[lbo-talk] A Case for a Higher Gasoline Tax

[Matt]

On Tue, Jan 10, 2006 at 11:40:01PM +0000, jmhayes at j-o-r-d-a-n.com wrote:
> > Why is so hard to grasp the fact that we're courting disaster by 
> > burning hydrocarbons at such a furious rate?
> 
> Who has said anything to the contrary?  In fact, we're not just
> _courting_  disaster, we are actually married to it.  But as so
> often comes up here, the more important question is: what is to be
> done?  You've suggested taxing the poor and "changing behavior" -- but
> that's completely unrealistic.

Indeed, I didn't dispute the disaster either, and concur - screwing
the working class and the poor seems like a bad idea and won't go over
well.

Sweden announced a plan to eliminate oil dependency by 2020, and it
consists of (http://www.sweden.gov.se/sb/d/3212/a/51058):

   * Tax relief for converting from oil heating to renewable

   * More renewable energy: increasing green certificates, investment

   increase in renewables by Vattenfall

   * Renewable fuel car perks: tax exemptions for renewable fuels,

   free parking, etc.

   * R&D funding for renewables

France is cutting oil use by 2020, via 3rd generation reactor to come
online in 2012
(http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060105/sc_nm/energy_france_nuclear_dc)

I don't know if tax relief for switching from oil, subsidizing R&D,
and nuclear reactors are what people have in mind, but they seem to
actually present a solution.

I have a 15 year old "gas guzzling" SUV (bite me, I go camping a lot,
and haul musical instruments around, and they just don't fit in our
other car - a compact) but I drive < 5000 miles per year in it
(N.B. that exempts me from PA's emissions inspection).  However our
small ranch single family home is heated by oil, and our monthly bill
(including the basic service plan) is more than we spend each month
"at the pumps" on both vehicles combined.  2003's heating oil budget
to 2006's is an increase of ~150%.

Matt

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