policy that is in essence a cloak to conceal massive hypocrisy is a waste of time.
Here's another way to look at it: Anyone who feels guilt over driving a gas-guzzling vehicle is in effect admitting that he or she is not paying as much for the gas as it's really worth. We've had our Ford Escape for just over a year, and it's doing fine. I would have preferred a Chrysler PT Cruiser, but Jacqueline had her heart set on the Escape.
Save the whales? Not!
Prof. Drezner also explains why the International Whaling Commission so often makes decisions that are contrary to basic conservationist principles: flagrant bribery! In this case, by Japan. Who would have thought that an international organization would be susceptible to such crass practices?
Since the whaling moratorium was enacted in 1986, more than 24,000 whales have been killed, mostly by Japan, Norway, Russia, and Iceland. See CNN.com.
Posted (or last updated or commented upon): 21 Jun 2006, 10: 10 PM
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Category archives:
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This (or that) year's
blog highlights
January 7, 2006 ~ DeLay gives up majority leader post
January 12, 2006 ~ Alito withstands Dems' "torture"
January 16, 2006 ~ Michelle Bachelet wins in Chile
January 19, 2006 ~ Views on Iran's nuclear ambitions
January 24, 2006 ~ Fallout from Canada's election
January 31, 2006 ~ Second (& third) thoughts on Iran
February 1, 2006 ~ The State of the Union, 2006
February 8, 2006 ~ D.C. Council votes "yes," but...
February 18, 2006 ~ Checks and balances in wartime
February 22, 2006 ~
Neocons & Neolibs: chastened alike
February 28, 2006 ~
The Dubai Ports World uproar
March 14, 2006 ~ New D.C. baseball stadium unveiled
March 24, 2006 ~ In the footsteps of France?
April 7, 2006 ~ Immigration compromise fails
May 16, 2006 ~ Bush militarizes Mexican border
June 6, 2006 ~ Alan Garcia triumphs, once again
June 9, 2006 ~
Zarqawi: The death of a terrorist
July 3, 2006 ~
Election in Mexico: too close to call
July 5, 2006 ~ North Korea goes ballistic
July 28, 2006 ~ Garcia prepares to lead Peru, again
August 4, 2006 ~ Israel invades Hezbolland
September 6, 2006 ~ "Crunchy conservatives": for real?
September 25, 2006 ~ Nationalists thwart conservation
October 3, 2006 ~ Nationals: Year in review
October 29, 2006 ~ Virginia's marriage amendment
November 7, 2006 ~ The people render their verdict
November 8, 2006 ~ Republicans lose big time
November 9, 2006 ~ Allen concedes / Election post-mortem
November 13, 2006 ~ Toward consensus on Iraq?
December 1, 2006 ~ Realism and our goals in Iraq
December 6, 2006 ~ Latin America & U.S. trade policy
December 8, 2006 ~ Iraq Study Group reports
December 22, 2006 ~ Yuletide political roundup
Blog highlights have been compiled for the years 2010-2012 thus far, and eventually will be compiled for earlier years, back to 2002.
Explanation
The "home made" blog organization system that I created was instituted on November 1, 2004, followed by several functional enhancements in subsequent years. I make no more than one blog post per day on any one category, so some posts may cover multiple news items or issues. Blog posts appear in the following (reverse alphabetical) order, which may differ from the chronological order in which the posts were originally made:
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- Culture & Travel
- Canaries ("Home birds")
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Also see: My blog practices.
Blog errata (Nobody's perfect.)